Bentley frustrated by shot-shy Shrimps
BOTH bosses declared themselves happy with a point after the goalless draw at a wet and wild Globe Arena.
In a game where the swirling wind made good football almost impossible, both teams gave their all but struggled to create clear chances.
Morecambe boss Jim Bentley said he he was happy with the response he got after his side’s 3-0 midweek defeat to Port Vale but was left frustrated with another blank in front of goal as Morecambe failed to score for the fourth home game in a row.
He said: “I wanted a performance after Tuesday and I got that. We changed things and worked really hard to make sure we were strong and disciplined and we kept a second clean sheet in three games which was good.
“We were strong and focused, competed well and restricted a very good Grimsby side to very little. But at the same time we didn’t score again at home which was frustrating
“We had a few efforts and their keeper made a couple of good saves but the conditions made it really difficult. We did have a couple of good moves and had a lot of set pieces but we just couldn’t get the goal we needed and that is something we will have to continue to work on.”
Grimsby boss Russell Slade said: “I can’t ask for any more than a clean sheet away from home. The conditions were challenging but both teams hung in there and in the end I think the draw was a fair result.
“It’s one defeat in nine now for us and four points from two long away trips in the week which is a decent return and what we deserved. We are definitely looking more resilient as a team and we showed a lot of commitment.”
In a game of few chances both sides struggled to create clear openings with the home side shading things in terms of chances.
Morecambe, with the winds at their backs had much the better of the first half.
McKeown was the busier of the two keepers and produced a superb save on 23 minutes from an Adam McGurk effort.
McGurk also tested the Grimsby keeper with a long-range free kick while Vadaine Oliver headed a Luke Conlan cross wide.
The Mariners tried to get forward when they could with Sam Jones inches away from Ben Davies’ cross. Luke Summerfield was their main attacking threat.
The Shrimps forced a string of late corners but Grimsby defended them superbly to maintain their excellent run of recent form.