Cod Almighty | Diary
I like my football on a Saturday. At 3pm. At Blundell Park.
11 August 2017
Wicklow Diary writes: Goody, Friday's here at last. Another work week of thanking colleagues for small gestures like holding a door open and trying to find that elusive level of gratitude between "aloof serial killer" and "let's make babies". So, last week's win means we've still never lost on August 5th. It's a tad soon to get excited about such a small sample size. However, remember last season when a stats site announced that Town had won more games on Good Friday than anyone else? It prompted a dig in such matters and the magical date of February 11th emerged. A date in the calendar upon which we'd never lost. Fourteen games, ten wins and four draws. The mystic Meggies star charts were out, a Cod Almighty article and follow up book deal was in the offing. The 5-0 thumping of Luton in 1994, Drinky's winner at Newcastle in 1984, stuffing QPR in 1960 and- what’s that? Check that the results include 2016/17? Oh. Nice one Marcus. February 11th unbeaten run, 1892-2017, RIP.
If you missed the addendum to yesterday's excellent diary, Derbyshire plod have been trying to explain their behaviour last week. They crossed their fingers and eventually apologised but only after being asked. It was one of those modern "We apologise for any offence caused but not for the actual action that caused the offence". We 'misinterpreted' them. Stupid us. I'm not buying it. The police are an organisation that operate in details and specifics. When they misinform, it's not normally by accident.
I know we can be a difficult lot sometimes but it's usually with smiles on our faces. Civilisation is only two meals from revolution; Blackpool last season and Chesterfield shows that crowd control is only thirty Town fans singing in an aisle from unravelling. We've all been to matches with crowds of 90,000 where everything is smoothly choreographed and controlled. I don't see how a couple of thousand Town fans can cause such stress.
It's hard to believe but outside of GTFC fans, few care about our actual football. It's annoying sometimes and I think my football media inferiority complex stems from the Buckley I years. Playing like Brazil for four or five years with a team that cost eight quid and a set of tracksuits. Nobody really cared but us.
The odd shock result causes a few ripples but Town make national headlines for things like the manager boxing the star player, inflatable shark assaults, blokes putting their mate in a bin and rolling him down a terrace, tampon smoke-bombs, mariachi bands, Poojah's letter, that type of stuff. Some fun, some bad. None about sticking the ball in the net. So it's bloody irritating to say the least for us to be wrongly associated with thrashing the gaff.
The Derby cup game has been rearranged for the August 22nd. If we beat the Rams, we'll face a trip to Barnsley in the next round. Last night's televised draw met the football league's usual pig's ear standard. The complicated and caveated draw itself was only part of the problem. The competition is a shambles. Seeding makes no sense. Wolves in the southern section and Newport in the northern even less. Also, clubs participating in European competitions have byes to the semi-final probably. Fixture congestion, and seventy-five man squad tiredness and all that. These are the same clubs that play all over the world in July and August when they could be playing the early rounds of, I dunno, the bloody league cup!
Tomorrow we entertain Coventry. First Blundell Park Saturday of the season, a decent away crowd and a bit of spice for Russ facing his old club. What more could you ask for? All the good stuff is in Tony Butcher’s Rough Guide. He doesn't mention that they've got a player called Duckens Nazon, so I will. Mind you, we've got Diallang Jaiyesimi. He's in the squad after joining on loan from Norwich, along with new signing JJ Hooper. Coventry also went shopping in Norwich and their new boy Tony Andreu is also expected to feature tomorrow.
Opinion is, as usual, divided about the merits of our new signings. I haven't got really excited about an incoming player since Tony Ford re-signed. That made me so happy. I try to be neutral and let everyone else start with a clean slate, so welcome to GTFC, gents.
Finally, it seems everyone is on Gav Gunning's back. What's so bad about getting sent-off for kicking showboating Leeds players? Fair do's I say, someone has to do it. He can add that to his kill marks alongside elbowing Danny Wright in the kisser.