Cod Almighty | Match Report

by Scott Backrath

5 October 2025

Allow me to introduce myself, I won't be long. I could support Salford without being called a 'glory seeker' (oh to win the Manchester Premier Cup back-to-back in the late 70s), or even one of the smaller Manchester clubs such as City or United. I do technically live only a Rory Delap stone's throw away from the ground. Instead, I proudly follow GTFC, the club from the town in which I was raised and consider my home. And, by forced osmosis, so does my partner.

This was the first away game that my father and I have been to together. I felt something going into this match, and perhaps even the season as a whole. I think it is called cautious optimism. Although the previous 10 matches between our two sides have been fairly even, with both teams winning four and drawing two, Town have won three of the last five. A win for the Mariners today would see our team rise to the nose-bloodying heights of third place. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Filled up on Subway and, despite the best efforts of the Bee Network to make us fashionably late, we arrived at the Peninsula Stadium 10 minutes before kick-off.

First Half - Up the Football League We Go!
After a moment's silence for the victims of the attack that took place earlier this week, their keeper learnt a valuable lesson about wind and small, flying inflatable objects as his first kick of the game sent the ball gliding out of play. Now what would be really embarrassing for the Ammies is if the resulting throw-in led to setting up, I don't know, Khouri to score inside the first minute. Throw-in taken. Vernam ultimately gains control of the ball on the left-hand side. Cross into the box. Khouri receives and slots it in after 41 seconds! Chants of "Up the Football League We Go!" ring out through the packed away end. There's that lethality which promotion candidates need.

Before the game I thought a back three from Salford was the wrong move against such a prolific Grimsby side, and I was gladly proven right time and time again as our players danced around their defence. Unsure of quite how to stop us, Salford leaned into their physicality for a series of cynical fouls. Cheap tricks were not enough, however, and soon Kabia was causing problems. His cross glides across the face of goal with Vernam only just falling short to connect.

The first 25 minutes of the match have been exactly the start we needed, minus consistently giving Salford too much space in the centre. Thankfully not much could be made of this space, save an odd shot blasted over the bar. Salford changed shape around this time, but Town follow and block their attacks with steely determination. Vernam decides that the left-hand side said something bad about his mother, and proceeds to punish it over and over again with controlled dribbles and overpowering charges. I want some of whatever this man is on this season.

I note at 30 minutes that we've had more chances and looked more dangerous with our possession so far, and moments later our attacking threat bears Vernam-shaped fruit. Burns shifts the ball from the right-hand side to Sweeney left of centre. Sweeney picks out Vernam on the left. Vernam dribbles into the box and makes it past Cesay with some stop-start footwork. He drives a low shot past Young on his near side leaving the Salford keeper to collapse exasperated on the floor. 2-0 Town! The away end erupts again, further silencing the already librarian-esque home fans.

That isn't to say Salford did not have their chances. Three shots on target in the first half did make Pym earn his keep, but earn it he did with back-to-back saves in the 41st minute denying Salford any way back into this game before the break. I am reminded just before half-time that the game is truly alive and well by a very vocal and enthusiastic child standing maybe two rows behind me shouting something along the lines of "Salford is a **** hole". His heart is in the right place.

Second Half - Pressure at Both Ends
We go into the second half buoyed by the first, applying good pressure in pursuit of a third goal. Kabia's shot goes in off the post, but is flagged for offside. Relentless attacking moves from Town lead to Cooper pulling down Khouri on the edge of the Salford box, with cries for a penalty being dismissed by a relatively sensible ref. We win a corner from the free kick, resulting in another corner, resulting in a Khouri volley that quite literally goes sideways and out of play. Perhaps overly ambitious, but you've got to admire the confidence.

Town are just too clever for this Salford side today, with the Ammies resorting to a series of cynical fouls to try and regain control of the match. No answers for Chaz Vernam, who engages his inner sericulturist to produce some silky stepovers leading to a good effort being blocked. Some humour is accidentally injected into the 70th minute by one of their players hitting the ball out of play and onto their manager's head, leading to a cheeky chorus of "He's going to cry in a minute" from the Town fans.

Credit must be awarded for Salford's determination to keep fighting through the second half. If it weren't for the stalwart defending of Warren, and McJannet's unrelenting work ethic, things may have got seriously hairy. Longelo, their number 45 and an impactful substitute, was their most threatening attacking player and at times he twisted and turned around our defenders. With 11 minutes to go he dribbled into a good position and fired a shot off, but to no avail thanks to another excellent save by Christy Pym. It was about this time that Danny Rose made his entrance, allowing big Vern some well-earned rest. He was immediately a thorn in his own side by getting booked for a needless challenge preventing a Salford attack that showed no real sign of pressure, let alone being a goal-scoring opportunity.

The dying minutes of the game see McJannet take a tumble, snuffing out any last hope of a comeback for the Ammies with a physical tackle inside the box. The final whistle blows, the work ethic and defensive prowess of this Town side seeing this match to its well-deserved 2-0 conclusion.