Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Friday 7 September 2007

7 September 2007

It is ubiquitous nowadays, within the strange, rarefied world of news reporting, to announce the news before it actually happens. Along the lines of: "Later today the prime minister will announce in a speech [to some poor unfortunates from a godforsaken provincial backwater, usually] that the monies he promised last year to be spent the year after next are, in fact, possibly still going to be spent." So today the Portuguese police have said they will make someone a suspect later today. Not yet, mind you, but a bit later on. The only other type of news items I hear (apart from pointless celebrity tittle-tattle) are the ones where top army wallahs, ex-foreign office staffers and the like look back on the last few years, and tell us that they have had deep misgivings all along.

So the mantra appears to be: either report what people are going to say, or report what they lacked the bottle to say a while back. I don't think I will ever really get the hang of this world, to be honest. One chap who has is that Pete Green, who bites the hand that feeds him delightfully in today's edition of the Grimsby Telegraph. One quick read of that and I calmed right down as Pete lets Buckley and the trains take his strain.

Better, perhaps, that your Guest Diarist stopped listening to the news altogether, you suggest? But first let me listen to the news on Town as pronounced by the great lion sheikh of Cheapside, Lord Alan Buckley. A man whose autobiography will be a fascinating read one day, mark my words. Town are away at Accrington tomorrow and out to avenge a horrible defeat in the corresponding fixture towards the end of last season. As you would expect, Buckley does not sound complacent about taking on a small, unfashionable, unsuccessful team. They have had a poor start, but on the basis of points so have we, is the Buckley summation.

But our pass and move guru is much more complimentary about the style in which Town have failed to accumulate many points. Buckley is "pleased with our football so far" and "pleased we were getting in to their penalty area more regularly the other night". He, from the twinkle in his eye, took pleasure in telling Bolland "that he had not been missed at all in midweek" and was delighted with the performance of young Andy Taylor, who showed that he had an eye for goal as well as demonstrating his "tremendous pace which scares the opposition stiff". Accrington, Buckley notes, persist with a rigid 4-4-2 formation, and tend to compete physically for every scrap of ball. Town will need to match that ethic and also contain the danger of Mullin(s) (a dangerous and delightfully loyal Stanley striker). Paul Mullin(s) broke the Stanley appearances record when they stuffed us that day last April. They offered to make him skipper for the day, but he turned it down, saying he "didn't want to get into a testimonial mentality". Salt of the earth, eh?

Buckley has what sports writers call a 'selection headache' tomorrow. I'm sure that Lord Buckley will solve this conundrum in his inimitable style: Mulligan, who looked fit according to Buckley the other night, or Bennett (back from suspension)? One thing seems certain: Buckley has said he will be picking Justin Whittle - presumably because of the physical nature of the opposition. As for fit-again Bolland and the forwards, well, they will all just have to wait and see. It is nice to have everyone fit - whatever happens, we will have a decent, balanced subs bench. Shame about the ref though.

Accrington have a decentish official website - take a gander at the poster advertising tomorrow's match as an example of nice retro styling. And it was good to see they managed to get nearly fifteen hundred to their paint game. After going two up in the first half it must have been disappointing not to make it into the second round draw. Speaking of which, that will take place on that horrible Sky programme tomorrow morning. Get it off the web five minutes later, I say. Any road, you can call this a pivotal season-turning away match or another chance to play the team that refused to die. Enjoy it, whatever, and let's hope they do. See yer.