Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Tuesday 24 June 2003

24 June 2003

The hundreds of Town fans who are becoming part owners this summer as the club finally flogs the rest of its share capital will be holding their breath for complimentary G&Ts as they receive invites to Blundell Park to meet the board and coaching staff. "We'd like to welcome the new shareholders to the club," announces chairman Peter Furneaux, "and we think the best way is to call a meeting and introduce the key figures to them." All the cash raised in the share issue has been pledged to Paul Groves to rebuild his side for a promotion challenge - and over £50,000 has been taken so far, with many applications still to be processed when the admin girls get back from Corfu or whatever.

Mariners legend Alan Buckley, newly back in the game at third division Rochdale, says he will appoint an assistant by the end of the week. The uncompromising former Town boss took over at Spotland earlier this month, prompting immediate speculation from those of a black and white tendency as to the identity of his number two, with John Cockerill, Tony Ford and John McDermott among the names mentioned. Macca is of course out of the picture now; but despite Ford's previous spell at Dale as a popular assistant boss to Steve Parkin, the Diary is tipping Cockers to resume the managerial career suspended in December 2001 when Town correctly ejected brazen charlatan Lennie Lawrence.

All of which eases us seamlessly towards Lincoln magistrates' court, where Buckley's progeny Adam is to face four counts of theft this Friday following his arrest last month in Grimsby, reports the Grim Tel. If earlier releases from Lincoln are anything to go by, then the 23-year-old left winger stands a fair chance of acquittal given his recent departure from the cathedral city's football club. Another one-time GTFC manager, Brian Laws - one uses the term loosely - is set to be called as a witness for the prosecution and allege the theft of one third division play-off semi-final from Glanford Park.