Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Friday 17 August 2007

17 August 2007

I'm hoping that you will have been relieved as I was to read that sales of 'lads' mags' have plummeted lately. People are no longer reading FHM at all and are deserting Nuts in droves, apparently. Whether they have realised that they need better-quality journalism, or are now just googling their quota of scantily clad ladies is, perhaps, a moot point. Lazy editing excites my friend the Diary as easily as a bull is worked up by a picador: this we know. Indeed it winds most of us up, which made it difficult for many to wade through the long list of contributors published by that Rivals site yesterday. Your Guest Diarist was on there: well, ermm, a few times actually. Now the last thing anyone wants is a mud-slinging competition, but a bit more judicious editing, a bit less trumpet-blowing and some half-decent writing might just be the ticket to Zoo's salvation, eh?

But continuing with this theme of mangling our beloved English language, I must point out this epic published on the Notts County Mad website: "It is hard to believe that just a week ago optimism over a Notts promotion push was so high. Now, after a draw at Grimsby and an early Carling Cup exit at Coventry, some fans are claiming that the optimism was dumbfounded". Time to move on to Town news, I think, before you call me a boring pedant.

Lord Buckley, dressed in a crisp white shirt which showed off his tan a treat, has spoken to Mariners World. It was impossible not to retread the ground of Tuesday night as he first lauded the fitness, work ethic and good passing and movement on show throughout the marathon cup tie. Next AB explained that he had brought the players in for a light training session on Wednesday as a precaution against the 'after the lord mayor's show' syndrome, with which he has been afflicted in the past. The team got a day off on Thursday, but are experiencing a 'hardish' training session as I write today. Alan reconfirmed his opinion that the squad size (19) is not big enough to cope with a full season despite what the budget may say, or the chairman might think. A quality right-back is the priority, but Buckley covered his bases by saying that this may come from within if Bennett is forced inside to cover for Whittle or Fenton. He can't mean Clarke; it must be Hunt he has had a thought about?

The great news that we have a full squad again to choose from for tomorrow's away match at Bury almost certainly means an unchanged team for the third successive match. Bury's best attacker, Andy Bishop, has had an injection to stop his tendonitis hurting so he will probably play at least part of the match.

As for the opposition tomorrow, Lord Buckley is as warily dismissive as ever. Giving no impression that he has had the Shakers watched, Buckley assumes that "they will be quite like Notts County - rather direct". Fen Butcher is big; Morgan must be good because Buckley brought him to Lincoln, and so on. I reckon that the biggest challenge is perhaps to get the team to continue to play high-tempo passing football even when they feel a bit knackered and are away to an unfashionable team, so Saturday may prove a useful benchmark for the season.

But if you plan to go to Bury, read the Cod Almighty factfile first because, sadly, the trams are not running and so you may need travel guidance. Any road, I need to write a polite letter to the Hells Angels suggesting they really need to sew an apostrophe on to their colours, so I'll leave you now. See yer.