Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Thursday 9 April 2009

9 April 2009

Twenty-year-old goalkeeper Kyle Letheren has joined the Mariners on trial. Well, you try making a witty opening line out of that. A Wales under-21 international like Anthony Williams before him, Letheren came through the youth system at Swansea before joining Barnsley, where he has made one first-team appearance to date. He's been on loan at Doncaster this season but hasn't played any senuir games. Just to pad out this paragraph a bit, I'm going to add that the player's solitary appearance for Barnsley was as a half-time substitute in the Yorkshire side's win over Blackpool in last season's FA Cup; they were losing one-nil at the break but won 2-1 after he came on. And that's about it really. I'm afraid it's just that sort of day.

Town have been awarded a silver, er, award by the Football League for the club's work in the community. Shut up. It's not as easy as it looks, this, you know. The award brings with it an, er, award of £48,000, but this has to be spent on more work in the community, dashing the initial hopes of every Mariners fan who read the story and immediately assumed that the cash could have been used on bribes for Accrington to lose at Blundell Park this Saturday.

Speaking of Accrington at Blundell Park this Saturday, waggish GTFC officials have added an extra apostrophe to the name of the club's latest promotional offer just to rile the Diary. Since we first looked here at the erstwhile ACCRING'Ten scheme, whereby you can go and watch a game against ACCRINGton for 'Ten quid, it has since transformed into the equally ingenious ACCRING'Ten'. I suppose those could be inverted commas now that there are two of them. Not that this would be any less of an abomination on the name of all that is holy and pure.

I dunno - I'm just a bit bored and restless today. Let's quit while we're behind and let Guest Diary work his mojo tomorrow - but not before a lighter, brighter email from Ben Gresswell, who seems to spend most of his spare thinking time coming up with new T-shirt ideas on behalf of CA. "I seem to spend most of my spare thinking time coming up with new T-shirt ideas on behalf of CA," writes Ben, and don't say I didn't tell you so, "so here goes my latest... 'Conlon the Barbarian'. Sure to be a massive seller should the big man continue his superb contribution to the cause thus far." I like it, Ben - thanks very much - but what if he doesn't and Town suffer relegation? "If the unthinkable happens, maybe 'Newey The Wanker' would be more appropriate?" Ah yes - or, of course, Onan the Barbarian.