Cod Almighty | Diary

The show must go on

23 September 2013

Miss Guest Diary writes: Seemingly alone among the denizens of Cod Almighty Towers, I have never taken that much interest in the non-playing goings-on at Grimsby Town. Perhaps not being born or brought up in the area has meant that the intermittent incompetence of the official website, the shambolic PR and the boardroom shenanigans don't impact me in the same way they do the others.

I have sometimes felt a bit uncomfortable at the constant criticism of John Fenty on social media and websites, especially this one. After all, there haven't been any of the toxic practices some other clubs have suffered. He hasn't indulged in financial irregularities leading to a 30-point deduction (Luton), or sold off the ground to developers without providing a replacement (Brighton), or hired someone to torch the Main Stand (Doncaster Rovers) or, worst of all, run up a tax bill which caused the club to be liquidated (Chester). I have told myself that Mr Fenty has always seemed to have the best interests of the club at the heart of whatever he has done.

So why, despite the appointment of some decent managers such as Slade and Buckley, have the last ten years seen a downward spiral of increasingly poor performances? Maybe the events of the last couple of weeks, culminating in his embarrassing call to Radio Humberside and the astonishingly ill-judged follow-up statement on Saturday, hold the key. Could the antics of Town's major shareholder, as catalogued in Friday's diary, which seem to be turning the club into a laughing stock, have created a miasma of failure which the playing staff simply cannot rise above?

At least Saturday's on-field performance was a vast improvement on the game at Halifax. Was it a coincidence that Town had reverted to a 4-4-2 formation? Well, at least until Colbeck was sent off. I am choosing to see that as a blessing in disguise. as it might herald the return of the Neilson-Hannah axis which was so successful last year. It also showed that there is some spirit in the team, who actually seemed to play better and even looked like scoring on a couple of occasions.

Paddy McLaughlin agrees that Town were better in the second half and has expressed disappointment at not taking all three points. My disappointment was in seeing him playing on the wing instead of in the centre of midfield. He's never going to cement his place in my affections as the new Wayne Burnett playing out wide.

Off the field, the club has announced that the evening with Howard Webb at McMenemy's has been moved to 28 November. The evening with Alan Buckley in the Trust Bar remains unchanged on 18 October and it looks like there are still tickets available. I know which I think will be the more entertaining.