Ged Brannan spoke of the harmony within the Morecambe squad as they prepare to face Walsall in the only League Two fixture of Tuesday night.
The Shrimps face a Saddlers side in a fixture that was initially scheduled in January, but halted due to each club’s involvment in the third round of the FA Cup. Two points seperate the visitors from Mat Sadler’s side, who currently occupy fifteenth in the table.
Both sides are hot on the tails of the fourth tier play-off hunt, with a win for either side putting them within touching distance of seventh-placed Notts County. Morecambe are seeking their third away win on the bounce, whilst Walsall are unbeaten in six games at home.
The 52-year-old Shrimps boss spoke to the press ahead of their visit to the West Midlands, focusing on the momentum his side have generated in recent weeks on the road. He said: “Hopefully we’ll go into this Tuesday game full of confidence and hopefully get a run started.
“First team football is all about winning, getting points on the table, so psychology is big, massive. You’ve got to get them on board, with everything. How to go and win games, what position to take on the pitch, and how to play really.”
Following the departure of Adam Mayor to Millwall in the final days of the January transfer window, all of the Lancashire club’s senior players will be out of contract in summer. Brannan believes the situation will sharpen his players in future games, adding: “These days, players are getting tapped up by other clubs, probably right now and have got their futures planned, some of them.
“Hopefully not at our club, and they’ll all want to stay here and finish as high up the table as possible and make the play-offs. And that will make them want to stay, as there’s a lot of players in that changing room who’ll do really well at this club if they stay on.
“The way our club is at the moment, everyone seems to be on board with eachother, all really enjoying it from the chef all the way through to the cleaners. We all want to go the right way. If you’re enjoying your job, you’ll want to stay, and hopefully that will make our players want to stay.”
Brannan took over as boss at Morecambe in November 2023 following the departure of Derek Adams to Scottish Premiership side Ross County initially as caretaker, before being appointed permanently at the end of that month.
The former Wigan Athletic and Norwich City midfielder was confident of his team’s prospects against The Saddlers tonight, concluding:
“We’re going there to win the game and to take the three points. It will be a very different game, they are very physical. We will get chances against them, so I’m definitely going there to get the three points.”
Writer’s View
Morecambe boss Ged Brannan seems to be happy with his current side following the new additions he made to the squad in the transfer window, making nine additions over the course of January. He has quickly added them into his first-team plans, including Ged Garner and Julian Larsson in their most recent game, a 2-1 win over Crawley Town. Whilst not having a superb start as the manager of The Shrimps, Brannan seems to have got them well within the play-off picture this season.
Walsall will cause a real challenge to Morecambe tonight. Despite not playing at home many times over the winter period, a loss to Harrogate Town in November that was the last time The Saddlers lost at home. Adding the threat of Mo Faal to their side in the window does make them a dangerous side to face, and it should be a really exciting and narrow encounter at Bescot Stadium tonight.
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