Cod Almighty | Match Report

by Mike Worden

14 April 2012

Wrexham 2 Grimsby Town 2

Arriving at the Racecourse, the dominant sound outside was of a noisy crowd singing inside. Was this the play-off certainties who were still in with an outside chance of automatic promotion? No, it was the small band of 200 or so travelling Mariners, following a team destined for another season in non-League.

Inside there were empty seats everywhere. Wrexham have been through some very tough times in recent seasons, but a sub-3000 attendance for team looking to return to the Football League must be disappointing. The Kop remained empty and condemned, awaiting demolition as part of the next-door university's redevelopment plans. The Mold Road stand - built with Football Association of Wales money - is smart but was only half full. The old away stand behind the goal is now the home end, while the Town faithful were housed in the creaking main stand.

Bradley Wood came in for Townsend and Town lined up: McKeown in the nets, a back four of Miller, Pearson, Silk and Wood, a midfield of Church, Disley, Coulson and Artus and a front pair of Hearn and Hughes-Mason.

First half
Town, in disappointing blue, kicked off towards the vast empty Kop and did alright early on. Hearn had a reasonable effort which went wide. Andy Morrell has put together a decent blend of youth and experience and it was the old man Glen Little, looking straight out of the 1970s, who began to get a grip on the game and start setting things up for the home side. The former Burnley favourite controlled the midfield and orchestrated the set pieces and it was his pinpoint corner on 22 minutes that gave Wrexham the lead.

The home side crowded the centre of the six-yard box and tried to block out McKeown by sandwiching him between two hefty Welshmen. The tactic worked. The ball landed in the melee, with McKeown flapping and unable to get to it. It was knocked home by leading goalscorer Jake Speight, although it looked like it could have easily bounced off a Town player.

Soon after the goal Wrexham tried the same trick with another Little corner, but McKeown was more assertive this time and punched the ball clear. Town's chances in the first half were mainly confined to breakaways. On one, Hughes-Mason had the best chance of the half, running at the Wrexham goal before completely fluffing his shot. Coulson was his usual tricky self and had some good interchanges with Hearn.

But Town were weak in central midfield. Disley was ineffective and Church totally anonymous, allowing Little to seize control. Time after time Town sent high balls up to the frontmen when it was clear that the Wrexham giants at the back would gobble them up all afternoon. The excellent Racecourse pitch cried out for balls on the ground, to the feet of Hearn and Hughes-Mason. Could they not see what Little was doing in setting up the Wrexham attacks?

Second half
No surprise that Shorty and Shouty replaced both Church and Hughes-Mason at the interval. The change worked superbly as both Thanoj and Elding added more punch to the Town side.

Coulson has the ability to play some superb football but equally to make it hard for himself. He carelessly lost the ball to Ashton just in front of the Town fans, ran after the Wrexham player and chopped him down. A stupid yellow card.

Shortly later Town were back in the game. A move down the left saw Artus whipping in a cross which Elding met at the back post, stooping down to head into the net. Elding ran - yes, that's ran - to the Town fans in celebration. A well-deserved equaliser in a much-improved second-half showing.

On the empty Kop, the ball boys, bored by the lack of action at that end, decided to get together for a chat. Up stepped the Director of Ball Return to kick their backsides and send them back to solitary confinement. The crowd was announced at 3,428, then given as 3,147 on the website, then later corrected to 2,917. The old 1970s turnstiles can't be relied on these days.

Within 10 minutes of Town's equaliser, Wrexham again took the lead. Central defender Chris Westwood rose totally unmarked at the far post to head home a cross from the right. He ran half the pitch in celebration with his shirt swinging above his head, followed by Mr Harrington brandishing the yellow card.

Grimsby, though, were not going to let this go easily. With much more confidence in this half, they fought back and produced the best goal of the game. Little had just gone off, his aging legs shot and his Ford Capri waiting for him outside. Andi Thanoj, playing superbly in midfield, met a Hearn pass and hit a great low shot from outside the box right into the back of the net. After that it was Town who pressed for the points and Mayebi in the home goal was booked for time-wasting.

The Town fans and players celebrated what had been a very good second-half display. Wrexham are a physically strong team and in Little had a player who controlled the game. However, once Thanoj came on to counter that threat in midfield and Elding gave more strength to the attack, it was Town who looked the better side.