The 2020–21 season was Morecambe's 100th season since formation and their 14th consecutive season in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. It ended with the club being promoted to League One for the first time in their history, following playoff wins against Tranmere Rovers and, in the final, Newport County. They also competed in the FA Cup, EFL Cup and EFL Trophy.
The season was severely disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with all matches except the play-offs taking place behind closed doors.
Pre-season Due to the late start to the season, and lack of preparation time, Morecambe's pre-season was limited to just three matches against Manchester United U23s, Workington and Everton U23s.
Competitions EFL League Two
League table
Results summary
Results by matchday
Matches
The 2020–21 season fixtures were released on 21 August.
Play-offs
Morecambe's 4th-place finish in the league saw them qualify for the play-offs for the first time in 11 years. They played 7th place Tranmere Rovers over two legs and edged the Merseysiders out 3–2 on aggregate to reach the final for the first time in their history.
Play-off Final
The semi-final victory over Tranmere saw Morecambe book their third trip to Wembley, after the 1974 FA Trophy Final and the 2007 Conference Play-off Final.
They played Welsh side Newport County for a place in League One, and prevailed thanks to a penalty from Carlos Mendes Gomes in the second period of extra time.
FA Cup
The draw for the first round proper was made on 26 October 2020 by Grant Holt. Morecambe were handed an away tie at eighth tier Maldon & Tiptree.
The draw for the second round proper was made on 9 November 2020 by Danny Cowley, with Morecambe drawn at home to Solihull Moors of the National League.
Robbie Savage drew the teams for the third round proper on 30 November 2020, with Morecambe being drawn away to Premier League giants (and eventual runners-up in the competition) Chelsea.
All draws were broadcast live on the BBC.
EFL Cup
The first round draw was made on 18 August, live on Sky Sports, by Paul Merson. The draw for both the second and third round were confirmed on 6 September, live on Sky Sports by Phil Babb.
EFL Trophy
The regional group stage draw was confirmed on 18 August.
Transfers Transfers in Date Position Nationality Name From Fee 1 August 2020 LB Stephen Hendrie Kilmarnock Free transfer 2 August 2020 CB Harry Davis Grimsby Town Free transfer 3 August 2020 CB Nathaniel Knight-Percival Carlisle United Free transfer 4 August 2020 CF Liam McAlinden Stockport County Free transfer 10 August 2020 LM Ben Pringle Gillingham Free transfer 13 August 2020 RB Kelvin Mellor Bradford City Free transfer 22 September 2020 LB Liam Gibson Newcastle United Free transfer 23 September 2020 CB Yann Songo'o Scunthorpe United Free transfer 26 January 2021 GK Kyle Letheren Chesterfield Free transfer
Loans in Date from Position Nationality Name From Date until 5 August 2020 GK Jake Turner Newcastle United Recalled Jan 2021 11 August 2020 RB Ryan Cooney Burnley 30 June 2021 12 August 2020 DM Adam Phillips Burnley 1 February 2021 6 January 2021 CM Brad Lyons Blackburn Rovers 30 June 2021 22 January 2021 GK Jökull Andrésson Reading 29 January 2021 1 February 2021 DM Alex Denny Salford City End of season
Transfers out Date Position Nationality Name To Fee 1 July 2020 CB Tom Brewitt Tacoma Defiance Released 1 July 2020 RB Adam Buxton Prestatyn Town Released 1 July 2020 LW Kevin Ellison Newport County Released 1 July 2020 CF Kyle Hawley Stalybridge Celtic Released 1 July 2020 CF Michael Howard Marine Released 1 July 2020 CM Lamin Jagne Unattached Released 1 July 2020 CF Rhys Oates Hartlepool United Released 1 July 2020 CB Steven Old East Kilbride Rejected contract 1 July 2020 GK Barry Roche Retired 1 July 2020 CB Ritchie Sutton Altrincham Released 1 July 2020 CM Andrew Tutte Bolton Wanderers Released 7 August 2020 LB Jordan Cranston Solihull Moors Undisclosed 11 September 2020 LB Luke Conlan AFC Fylde Undisclosed
Footnotes
References