Morecambe 2 City 1

Exeter City fell to their first defeat in four games in blustery conditions at Morecambe on Saturday.

The Grecians, with the wind in their favour first half, started the match brightly and were deservedly in front when Pierce Sweeney found the bottom corner. However, they conceded a soft goal from a corner shortly after and then Michael Rose hit an effort home in the closing stages of the second half to give Jim Bentley's side a much-needed three points in their battle against the drop.

Manager Paul Tisdale made three changes to the side that had drawn 1-1 with Yeovil Town last time out. Troy Archibald-Henville, Kyle Edwards and Lloyd James all came back into the side at the expense of Jordan Tillson, Matt Jay and Craig Woodman.

City started the match strongly with Dean Moxey firing into the side netting before Edwards and Ryan Harley both fired efforts over the crossbar from promising positions.

The hosts, at this stage, were struggling to get out of their own half with goalkeeper Barry Roche not able to kick the ball over the halfway line due to the strong wind blowing back in his direction. However, the blustery conditions were not conducive for good football for either side and it needed a moment of brilliance from City to open the deadlock. James, on his recall to the starting XI, produced a good midfield-splitting pass forward for Jayden Stockley on the edge of the box and the striker, intelligently, dummied the ball into the path of the overlapping Pierce Sweeney.

And on St Patrick's Day the Dublin-born full-back showed all the calmness of a 20-goal-a-season centre-forward as he placed the ball past Roche and into the far corner of the net.

Crucially though, that lead would only last five minutes as Sam Lavelle was allowed a free header, from a Morecambe corner, to nod the hosts back on terms.

The game could have swung back in City's favour just before the break as Edwards jinked in from the left-wing and hit a 20-yard shot that Roche stopped from reaching the top corner of his net with a superb fingertip save.

For the full match report click here