Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Tuesday 2 August 2005

2 August 2005

He once rescued a baby from a fire next door to his flat in Cleethorpes. He once controlled a ball that arrived at shoulder height by some kind of amazing thigh stretch thing that made the Diary go "woh!". He was the first player Town received a million quid for. And then it all went a bit Donkey Kong for Gary Croft, who has made about as many first-team appearances in the nine years since he left Blundell Park as he did during his all too brief spell as a Mariner. The reason I am telling you all this is that in an irresistibly poetic scenario Gaz is to line up for the Town this evening against Blackburn: the club for which he inadvisably forsook the delights of Cleethorpes back in 1996. As a two-footed player capable of lining up in defence or midfield, Croft, now 31, looks an ideal choice to add depth to Mr Russell Slade's still patchy squad. Though doubts will arise over his fitness record (the player withdrew from a friendly for Cardiff reserves last night because of a problem with insurance), the Diary remembers the day he made me go "woh!", and today I feel like saying it all over again. Woh!

James 'Jimmy' Quinn may have been driven back into the arms of his family by the sight of Pyewipe from the A180 - not to mention the smell - but, as the signing of 'Terrific' Terry Barwick proved, GTFC have no trouble fighting off bids from the likes of Brigg Town for the services of less sensitive footballers. This includes Town's new striker Gary Jones, who turned down a chance to play in the UEFA Cup in favour of the fourth division's finest fish and chips. By throwing in his lot for two years at Blundell Park, reports the Daily Post, Jones rejected the advances of Rhyl FC, runners-up in last season's Welsh Premier, who face Viking FK of Norway in the tournament's second qualifying round a week on Thursday.