MORECAMBE 1 Grays Athletic 0

Job done...well almost. Morecambe booked their play-off spot with a battling 1-0 win over Grays Athletic as they finished off their regular season with the sort of gritty display that proves there is no soft centre.

Okay, it was not champagne football but it is a results business - and the Shrimps are good at grinding out results. They are hard to beat - and York boss Billy McEwan will have more sleepless nights than Sammy McIlroy ahead of the play-off semi-final.

A stunning return of 19 clean sheets through the regular season proves just how tough Morecambe are to beat - and Grays, who needed a point in order to guarantee their survival never really looked like scoring despite giving it their best shot.

The Shrimps started stunningly and were ahead inside 33 seconds as bizarrely incompetent referee Steve Cummins gave Morecambe one of only seven free kicks for a crunching foul by Jamie Stuart on Danny Carlton.

Neil Sorvel's speed of thought saw him roll the ball to Adam Yates as Grays were still organising themselves and the roaming full-back whipped over an excellent cross for young Paul Lloyd to convert from half-a-dozen yards.

There was a suggestion that Simon Downer may have got the final touch - but that would be harsh on Lloyd who performed with credit on a rare start.

The goal got the party started and for a few minutes it looked like it would be a stroll for the Shrimps - but then Grays realised they were in the middle of a relegation scrap and pushed forward forcing a succession of corners.

Steven Drench wasn't over-exerted, however, although he did make a smart save from Stuart Thurgood before denying Dennis Oli from close range.

Nerves were starting to kick in and Morecambe passes started to go astray and it took an excellent Chris Blackburn tackle to deny John Martin, who should really have scored after getting behind the defence.

Then Craig Stanley headed a Stuart Thurgood thunderbolt away and Downer went down all to easily under a Danny Carlton tackle in the penalty area to take away any chance of being awarded a spot kick.

The returning Michael Twiss had been a passenger for the first 30 minutes as he struggled to get into the game - but then he picked up the pace and beat two defenders on a jinking run before shooting just wide.

Twiss then played Neil Sorvel in and his 25-yarder was well saved by Danny Knowles, who recovered to pounce on the loose ball before Carlton could get there.

It looked as though the Shrimps were back in the groove but Grays should have levelled when Stuart blasted a Thurgood corner over the top when he should have scored before Carlton nodded a Yates cross just wide as the half finished with Morecambe chasing a second.

The whistle of Cummins was the main feature of the second half as he seemed determined to be the centre of attention and his free-kick count of 24 against the Shrimps tells its own story on a day when there was hardly a foul of note.

But the referee did get it right when Carlton dramatically went down under a Downer challenge when clear just minutes after missing a one-on-one.

The Shrimps screamed for a free-kick and a red card for Downer - but Cummins, for once, was spot on with his decision.

Twiss was now a major threat as he showed signs of his usual self and he arrived from nowhere to scare the wits out of Downer as he cleared a back pass before the keeper held a Twiss shot.

It wasn't a sensational display - but a win is a win and the Shrimps managed to avoid the poisoned chalice of a Friday night trip to Exeter in the play-offs.

And after 46 games the stats add up to Morecambe being joint second in perhaps the most competitive Conference ever.

Just three more 1-0 wins will do nicely - and that will be job done.