Cod Almighty | Diary
Diary - Wednesday 29 April 2009
29 April 2009
What's the least surprising thing we've heard in April? Is it the Metropolitan Police 'allegedly' killing an innocent man and then trying to cover up the facts? Is it the torpor and lack of motivation that suddenly enveloped the squad of Rochdale Football Club after they signed Tom Newey? Is it the excellent second division goalkeeper Town recently loaned wanting to play in the second division? Not quite. It's Ryan Bennett winning just about everything it was possible to win at GTFC's player of the year awards last night. Least surprising for everyone, that is, except for Bennett himself, who said: "It shocked me a bit getting so many awards. Obviously I was hoping to win a couple in a season that's not been too bad for me. But it surprised me getting so many." Long gone are the days when Mariners officials would invite Cod Almighty to take part in the awards and nominate our own player of the year, but if we still did then we'd find it very difficult to demur from the popular verdict this time, so outstanding has Bennett's contribution been. Congratulations on a thoroughly deserved sack of shiny things, Ryan. We bloody love you. Now how about showing your appreciation by signing a new 15-year contract?
Another prize, which we have deplorably overlooked thus far in the Diary, is the Professional Footballers' Association's official recognition of Sir John McDermott. At a ceremony over the weekend the Mariners legend - accompanied by those figures who were so influential in his career: Alan Buckley and, er, Dave Boylen - was given a Merit award by the PFA for his tremendous service to his club and the game. The sight of PFA members voting freely in a private ballot to celebrate the achievements of their colleagues, regardless of their fame, seems just too much for the famous football blog Off The Post to cope with, however:
A bloke called John McDermott, who spent 20 years at Grimsby Town, has been given the Merit award for his services to the game. That is the award Giggs should have been in contention for! He has been a terrific servant, is still a tremendous asset and has a part to play for Manchester United, but he has not been the best player in the Premier League this season.Off The Post prominently describes itself as "the best football blog on the planet", and with the sort of insight, style and wit on display in that post - entitled 'PFA Awards are an absolute joke' - it's not difficult to see why.
A relieved John Fenty (Con) has made some important announcements to fans in an interview on the club's £35 web subscription service Mariners World. After praising the "voice-iferous" support at Bournemouth last Saturday, the Town chairman:
- reasonably implores season ticket holders not to be put off renewing by the recent flurry of special offers for people buying match-by-match, which won't be repeated next season
- amusingly says "the building" several times to mean "the club" ("Joe is a great lad around the building", "we've got some good players in the building", etc)
- considerably overestimates the historical magnitude of Town's recent good run of home form
- correctly offers no sympathy to his counterparts who have run other clubs into administration and that
- alarmingly raises the possibility of a resurrected Fentydome folly without the need for an 'anchor' retail development.
Finally today, Mark Wilson has emailed the Diary, quoting my assertion yesterday that last Saturday "will mark the end of the lowest and most wretched spell in the long and occasionally distinguished history of a sometimes proud football club from northern Lincolnshire". And what's he got to say about that? "Oh how I wished I had your optimism." After spending most of the last decade telling myself this is as bad as it can get, and being proven wrong every time, the Diary must admit that it was just rhetoric, Mark, and I don't necessarily believe it. But everyone else should.