The Shrimps had endured a frustrating start to the season before their trip to Wigan.
They lost all four of their opening League Two matches 1-0 to prop up the EFL and went down 3-0 at Huddersfield in the Carabao Cup.
But the surprise 2-1 victory at the League One Latics in their first Bristol Street Motors Trophy Northern Group C game came as a welcome fillip. Harvey Macadam gave Morecambe a 12th-minute lead but it was all-square when Joe Hugill netted from the penalty spot in the 63rd minute.
The Shrimps responded brilliantly to that setback with Lee Angol netting the winner two minutes later.
Boss Adams, who has had to quickly mould a new team this season, said: "I thought it was a magnificent perfor mance. With eight changes, it shows just how strong a squad we have got.
"You have to keep on believing in yourselves and the players certainly did that tonight. It was really pleasing to come to a League One outfit and perform so well. It was really important for the players and it will give them a lot of confidence."
In the other match in the group, Nottingham Forest U21s netted in injury time to win 2-1 at managerless Carlisle. It looked as though Jake Allan's 88th-minute equaliser had earned the Cumbrians a draw, but Archie Whitehall struck in the fourth minute of stoppage time. Joe Gardner had given Forest a first-half lead.
Jay Stansfield made his Birmingham debut after stunning his £10m move from Fulham, but it proved a frustrating night for the Blues against League Two Walsall in Southern Group A.
This story is from the September 08, 2024 edition of The Football League Paper.
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This story is from the September 08, 2024 edition of The Football League Paper.
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