MORECAMBE put one over a young Manchester City side with an all-action show at Christie Park on Monday night.

After the low key effort of earlier games against Tranmere Rovers and Stockport County, there was a very different mood about the outfit that Jim Harvey sent out onto the pitch.

City's young reserves started brightly and looked a real threat in the opening 20 minutes the watching Kevin Keegan and Stuart Pearce must have been well pleased with what they saw from the stand.

In the eighth minute, Bradley Wright Phillips showed his pedigree by outpacing the home defence to round Sollitt and roll the ball into the net for 1-0 as Morecambe were still struggling to find their rhythm but a lucky break on 28 minutes changed all that.

Chris Blackburn picked up the ball 25 yards from the City goal and played a one-two with Dave Perkins operating in midfield before bursting through a Paddy McCarthy tackle.

The ball fell kindly onto his left foot and he beat Kevin Ellergaard low to his right.

You could almost see the new confidence running through the Shrimps ranks as, from that moment, they took control.

A deft flick from Blackburn put Nick Rogan in for a shot on goal on 31 minutes, a Michael Twiss run and cross from the left ended with a Perkins shot blocked on 36 and, almost immediately, Ellergaard had to be quick off his line to grasp a Keiron Walmsley cross from the right just as it seemed Wayne Curtis was about to head home.

There was nothing the keeper could do on 42 minutes, though, as Curtis charged down the right wing, beat his marker and put a pinpoint cross onto the head of Rogan for the easiest of finishes from six yards out.

That was the end of the scoring but it got better for home fans after the break as Morecambe settled into their passing game, keeping the ball for long periods and carving out a stream of chances.

Even when boss Harvey made the first of nine changes to the line-up, with Jimmy Kelly for new boy Michael Howard - signed from Swansea - on 48 minutes and Danny Carlton taking over from Rogan on 52, the pattern stayed.

Carlton almost made an immediate impact as his chest pass set up Hunter with a shooting chance.

And he was on the end of Morecambe's best move of the night on 62 minutes to beat Ellergaard, but his lob cleared off the City line by Mikkel Bischoff for a corner.

When the flag kick came in it was Twiss who almost profited at the far post but his volleyed shot cannoned away off the crossbar.

MORECAMBE: Sollitt, Walmsley, Bentley, Swan, Howard, Curtis, Blackburn, Perkins, Twiss, Hunter, Rogan. Subs: Kelly, Thompson, Stringfellow, Carlton, Dodgeson, Mahoney, McFlynn, Gregoire, O'Connor.