Morecambe had never played in the Football League until 2007 when a Danny Carlton goal sent the Lancastrian outfit up as Conference Play-Off Final winners at the expense of Exeter City.

That the Shrimps have become a fixture in League Two in the eight years which have followed is huge testament the work of Sammy McIlroy, initially, and latterly Jim Bentley.

Bentley, 39, made more than 300 appearances for the club in nine years before stepping up to become player-manager in May 2011 – though he has not played since becoming boss.

He would lose his first match in charge 1-0 to Barnet in August 2011 as a Mark Byrne goal proved to be the difference between the two.

The Liverpool-born former defender has overseen finishes of 15th, 16th, 18th and 11th since, inking a new two-year deal in the summer after finishing eight points shy of the play-off places last season, a reward for continual overachievement on one of the division's smaller budgets.

Here we profile three Morecambe players who could make the difference against Barnet on Saturday.

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Tom Barkhuizen: The former Blackpool youngster moved 40 miles up the Fylde coast in the summer in search of first team football and has been duly rewarded.

In five years at Bloomfield Road the 22-year-old made just six league starts with loan spells at Hereford United, Fleetwood Town and Morecambe providing a glimpse of what the Football League was about.

Barkuizen scored one league goal for the Pool and it was the winner against Reading in August 2013 as Paul Ince’s side began the 2013/14 campaign in flying fashion.

The Blackpool-born forward made 14 more appearances in the league and cup before the season was out as the side’s flying start gave way to a battle against the drop under player-boss Barry Ferguson.

But as managers came and went at Bloomfield Road Barkhuizen found himsellf the forgotten man and made just seven league appearances last season.

Five games on loan at Morecambe last season were enough to persuade Bentley to snap up the Blackpool fan when he became available on a free transfer this summer and he has duly rattled in eight in 18 appearances in all competitions with six of those coming in League Two.

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Shaun Miller: Signed on a one-year contract three days before the season kicked off, the experienced striker shares top scorer honours with Tom Barkhuizen having hit six league goals in just ten starts.

The 28-year-old made his Football League breakthrough with Crewe Alexandra after progressing through the Cheshire club’s famed Academy setup.

After hitting 39 goals in 111 league starts for the Railwaymen he was snapped up by Sheffield United on a free transfer in the summer of 2012.

However, Miller’s time at Bramall Lane matched that of the team and was a frustrating experience overall as he managed just 12 league starts – and a further 16 appearances from the bench – in two years with the Yorkshire giants.

A move to Coventry City last summer ought to have reignited his career but the Alsager born forward was again a peripheral figure – making just one league start in his solitary season at the Ricoh Arena – and would spend time on loan at Crawley Town and York City instead.

Playing regularly once more at the Globe Arena, Miller is showing exactly what he can offer when given regular games.

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Kevin Ellison: The veteran midfielder falls into that category of players everyone loves to hate until they turn out for their own team.

Now 36, Ellison has netted an impressive 49 league goals from midfield in 147 starts for the Shrimps since joining from Rotherham United in May 2011.

A reliable goalscorer from midfield, the Liverpudlian has 112 league goals to his name in 444 starts – better than one in every four in a career which has lasted 17 years.

Ellison started out with local side Southport in the late 90s before catching the eye at Conwy United. Altrincham took a chance on the young midfielder and were duly rewarded with 14 goals from 35 starts in his solitary season at the club.

That form enticed Leicester City to spend £50,000 to bring him to Filbert Street. He never made the grade, though and would turn out for six clubs in the next eight years before settling at Rotherham for two years.

Loaned to Bradford City towards the end of his time with the Millers as part of a swap deal for Omar Daley, Ellison joined Morecambe on a free following his release and has proved stunning value for money since.