Ged Brannan is delighted his Morecambe side are now back in the promotion mix after their 2-1 win over Lancashire rivals Accrington.
Bolton loanee Nelson Khumbeni fired home his first Shrimps goal in the 55th minute before a Charlie Brown free-kick was seemingly turned home by Chris Stokes from close-range after 62 minutes – although the Shrimps are appealing it as they believe it curled straight in from Brown’s set-piece.
Lewis Shipley headed home for Stanley after 89 minutes to set up a grandstand finish, with Morecambe keeper Archie Mair making a couple of saves in added time, but 10th-placed Morecambe held on for the win to keep them within three points of the top seven.
“It was a fantastic finish by Nelson, his first goal for us. He has worked so hard for it and he is buzzing in the changing room,” said Brannan, who left his under-23s job at Accrington in November to become manager at Morecambe and is great friends with Stanley boss John Doolan.
“Charlie Brown bent in the second and, after four defeats, we had to get some type of result from this game for our own pride, it was a make-or-break game for us, so it’s great to get a win.
“It keeps us right in the mix with a game in hand on some teams.
“There were nine minutes of added time and they felt like two hours but we made a few blocks, we dug deep, and we showed great character to stick at it to the end.
“Now it’s onto Barrow on Monday and we have to see if we can take something from that game too to make it a good Easter period.”
Doolan’s Stanley side have slipped to 18th in the Sky Bet League Two table.
“I didn’t think there was a lot in it in the first half, both keepers had one save to make and then the first goal is always going to be crucial,” Doolan said.
“We felt it was a foul to us in the build-up but their lad has finished well.
“For the second goal we know Radek (Vitek) has to do better and we have talked to him about this.
“We then showed great character to come back and we came to life but we can’t afford to give teams goals like we have.
“We asked questions and I was happy with the way we finished, and we came so close to an equaliser, but it wasn’t to be.
“It’s a learning curve with a young side but we can’t keep giving sides a lead.”
Plymouth Argyle 2-2 Watford: Two-goal Gray rescues point for Rooney's side
Andre Gray scored twice against his former club to salvage a point for struggling Plymouth Argyle as they drew 2-2 with Watford on Friday.
Gray curled in an equaliser in the sixth minute of second-half stoppage time to seal a crucial point for Wayne Rooney's side in their bid for survival in the Championship.
The visitors made a quick start at Home Park when Ivorian striker Vakoun Bayo bundled in a cross from Yasser Larouci only eight minutes in.
Plymouth did, however, equalise against the run of play in the 23rd minute when Lewis Gibson's long ball into the box was met with a spectacular volley from Gray.
Watford regained the lead before the break when Imran Louza's free-kick was knocked back by Mattie Pollock, with centre-back Ryan Porteous on hand to steer the ball home.
But just as it looked like Watford would go home with all three points, Gray picked up the ball on the edge of the area and fired home a stunning effort beyond Daniel Bachmann.
Tom Cleverley's Watford sit in fifth place and trail leaders Sunderland by five points, while Plymouth are 17th with 17 points from 16 matches.
Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 Toulouse: Neves stars in comfortable home win
Paris Saint-Germain maintained their unbeaten start to the Ligue 1 season with a comfortable 3-0 win over Toulouse on Friday.
Following Monaco's 3-2 win over Brest earlier in the day, Luis Enrique's side responded emphatically to stay five points clear at the top of the table.
After a dominant start, PSG got themselves ahead in stunning fashion when Achraf Hakimi's cross was brilliantly driven first-time into the bottom corner by Joao Neves.
But Toulouse provided a threat after the break and should have drawn level in the 70th minute through Shavy Babicka, but he fired over with only Matvey Safonov to beat.
That mistake ultimately proved costly with the hosts doubling their advantage eight minutes from time when Beraldo took advantage of some poor defending to finish inside the box.
The triumph was sealed in the first minute of second-half stoppage time through substitute Vitinha, who danced into the box before finishing high into the corner from close range.
Luis Enrique's side will now turn their attentions to the Champions League, with a daunting trip to the Allianz Arena to face Bayern Munich awaiting on Tuesday.
Data Debrief: Party in Paris
PSG's dominance in Ligue 1 continued on Friday, with Luis Enrique's side now having lost just one of their last 41 matches in the top-flight (W30 D10).
Neves was a particular standout for the hosts, winning more duels (nine), registering the joint-most shots on target (two) and the joint-most final third entries (seven) during the game.
Despite the scoreline, PSG were perhaps fortunate to emerge victorious. Though Luis Enrique's side accumulated 17 shots to Toulouse's 11, it was the visitors who ended the contest with a higher expected goals (xG) total, managing 1.39 to the Parisiens' 1.35.
Bayern Munich 3-0 Augsburg: Hat-trick hero Kane smashes Bundesliga record
Harry Kane scored a hat-trick to become the quickest player to score 50 Bundesliga goals as Bayern Munich comfortably dispatched Augsburg 3-0 on Friday.
Kane opened the scoring in the 63rd with a penalty before netting a quickfire double in second-half stoppage time to smash the record previously held by Erling Haaland.
Despite controlling the early possession, Bayern were unable to make their dominance count, with Nediljko Labrovic rarely troubled in the opening 45 minutes.
The hosts maintained their dominance after the interval, with Leon Goretzka's looped header grazing the crossbar before Jamal Musiala went close soon after.
However, Bayern were awarded a penalty after a lengthy VAR review saw Mads Pedersen penalised for handling the ball, with Kane stepping up to score from 12 yards.
The England captain grabbed his second of the game in the third-minute of stoppage time following another VAR review which saw Keven Schlotterbeck sent off after tripping Kane inside the box.
Kane sent Labrovic the wrong way but was not to be denied a fourth treble of the season, brilliantly taking down Goretzka's searching ball before heading the ball home.
Data Debrief: HurriKane
Kane has now scored 50 Bundesliga goals in 43 matches. Before him, Haaland was the quickest player to reach 50 Bundesliga goals, having done so in 50 appearances in the competition for Borussia Dortmund.
He is also the quickest to reach that total for Bayern by some distance. Kane has reached that tally quicker than the likes of Gerd Muller (83 games), Mario Gomez (71 games), Roy Makaay (67 games) and Robert Lewandowski (64 games).
10 of Kane’s goals have come from penalties, while 32 of them have been with his right foot, nine with his left and nine with his head.
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