Morecambe 3-4 Bristol Rovers: Bristol Rovers edge thriller

Bristol Rovers maintained their impressive away form with an exciting 4-3 win at Morecambe.

After a 3-0 victory at Hartlepool in midweek, Darrell Clarke's side started the game confidently and took a deserved lead in the 28th minute through Lee Mansell.

A corner was only half-cleared by the Shrimps and Jake Gosling did well to keep the ball in play down the left before drilling in a low cross that was turned home by the Rovers midfielder at full-stretch.

The goal sparked a response from Morecambe and they levelled in the 43rd minute. Shaun Miller took full advantage of some poor judgement by Rovers goalkeeper Lee Nicholls who raced from his goal and left Miller with the chance to lob the ball into the empty net from 20 yards.

The visitors regained the lead two minutes after the break with Billy Bodin scoring from 12 yards after Barry Roche had saved sharply from Jermaine Easter.

The visitors then added a third after 58 minutes through Matty Taylor. Gosling was again the provider with a low cross from the left and Taylor nipped ahead of Adam Dugdale to poke the ball past Roche from the edge of the six-yard box.

The two-goal advantage lasted less than a minute as Morecambe reduced the arrears in their next attack.

A long ball forward should have been dealt with by the Rovers defence but Tom Barkhuizen reacted sharply in the box to reach the ball and stroke it past Nicholls from eight yards.

Morecambe's comeback was halted with a controversial penalty in the 80th minute. Shaun Beeley was harshly adjudged to have handled Bodin's cross and Ellis Harrison blasted home the spot-kick.

To their credit, Morecambe battled back and scored a penalty of their own when Miller was bundled over in the box and Paul Mullin sent Nicholls the wrong way from the spot to complete the scoring.