Cod Almighty | Postbag
A large-ish postbag
23 November 2017
Factors affecting your attendance, Matt Tees and hopeless defeats are the subjects in your mind in this postbag
Durability and likeability
You might have something there, you know? The stuff about caring about and liking the team you follow.
For me, the story starts 1989 really, just after Christmas, the rest is history. Consider. Birtles, Alexander, Watson, Agnew, Tillson didn't stay long after those promotions (Agnew a bit longer maybe), but they were replaced by other likeable players: Woods, Futcher, Mendonca, Groves, Livingstone. They saw us through the 1990s as household local names, aided and abetted towards the end by local grown talent like Lester, Croft, Handyside and Oster.
Seriously, it started to go wrong when the late 90s soured. We had the Italian, the journeyman Chinese defender and endless 'he's played for so and so higher league club' players. The treadmill of players churned, the results dropped and the likeability factor drifted away. The reason to turn up was then probably more related to turning up to watch a player in the 'glamour' team opposing us, rather than supporting our team against them.
Not often I agree with you
from Ian Jackson
Matt Tees - a shocking price
So sad to hear what has happened to Matt Tees, who gave me more thrills and joy than any other Town player. Matt could head the ball with more power and accuracy than most of our Mighty Ms have managed with either foot in the last 10 seasons and more. At what a shocking price, it seems. Long sleeves worn down to the wrist, and a whiter shade of pale in all limbs, he was one of our finest.
from Steve Bierley
Letters Ed responds: Martyn Wyburn also wrote in: "Very sad to see Matt Tees, one of my heroes, featuring on the dementia programme introduced by Alan Shearer on Sunday 12 November. Having worked with sufferers for the last two years I have some insight into what he and his wife are going through."
Travelling and arriving hopelessly - I
Imagine trailing over the Pennines on a Sunday to watch your team surrender 6-0 to Oldham.
It was freezing, our only defender was sent off and even our reliable goalie wasnt trying. The only relief was we didn't have to pay and our former midfield hero – Alan Pouton – was in the away end with us. Up the bleeding Mariners.
Things improved when we returned to Louth and partook in a pint of bitter by an open fire.
The next day Groves was sacked.
from Dave the Engineer
Travelling hopelessly - II
The 14 November Diary brings back many unwanted memories.
I lost my train ticket on the way to Tranmere so ended up tinning out for another, about thirty quid. That and relegation made for a truly miserable day.
Travelling from Doncaster and back in one night to see an abject 4-1 defeat at Torquay, our seventh on the spin, but at least we scored for the first time in those games. Hardly any of the team applauded us but I think the Torquay keeper did.
I watched most home and away games in the winter of 2008-09, with most games utterly unrewarding. I didn't realise at the time that the trips and the cold were developing a cough that had turned into severe bronchitis. I went abroad on holiday and on Saturday evening, having almost collapsed at the hotel through illness, found out we had just stuffed Lincoln 5-1 in the first game I'd missed in months. I must have been the only fan who loved and hated his team at the same time that evening.
So much choice. I suppose the worst defeat was losing 1-5 at home to Donny last season. I live in Donny and some of the locals are poor losers and even worse winners.
Can I say the most soul-destroying games were all the ones that followed September in the 2009-10 season? I saw a home and away win that month, then despite seeing 33 matches in all, did not see another win all season. Truly abysmal. This season's home performances are worryingly similar.
Yours in Marinership
from Chris Smith
Thanks to Ian, Steve, Martyn, Dave and Chris for writing, and to you for reading. Use this link to send your letters