United claim important away over Morecambe
Cambridge United claimed their first win under new Manager Shaun Derry, with an impressive 4-2 away victory over Morecambe at the Globe Arena.
First half goals from Leon Legge, Ryan Donaldson and Luke Berry put the U’s in the driving seat at the break, with Ben Williamson’s strike two minutes after the interval sealing the three points for United.
Shaun Derry changed four players in his starting line-up with Beasant, Newton and Roberts all returning, as well as new loan signing Cameron Gayle making his debut for the U’s.
Keen to bounce back quickly from the defeat to Accrington Stanley four days earlier, it took United just 12 minutes to register the first goal of the match, Leon Legge rising highest in the box to head home Conor Newton’s chip at the front post.
From the resulting kick off, Luke Berry cracked the underside of the cross bar with a vicious strike that would have doubled the U’s lead and cemented a superb start to the game.
However, with Morecambe’s first real foray of note, Kevin Ellison pulled a cross back from the left side of the 18 yard box to find Lee Molyneux darting through on goal to bury the ball past Sam Beasant seven yards out to level the game.
The U’s stuck to their guns well though and registered two quick fire goals ten minutes from the break to earn themselves a significant lead. Ryan Donaldson was quickest to react when Morecambe keeper Barry Roche parried Ben Williamson’s original effort into the midfielder’s path, who gladly drilled his shot into the bottom right corner on 34 minutes.
Cameron Gayle then ensured he made an instant impact in his first game for the club when his effort from almost the same position that Donaldson had found the back of the net not a minute earlier, slid under the arms of Roche where Luke Berry was on hand to prod home and extend the advantage.
United restarted the second period in the same devastating fashion they had finished the first, Berry sliding the perfect pass through to Ben Williamson who cut inside his marker brilliantly before slotting home to make it four on 47 minutes.
Morecambe produced a flurry of chances either side of the hour mark, with Shaun Miller enjoying the best of the bunch when he went clean through on goal before Sam Beasant picked his moment well to dive at the striker’s feet and come away with the ball.
The hosts did however pull a goal back when Miller delivered a cross to substitute Peter Murphy in the centre of the United area, where the central midfielder was on hand to connect cleanly into the United goal on 66 minutes.
However, the U’s regained control of the fixture and the introduction of Robbie Simpson with 17 minutes to play by manager Shaun Derry allowed United to play with the ball inside Morecambe’s half of the pitch once more.
Ryan Ledson came closest of anyone to adding to the United lead, when his curling effort with minutes left on the clock whistled past the far left post, as Barry Roche helplessly watched on.
Cambridge United: Beasant, Gayle, Legge, Roberts, Demetriou, Donaldson, Newton, Berry, Ledson, Dunk (Simpson, 73 mins), Williamson
Morecambe: Roche, Beeley, Kenyon (Murphy, 45 mins), Edwards, Barkhuizen, Molyneux, Ellison, Goodall (Wildig, 72 mins), Miller (Mullin, 67 mins), Wilson, Parrish
Attendance: 1689 (167 away)