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Diary - Tuesday 14 July 2009

14 July 2009

In the football-free wasteland of the close season, the announcement of Town's squad numbers is as big a deal to supporters as the PR-botched rescheduling of several newly published fixtures to Friday nights and the team featuring 21 different players as they draw 1-1 in a pre-season friendly at Winterton Rangers. Today's Diary, then, begins with the news that Town have announced their squad numbers, but you'll have to forgive me if I refrain from sifting the list for auguries of Mr Re-Newell's starting XI at Cheltenham next month, especially since, as the club's superb new official website points out, "some of the players have requested that they keep last season's numbers". And with 2008-09 being so unforgettable a season for the Mariners, who can blame them for doing all they can to keep its memory alive forever?

"I was on loan here 15 years ago and nothing much has changed," enthuses Nick Colgan today about his move to Blundell Park. Let's be charitable and assume Town's new but old goalkeeper meant it as a compliment, or at the very least not with the utmost vitriol. Colgan has been talking to Mariners World and, while he singles out the presence of Mike Newell as a key factor in his decision to join the Mariners, the FORMER Barnsley and Hibernian (and a few other clubs) number one also cites a glowing reference from his immediate predecessor Wayne Henderson about the whole set-up, including goalkeeping coach Steve Croudson, who at 28 is seven years Colgan's junior. For those of you without Mariners World subscriptions, the Grimsby Telegraph has very thoughtfully nicked some of the interview; and speaking of Croudson, here's a nice reminder of his excellent debut against Wolves in 1999. As well as the Kitten performed in goal that night, some credit for the shut-out must clearly go to strapping centre-half Wayne Burnett.

And speaking of Town fans without Mariners World subscriptions, Richard Bedwell has emailed the Diary to ask about a MW feature which he can see the title of on Town's superb new official website but is unable to view. "Dear Diary," he writes, "I don't subscribe to Mariners World so I would be interested to know the content of the video title 'Adrian Forbes Has Got A Big...'" Well, Richard, the Diary has watched this video so you don't have to, and it's something to do with a song which the Town fans apparently sing about Adrian Forbes. I say 'apparently' because I've never heard it, so we can only guess what the big thing is which Forbes has and Mariners World is too shy to mention. It's a bit of a teaser, really, because any professional football club in 2009 with any sort of self-awareness at all would clearly prefer to avoid giving exposure to a supporters' chant based on gross racial stereotyping, so it obviously can't be anything to do with his cock.