Promoted sides Bristol Rovers, Exeter City and Forest Green Rovers will raise the level of competition in League One next season, according to Morecambe manager Derek Adams.
The top half of the third tier was fiercely contested last season, with the top 11 all picking up at least 70 points, while Plymouth Argyle agonisingly missed out on the play-offs with 80. At the other end, the bottom six clubs, including Morecambe, were cut adrift from the rest, with the Shrimps and Fleetwood Town doing just enough to survive.
But with three big clubs – Derby County, Barnsley and Peterborough United – dropping into League One from the Championship and three strong teams – plus one of Port Vale or Mansfield Town – joining from League Two, Adams is expecting an even tougher task when the campaign begins in late July.
“I don’t think it’s going to get any easier next season,” Adams told the Lancaster Guardian. “You only have to look at Bristol Rovers coming up, Exeter City coming up and Forest Green: they are all clubs that have greater financial reserves than ourselves.
“Then you’ve got the likes of Derby County, Barnsley and Peterborough coming down, so I think it will be an even tougher division than it was this season.”
Adams rejoined Morecambe after being sacked by Bradford City last season, and he got a close look at Rovers early in their development when the Gas snatched a late draw thanks to Brett Pitman's sublime header at Valley Parade.
Morecambe are 100/1 in the early title odds, with the Gas and Forest Green at 33/1 and Exeter at 50/1. Adams' comments echo the view of Oxford United manager Karl Robinson, who predicts the battle for the top 10 to only become more difficult.
“The league’s going to be better,” he told the Oxford Mail. “Ipswich, Charlton, Portsmouth and Bolton will have a go.
“Three of the four (who reached the play-offs) are still going to be in this league with Derby County, Barnsley and Peterborough coming down (from the Championship).
“I only foresee it getting harder to try to stay in the top ten and that’s something we’ve got to be better at as well.
“There are some big teams in the top seven of the league below so they’re only going to make the league stronger. This year the bottom part of the league was so disconnected.
“We always say 50 points is the benchmark so if this (the promotion race) gets stronger, that gets lower.
“I don’t think it’s so much about the top teams, I think it’s about how strong the league is from top to bottom and that’s what balances out the averages. That’s where the averages will hopefully come down because it’s going to be hard.”
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