Cod Almighty | Diary

This is not a dainty world to set before the swine

15 April 2019

Trentside Diary writes: There are those who are hanging on in there until the bitter end, who were rewarded with Town going behind on Saturday but then pulling back through Charles Vernam to get something out of the game. Those who travel over land and sea, and Lancashire, good on you! You may do it just so you can watch Town without having to listen to the miserable gits at Blundell Park, but who doesn’t like an away day? You have to wonder if anyone other than season ticket holders will be there for the last couple of home matches.

I have faith that given time and support, Jolley could do something special. He is a young manager learning his trade – but will the resources be there to back him up? And more importantly if he is already targeting players for the summer as has been suggested, what would encourage them to come to somewhere as out of the way as Blundell Park? Our young ambitious manager? Tick. Our progress since we got back into the League? Errr, doubtful. Our forward-thinking, ambitious board? You decide. Our soon-to-be-built community stadium? Definitely not. Our fancy Portakabins? You’ve got me.

Jolley is just about the only positive in our favour and fans who abuse him personally and give him stick should remember it. Sorry to break it to you: players aren’t queuing up for a move to Grimsby – but the commitment Jolley shows could win some over. If you are going to criticise, be proportionate and don’t take your whole frustration in life out on him.

Progress, our board, the new stadium. There has been so much said already. The only significant way to bring about genuine change is for new ownership. In the years since Fenty rose to the top in the boardroom, what have we actually achieved? Where have we moved forward? Where has the club improved?

Before you say we got back into the League, that’s a bit like those who believe in a deity but only see one side. If he’s responsible for the good that happens, then he should also have done something to prevent the bad. Who dragged us down in the first place?

You can tell a lot about an organisation by its financial accounts. Is it hand-to-mouth? Sustainable? Growing? I am so frustrated by what we’re (not) achieving off the pitch that I thought I’d have another look at Town’s accounts since we got back into the League.

I didn’t get any further than the statements put out by the club when publishing them. 17 November could probably best be described as mealy-mouthed. "The club continues to invest prudently in the first team and management staff in order to play at the highest level possible and progress plans for relocation to the new community stadium." "Clubs total indebtedness is significantly less than £2 million demonstrating the prudent management of the Clubs financial affairs". Someone went to accountant school and learned how to say prudent a lot, but sadly they didn’t learn when to use an apostrophe.

So do we accept where we are as the highest level possible and have done with it? Not very ambitious, is it? By 2018 we were told that turnover was pretty much the same as the previous season, but the club had been asked to reconsider locations for the community stadium as there was no political backing for Peaks Parkway. Remind me, isn’t our eminent non-chairman still a local councillor? Just because he would have to declare an interest, doesn’t mean he can’t have discussions, sound people out and get the general lie of the land. Perhaps he’s just as competent as a politician as he is at running a football club.

The statements show no vision or determination about where we’re going as a club, either in football terms or location, and that all comes from the board.
There is only one solution. John Fenty, please leave our club! I have said it many times, I will say it now, and I will continue to say it until he no longer darkens the Upper Findus, unless it is as a paying punter. UTM!