Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Monday 3 November 2008

3 November 2008

Town fans who spent the weekend stroking their chins over Matt Heywood's future may be scratching their heads instead, or something, after Mike Newell revealed that the captain's substitution half an hour into Saturday's home defeat by Darlington was not tactical but due to an injury. After the visitors were gifted an ultimately decisive two-goal lead by a shockingly poor start from the Mariners - in which Heywood played no small part - many spectators greeted the player's withdrawal with glee, and the passing of his armband to 18-year-old Ryan Bennett seemed a potent symbol of the manager's willingness to put noses out of joint in search of a first league win in more than half a year. Today, however, the Grimsby Telegraph quotes Newell to the effect that Heywood "took a tight thigh into the game and he came off with it". The injured party looked a good signing when joining the Mariners in the summer after being named Brentford's player of the year, but has since struggled for form, drawing criticism from supporters, and Town's vast improvement at the back on Saturday after he was replaced by Blond Bob Atkinson can hardly have escaped the manager's notice - tight thigh or no tight thigh.

Atkinson, of course, was one of two players making their second GTFC debuts at the weekend after rejoining the club on two-and-a-bit-month loans last week. Quite understandably not content at that, Mr Re-Newell has let it be known that he is in the market for more. As former promising youngster Danny 'Royale With Cheese' North continues to disappoint this season, the manager said after the Darlo wipeout: "If I can add another one, maybe two, then maybe we can start to get a result." And if that one, maybe those two, perform to the heart-warming standards shown by Blond Bob and Jean-Paul Kalala then the Mariners' survival in the Football League might not seem such a fanciful prospect after all.

So if the ground is falling apart - not to mention the plans for its replacement - then at least the team is being rebuilt. Diary reader Chris Beeley escaped the dangers of falling frozen beer signs by sitting in the Main Stand for the Darlo game, and has emailed with some observations from his vantage point behind the dugouts:

(1)   Newell and Disco Stu don't appear to be speaking to each other - Mr Newell stood icily silent in the 'technical area', Stu stood a few feet away doing that funny knee bending thing he does when talking or doing, well, anything really, and not looking pissed off enough for my liking. You would have thought some communication on what the hell was happening with our defence early doors may have been in order, but there wasn't even any eye contact. Has Stu borrowed Mike's v-neck pullover and returned it all stretched?

(2)   Our players have all started to look about 14 - no wonder other teams beat us up and nick our dinner money - or maybe it's me getting old, you know, policemen looking younger and all that.

(3)   Apart from one scream of "You're not fit to wear the shirt" from the back of the stand after Ravenhill scored the obligatory ex-player's goal, there was surprisingly little moaning from the general public- is this good or bad I wonder? Are we resigned to our fate?

(4)   Heywood pretended to be injured when he was taken off for his own safety after half an hour, clutching an ice pack to his knee theatrically - only Town could have a captain that the crowd are delighted to see depart.

(5)   Bennett had a stormer after Heywood's departure, I suppose playing alongside a liability can affect your game and Atko gave him the confidence to just play his game - shame about the hair though Ryan.

(6)   Dave Moore is lighter now than he was when he was in the team.

  Oh, and Grant Normington's got a green 2002 Ford Focus, and there is so much dog shit on the streets around Blundell Park nowadays that I began to wonder if it was being used as some kind of chemical warfare against football supporters in Cleethorpes, perhaps part of the anti-Mariners conspiracy backed by moronic messageboard contributors.

That's the first paragraph of today's Diary ruined by point (4) then. Thanks a bunch, Chris!

"You talk about Newport County circa 1971," writes Martyn Wyburn in response to Guest Diary last Thursday, I think it was. "I could be wrong but in the '71-72 season Town only lost two home games, and I'm pretty sure one was to Newport County. Not sure of the significance of this but it just adds to the miserability quotient. On the other hand it could mean that we'll win at Wycombe later in the season." That'll be it exactly!