Cod Almighty | Diary
Not by the hairs on my chinny chin chin
28 September 2016
What were the moments that sealed Grimsby Town's place in your heart and made the club your lifetime's obsession? When did football become more than 22 men chasing a bag of wind and ascend to something timeless and beautiful that speaks into and about your identity, your soul?
For all of us there are these points in time, and the heroes who were on the spot to take us to heaven. Tees, Chatterley and Hickman that May evening against Exeter in 1972. Drinkell and Waters putting Sheffield United to the sword eight years later. Clive Mendonca's effortless hat-trick against Ipswich on his comeback from a long-term injury. Nathan Arnold sliding to his knees on a spring afternoon in north-west London.
At the age of two weeks your original/regular Diary was not quite ready to attend, but my reckoning is that the 23,000 who squeezed into Blundell Park for Lawrie McMenemy's triumph were more excited about the fourth division championship than the possibility of the club's financial compensation in the event that they would never see Tees, Chatterley and Hickman in a Town shirt again.
This is a modern football thing.
1 million quid for Omar yes Please #GTFC #UTM
— Ant Porter (@antporter76) September 27, 2016
Would it constitute "good business"? Possibly.
Should we, as fans, concern ourselves about what would constitute "good business"? Maybe. Possibly not.
Should we, as fans, be more excited about losing our favourite player in the interests of "good business" than actually seeing him play for our club and score goals?
That one rather answers itself. But here are some funny responses anyway.
@codalmighty @gazfawn we've got sense,we've got business sense.I just don't think you understand!!
— BeanyTony (@BeanyTony) September 27, 2016
@codalmighty clap clap clap clap clap clap cash
— Garry Fawn (@gazfawn) September 27, 2016
@gazfawn @codalmighty
— Peter Anderson (@pganderson) September 27, 2016
Sing when we're fishing(sustainably)
Your accruals are fucking shit
When the compliance auditor goes steaming in
Now that the meta-football is out of the way, we can reflect the priorities of the modern football mindset by turning with secondary interest to the actual football. Town, as you know by now, lie a giddying sixth in the fourth division table after scraping through last night against a Newport team who look as awful as they were the season they got promoted from the Conference. The result means curtains for Warren Feeney, dismissed just shy of a year in charge of the County team to become the 14th victim of the Grimsby Reaper (not to be confused with the Grim Reaper: football is not a matter of life or death).
Funnily enough, I seem to remember Mike Newell trying to sign Feeney during his time in charge at BP. And, for that matter, Brian Laws trying to strengthen the GTFC midfield with the acquisition of Craig Hignett – who is now manager of another struggling side in Town's visitors this Saturday: Hartlepool United. I'm not saying Hignett is certain to become the 15th victim of the Grimsby Reaper, but I am saying Hignett is certain to become the 15th victim of the Grimsby Reaper.
And finally, it's still a bit of a novelty for Town to have a proper reserve team in a proper reserve league, isn't it? And very proper they look too from the line-up lining up at Mansfield this afternoon. Speaking of good players who can't get in the first team, Harry Clifton last night followed up his man-of-the-match loan debut for Grantham with a brace in the Gingerbreads' 5-1 romp against our old FA Trophy foes Coalville.
Hey, that's part of our history – don't get all King$ton Communications year zero on my ass. See yers!