Late Chester equaliser forces Shrimps into FA Cup replay
Morecambe were denied a clear passage into the first round of the FA Cup as they conceded a dramatic 94th-minute Chester equaliser to force a replay at the Deva Stadium on Tuesday evening.
A superb first-half strike from Gwion Edwards looked set to earn the Shrimps an automatic spot in round one, before an injury-time mistake by new goalkeeper Jamal Blackman handed Chester substitute Fin Shrimpton the chance to level the scores with virtually the last kick of the game.
Boss Ashvir Singh Johal made four changes to the side that lost at Scunthorpe in midweek with full debuts for Blackman and midfielder Arjan Raikhy and recalls for Jack Nolan and Yann Songo’o.
And they had some early defending to do as Iwan Murray presented Connor Woods with a good chance at the back post, only for the winger to miss the target by some distance.
Morecambe then began to control the game and went in front with another fine Edwards goal as he cut inside from the left and curled an effort into the top left-hand corner of George Murray Jones’ goal.
From there Edwards tested the Chester keeper again before Jack Nolan came to the fore with a clipped effort that just missed the bottom corner and a free-kick that almost found Songo’o at the far post.
Chester hit back with the experienced Kevin Roberts found in space in the box only for him to hesitate and give the Shrimps time to clear.
The second half saw the Shrimps create a host of chances with the excellent Nolan twice being denied by the woodwork.
On 63 minutes he hit the inside of the keeper's right hand post with an arrowed drive from the edge of the area before then hitting the foot of the left-hand post with a low shot.
The turning point of the game came in the 80th minute when Murray-Jones somehow managed to tip away a shot from Elijah Dixon-Bonner, who looked certain to score after being teed up perfectly by Ben Tollitt.
With five minutes of added time displayed the visitors gave it their all and they were given a massive helping hand by some slack Morecambe play as they gave the ball away cheaply in the Chester half when they just needed to keep possession.
The visitors, roared on by more than 1,300 fans, staged a late attack and when Blackman spilled a Pat Jones effort, Shrimpton was on hand to fire the loose ball into the goal to force a tricky Tuesday replay.
Morecambe: Blackman; Payne, Kacurri, Francillette, Cain; Raikhy (Azeez 55), Songo'o; Nolan (Aarons 90), Thomas (Dixon-Bonner 75), Edwards (Sutton 67), Tollitt. Subs not used: Mair, Sesay, Panayiotou.
Chester: Murray-Jones; K Roberts, Leak, Carson, Woodthorpe; Weeks, Bainbridge, Murray (Shrimpton 76); Jones, Zanzala (Mottley-Henry 63), Woods (Peers 63). Subs not used: Barlow, Kelly-Evans, Rawlinson, F Roberts.
Referee: Declan Brown
Attendance: 3,066