Cod Almighty | Diary

One more point to find we only need half a point for safety

24 April 2018

In one of Zeno's paradoxes, Achilles – having given away a 100-yard start – can never overtake the tortoise, as by the time he reaches the point where the tortoise was when he began, the tortoise has moved on perhaps 10 yards. And by the time Achilles has run that further 10 yards, the tortoise has moved on another yard. Achilles covers the yard only to find he still has three and a half inches to make up on the tortoise. And so it goes on. Achilles can never overtake the tortoise – only reduce the gap to a series of increasingly infinitesimal lengths.

Whatever task the Mariners set ourselves to reach safety from relegation, it seems we always find an extra step is needed after all. Painful, isn't it? The post-match euphora at Saturday's win lasted only half an hour before the likelihood of Barnet winning both their remaining games, and the need for Town to find yet another 'just one more win' began to eat at me.

The only consolation is that it must be far worse for Barnet, to whom we really did resemble a tortoise a month ago. They must have left the field on Saturday sure that, having beaten Newport, they would have given themselves a margin for error in their escape bid, only to find that we had beaten Swindon.

Middle-Aged Diary has no doubt that you have done all these calculations yourself, but humour me.

Forget Chesterfield. Sacking Jack Lester as manager is not a last throw of the dice but an acknowledgement that their race has been won and lost. Perhaps they have been alerted to Russell Slade's availability and want to buy now to ensure disappointment.

Yeovil and Forest Green need an extra point to make absolutely sure they won't go down. They play each other tonight. It might be a rip-roaring West Country derby. It might not, but both teams will surely feel they have enough remaining chances to escape without resorting to collusion.

Really, the fight to avoid the last relegation place is between Barnet, Grimsby and Morecambe. Morecambe also play tonight, at home to Cambridge, knowing that victory would ensure their safety. It is very much in Town's interest, if not Barnet's, that Cambridge win.

Whatever happens tonight, Barnet will visit Morecambe on Saturday knowing that only a win will give them a chance of safety. But if Morecambe, having lost to Cambridge, also lose to Barnet, then they would need to better our result on the last day. So even if we lose to Forest Green, and Barnet beat Chesterfield, then Coventry could save us by relegating Morecambe.

All this could be beside the point. Our tortoise has not turned into a hare in the last month, but it has turned into something resembling a football team. Once the only question we asked of most of our squad was how soon can we get rid of them? and they themselves seemed to be asking how soon can we get out of here? Where once avoiding relegation seemed almost entirely a matter of relying on the failings of others, we are no longer fighting among ourselves but for ourselves.

Let's not get too carried away – we've ridden our luck – but there are players now who have earned a future at Blundell Park if they want it, and a fond farewell if they do not. We can certainly trust that if we do go down, it will not be for want of effort or organisation.