Morecambe boss: More money is needed to move the club forward

Tomorrow marks a year to the day that the Scot returned to the Mazuma Stadium in the wake of his departure from Bradford City and Stephen Robinson’s move to St Mirren.

A first spell in charge saw Adams steer the Shrimps to survival in a League Two season cut short by the pandemic before showing great dignity in leading the club following the passing of Christian Mbulu.

Twelve months later, they were able to honour his memory at Wembley when Carlos Mendes Gomes’ goal saw the club promoted to League One for the first time.

Adams swiftly departed to Bradford with Robinson, just as quickly, filling the hotseat as the club played catch-up.

That process took place both on and off the pitch, as squad recruitment was combined with the appointment of people to key positions behind the scenes.

Nine months later, Adams returned with the Shrimps occupying the final relegation spot in League One, only to guide them to safety on the final day.

It’s been another battle against the odds this time around with the third tier arguably the strongest in living memory.

Seven former Premier League clubs occupy the division; eight if Wimbledon’s transformation into MK Dons is included.

Another 11 have played in the second tier at one point in their history, with seven of those having done so since the turn of the century.

With 14 games of the season remaining, Adams reflected on his first year back when speaking before training on Thursday.

He said: “It’s gone really quickly but it’s been a difficult year on and off the pitch.

“We’re definitely pushing to stay in the league but we haven’t really moved forward in the last year.

“We’re firefighting all the time and I would say we’ve got to a situation where money has to come into the football club to enable us to develop in certain areas.

“Behind the scenes, the non-footballing side has been backed financially and improved; on the footballing side, we have to work to the budget we’ve been given.”

Though Adams railed against the perception of ‘little old Morecambe’ when the club played in League Two, it can be easy for outsiders to have that view when comparing them to other clubs in League One.

It’s been another season of the Shrimps punching above their weight against clubs with larger stadia, fanbases, wage and transfer budgets, profiles and expectations.

Fifteen players have come into the club over the last year with another 20 departing; albeit Kieran Phillips has a foot in each camp given his loan spell with the Shrimps was cut short through injury.

It’s all been done against the backdrop of the club being prepared for sale last September and controversy surrounding a proposed takeover by Sarbjot Johal.

Adams added: “What I will say is having the smallest budget in League One and the smallest budget in League Two is never easy; it’s fighting against the odds all the time.

“I’m not complaining about it, it’s the situation we’re in, but it’s a really difficult league and we’ve got 14 games to go.

“We’ve been able to change the squad about a bit but the league has become more competitive this season compared to last.

“Our budget last season was outwith the bottom four but it’s now the bottom of the division.

“We knew, pre-season, that the teams coming up would be stronger (financially), as would the teams coming down.”

The fight for survival in League One is perhaps best reflected in the present table and the one when Adams returned 12 months ago.

In February last year, Crewe Alexandra were bottom with 22 points from 33 games while the other relegation positions were taken by Gillingham (27 from 34), Doncaster Rovers (28 from 35) and Morecambe (30 from 33).

There were eight points separating Gillingham in 23rd from Lincoln City, who were in 17th position.

Fast forward a year and Forest Green Rovers are bottom, again with 22 points from 33 matches.

Cambridge United (29 from 32), MK Dons (29 from 32) and Accrington Stanley (30 from 30) occupy the other relegation spots.

For their part, Morecambe are one point better off with 31 from 32 games, with eight points separating Cambridge and Oxford United in 17th.

The Shrimps’ goal difference is almost identical a year on as well, presently sitting on minus 19 as opposed to minus 20.

As a whole, Adams’ 13 games at the end of last season, combined with the 32 this time around, have yielded 43 points.

That would have only secured survival on one occasion in a fully-completed third tier season since the turn of the century.

That was last season when Morecambe stayed up with 42 points and Fleetwood edged out Gillingham on 40 thanks to goal difference.

Adams believes the reason for Morecambe’s points haul is simple; their inability to convert draws into wins.

He said: “If you look at it, we have taken points in 17 games this season but some teams will have taken points in fewer games because they have won more.“It’s the wins that are important. A point here or there helps but we’re trying to get the wins we need from now until the end of the season.”