Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Tuesday 14 November 2006

14 November 2006

The returned saviour of all humankind, Alan Buckley, has stunned Grimbarians by admitting that his side's chances of victory in their first-round FA Cup replay next week - followed by wins in the second, third, fourth and fifth rounds, quarter-final, semi-final and final - are slim. Just three days after the first game of Buckley's third spell at Blundell Park ended in a creditable goalless draw at Northampton, the manager has dashed hopes of Town seeing off the Cobblers in next Tuesday's replay and Barnet in the following round and then recording wins over opposition from throughout the Football League and Premiership in the six rounds that follow to amaze the football world by lifting the famous trophy in a historic Millennium Stadium final on 19 May 2007. "I am a realist of course and know it is unlikely we can go on and lift the FA Cup," Buckley says in a Grimsby Telegraph interview today, as everyone in the room broke off their conversations to look round and stare in horrified, the jukebox suddenly lurched into silence, and a big, scary-looking man turned furiously away from the dartboard after his final arrow on a double-top checkout flailed wildly into the wall.

Yes, well. The interesting stuff today is in the interview given by Buckley and John Fenty last night to Dave Otter of Grimsby Town Supporters Trust, and it's only on Mariners World at the moment and the Diary's Mariners World subscription lapsed some time ago. Still, now that the club is talking to Radio Humberside again, I might renew it, to be honest with you, Burnsy. In the meantime, until normal service is renewed, here's a picture of John McDermott without a dog and a noughts and crosses game on a blackboard for you to bid on and raise funds for the trust.

Town's lengthy FA Cup run this season has got Diary readers tapping frantically at their mail packages, so to speak, and Michael Shelton is a bit concerned about the effects of a long weekend in north London: "If we do beat Northampton we play Barnet away on 2 December, followed by Barnet away on 5 December. Anyone fancy splitting the difference and having a winner-takes-all double match at 2am on the 4th?" Be careful what you wish for, Michael, especially within earshot of Sky. "Or shall we just lose to Northampton?" That would probably be the simplest thing.

A reader calling himself John O'Groates, meanwhile, has noticed the item on the OS about tickets for the Northampton replay and the league game at Wycombe this Saturday. "I'm a little worried about this bit: 'The Grimsby Town Supporters club are running a coach to Wycombe. The cost is £24 and can be booked by calling Terry Hall on: 07716 094444.' Terry Hall? I certainly hope it won't be a ghost town at Adams Park on Saturday... err... I'll get me coat." An apt reference indeed in the light of Buckley's reappointment, given that bit in the second verse that goes "Why must the youth fight against themselves?"

That just leaves Sibbo, who returns to familiar Diary territory by beginning his email: "I couldn't quite believe my ears as I listened to the breakfast news early on Sunday morning. They were discussing and asking viewers to text in, regarding pasties! Now I can't say what it was all about because I switched the TV off. I did wonder, though, if anyone from CA had instigated the discussion." You switched the TV off? What? "However, there are much more important topics to talk about now. Football being one. With Alan Buckley back on the scene, I hope we're in for some good times again. This season I've sat watching Town and thought: 'For Hell's sake, excite me.' I've never understood why so many of our fans dislike AB so much. We've a lot to thank him for. If he and his team excite me then it'll do me." Football more important than pasties? Speak for yourself, man...