Morecambe FC were formed in 1920 and spent almost 50 years in the Lancashire Combination before becoming founder members of the Northern Premier League in 1968. Success was limited, though their finest moment of that era came in 1974 with an FA Trophy triumph at Wembley, beating Dartford.

Promotion to the Conference followed in 1995, and after years of near misses, the Shrimps finally cracked the Football League in 2007. For much of their stay in League Two they flirted with the relegation zone, the exception being 2009/10 when they finished fourth. A decade later came the club’s greatest achievement: in 2020/21, again finishing fourth, they upset the odds to win the play-offs and claim promotion to League One.

They lasted two seasons at that level before dropping back into League Two, and, with ownership turmoil hanging over the club, which was only resolved after the current season started with its sale to the Panjab Warriors consortium, suffered another relegation to the National League at the end of last season. Along the way, Morecambe have made the FA Cup third round on six occasions – twice as a non-league side – bowing out to top-flight opposition including Ipswich Town, Chelsea (twice), and Spurs.

After the experiment with the favoured manager of the new club owners, Ashvir Singh Johal didn’t really work out, at the start of February Morecambe turned to a familiar face – Jim Bentley, hoping he would steady the ship and just about save the Shrimps from going down. Bentley had been team manager between 2011 and 2019, during which time he led Morecambe – always perpetual favourites for relegation at the start of the season, given their limited budget – to mid-table or lower-half placings in League Two. This time, perhaps his arrival came a little too late to repeat his old tricks. That said, his performance at other clubs has been variable. First time round, he had left the Shrimps to go to another Lancashire side, AFC Fylde, only to lead them to relegation from the National League to the National League North in his first season with them. After being sacked by the Coasters, he moved early in the 2022/23 to another club within the historic boundaries of Lancashire, Rochdale, with a mission to save them from relegation. He was sacked in March, the team having won only six out of 32 league games and remained stuck to the bottom place in the EFL (from which they indeed relegated at season-end). He then had a spell at yet another club within the historic boundaries of Lancashire, Southport in the National League North, for two successive seasons leading them just clear of the relegation zone.

Although Bentley has announced that he will be stepping down as Manager at the end of this season, he has stated his intention of remaining with the club in other capacities, ‘to support the Club’s development across both footballing and non-footballing areas’.

Considering that it wasn’t even clear, a couple of weeks into this season, whether there would be a Morecambe FC to participate in the National League at all, even the survival of the club could be counted as a victory of sorts. After a belated start to the season, three weeks after the other clubs, there is no denying that Morecambe have struggled, having had in effect to start again from scratch, and have spent much of the season in the relegation zone. However, relegation has been assured for several matches now, despite the team putting up a strong fight on numerous occasions (only losing to York at home thanks to a goal scored nine minutes into injury time, for example), for next season the Shrimps will ply their trade in the National League North.  Probably the low point of the season was a 5-0 defeat by Truro, who spent much of the season where they ended up – in last place, while relative high points have included 5-0 and 4-0 victories over, respectively Sutton Utd and  Boston Utd,  and holding high-flying Scunthorpe to a 2-2 draw thanks to an injury time equaliser. The undoubted high point, though, came on Good Friday, when an inspired performance led to the Shrimps beating Rochdale 4-2 at Spotland. But alas, this has not been enough. The last time Morecambe played in the sixth tier (then the Northern Premier League Premier Division) was in 1994/95, and they will be hopeful of finding a way to climb out of the National League North as quickly as possible.

This season’s away fixture at the Mazuma Mobile Stadium on a Tuesday evening in early September 2025 was a 3-1 victory for Rovers, with a brace of goals from Tom Knowles and one from Kyle McAllister cancelling out an early Morecambe lead and sending Rovers top of the league.

The Shrimps were most recently in Nailsworth in September 2023, when both clubs were in the EFL League Two. The Shrimps were the victors, winning 2-1, with Rovers’ goal coming from Matty Taylor.

Forest Green Rovers F.C. – The New Lawn, Another Way, Nailsworth, Stroud, GL6 0FG

Parking is available in the adjacent school car park, just a short walk from the stadium. Spaces cost £15 per car and must be booked in advance by calling 0333 123 1889 (Monday, Thursday and Friday at 11am to 2pm) or by emailing reception@fgr.co.uk.

Alternatively, you can use the Park and Ride service from Renishaw (Bath Road, Nailsworth, Stroud, GL5 5EY). It opens at 10:00am on the matchday and costs £5 per car (card only).

If parking on surrounding streets, please be considerate of local residents.

Rovers Raffle – organised by the Supporters Club to subsidise away travel, ground improvements, Women’s, Academy teams etc. Tickets cost £1 each (cash or card accepted) with winners announced at half time or check winning numbers here – Raffle Results – Forest Green Rovers Supporters Club

Fan Zone – Fan Zone to the right of the ground entrance, behind the North Stand. Open to home & away supporters. The Fan Zone has a food truck, bar, toilets and a large marquee with picnic benches and live music.

The Green Man  – Normally home fans only,  serves food and drink.

Gym Bar – Open again in the East Stand, and open to other home supporters after the match.

Club Shop –  TNL is a cashless stadium. To find out about hospitality and events, please email hospitality@fgr.co.uk.