Morecambe manager's harsh words following Colchester United defeat

Arthur Read’s first-half free-kick settled matters against a Morecambe team which saw Ged Garner miss a second-half penalty and an offside flag rule out Jacob Bedeau’s goal.

It leaves the Shrimps with three draws and as many defeats on home soil since Brannan replaced Derek Adams at the end of November.

Defeat also saw them drop back down to 15th position in League Two, having lost to a Colchester team that started the day third-bottom.

Reflecting on the loss, Morecambe’s manager acknowledged aspects of their display were ‘unacceptable’.

He said: “It was very disappointing today, especially the first half because we weren’t at the races.

“We have got a few injuries and we missed a few players, and it showed because we were nowhere near the levels we need to be before the break.

“We had players just jogging around the pitch, which was unacceptable, and we will go through the match on Monday with the players.

“We had a right go in the second half and missed a penalty, which was vital, because I am sure that if we had scored that we would have gone on to win the game.

“We are going through a bit of a bad run at home at the minute and we are looking a bit nervous in front of our own fans for some reason – and we need to change that sooner rather than later.”