Cod Almighty | Diary

Five - four - three - two - one

3 February 2020

Five days. Four points. Three football 'experts'. Two unwanted statements. One club. That sums up last week.

After two games in five days, on the pitch we really seem to be on the up. The confidence of the players continues to grow. Tuesday was a great result; it was good to beat Stevenage. Saturday we would have liked three points but in a fairly even game, there were some wonderful passages of play so overall, I’ll take four points out of six.

The new signings are settling in well and it's clear that a major benefit of having Holloway in charge on the pitch is that he has contacts with both players and other clubs which will bring a bit of quality if the budget allows.

I'm really liking the look of Glennon (Or Driscoll-Glennon to give him his full name but who wants all those letters on a replica shirt at £1.25 a go. It probably wouldn't fit). You can see the quality of a player from a higher level and his enthusiasm is great. He was everywhere on Saturday and his pushing up made a difference.

Charlie Vernam was talking about how confident he's feeling before the game and long may it continue. If he is here for the long run Holloway must be pleased to see players he has inherited growing in stature and I'd love to see Vernam offered a new contract before the end of the season. Let's hope the manager thinks the same.

Not everyone at the match got the memo about being positive at the game. The three 'experts' in front of me on Saturday commented loudly on nearly every pass. They groaned if any passage of play went back to Macca, shouted instructions and generally knew what was needed to improve what was happening on the pitch. They must manage Little Grimsby under-10s or something. They really didn't like it when Macca rolled the ball out to one of his defenders. Probably too modern for them. I had a little smile to myself when two of them hollered at the same time "HOLD IT" and "PASS IT". Maybe we leave it at "Man on" or "handball", and leave the advice to the manager.

Then the two statements.

First, I was disheartened to see Fenty's bit in the programme telling us we are no longer up for sale. Some have greeted this with relief. From previous diaries, you knows I'm no fan of Fenty and I don’t see this as anything to celebrate. It is a significant step back.

We can only go on what we are told, and there never has been any honesty from the current regime. Any interested parties have been dismissed as tyre-kickers and we're supposed to believe that they couldn't demonstrate viability in the long-term. We know one was Tom Schutes who has impressive business experience and regeneration credentials and wouldn't have been looking at naff, out-of-town shopping nightmares but genuine investment in the area.

I sometimes wonder if Fenty saw their proposals, realised we could be going somewhere, and then his ego couldn’t cope with the club being on the up if his face wasn’t all over it. He did well appointing Holloway. Rest on your laurels, Fenty, and move on.

A ground in Freeman Street would be good for Grimsby, club and town. You wanted Peaks Parkway. You are deputy leader of the council and any regeneration funding coming to the club has the potential to be dodgy. Declaring an interest and not voting is not enough. If the club’s value increases and you then sell, a chunk of regeneration money will effectively be going into your back pocket. Step away.

With regards to statement two: Holloway, please stick to motivating the players and school pupils. Many of us agree that transfer windows don't work for lower league clubs with small squads but saying you will contact Farage if the transfer window isnt changed just makes you look like a buffoon. Why alienate some fans? Keep the good mood going.

UTM. Fenty Out.