Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Friday 5 August 2011

5 August 2011

Football is coming soon. Hull play Blackpool in a proper game tonight, your Guest Diarist notices as he ponders all things Town. Two teams with a need for a decent start. But then don't we all?

Town, after tonight's final friendly at North Ferriby, can start gearing up for Fleetwood at home next week followed by an away match at Braintree on the Tuesday. First the wannabees then the wanna-survive-in-the-big-league. Fleetwood were too good for us twice last season and have big ambitions, demonstrated by a bit of cash-splashing, and also some dodgy cake icing. Braintree... teams like Braintree are the reason we signed Spencer, aren't they? Braintree stuffed Hitchin with five first-half goals recently and travel to Eastbourne for their last friendly tomorrow. It's really impossible to know how Town are going to do in these upcoming games, but you can't help but worry can you?

Look, I went to Lincoln the other night and it was a great night out. A local derby, good away support, great weather, the right result: we won a cup. There were glimpses of good things, lots of bad things - to be brutally honest it looked to me like two mid-table teams battling it out. But then what do I know; what do any of us know?

I loved the new keeper's kicking: he was playing accurate 60-yard aerial passes - every time. Disley ticks quietly and reliably but spent too much time propping up Artus, whose game is too casual by half. I'Anson came on and subsequently Perry never got a sniff. I really like I'Anson - he's an excellent prospect. But I am regretting that we signed Elding and they signed Perry. On that performance I want Perry, who showed a lot more movement. Elding is a sub-Proudlockian striker and I have nothing much positive to say about him yet. After Artus went off for Thanoj we started getting the ball to Coulson more. He looked fit and was charging down the right in the last ten minutes. Dodgy ankle permitting, Coulson could be up for a big season.

And then there is Serge Makofo, a man who has definitely realised that he has a mission to make the starting line-up. Whether he can be disciplined enough to track back all game remains to be seen. What's the opposite of surge? He needs to, ermm, ebb as well as surge. But the missing man was our XXL striker Spencer, who is likely to get at least half a game at Ferriby tonight. He's enormous and doesn't jump much but I'd give him a go ahead of that Elding and Duffy.

Yesterday's Diary asked readers to tell us who the trialist at Brigg was - a bit of a rhetorical question, actually. But Andrew Lowe and Tom Burley kindly got in touch to confirm him as Kiernan Hughes-Mason, a young lad released by Millwall who possesses pace, apparently. Pace is not something we have in abundance throughout the team and that's another real worry.

Is this squad stronger on paper than the one that started last season? Overall it's hard to make a strong case that it is, to be honest. Is the spirit better? Definitely. Should we hope? We must always hope, but given the massive loss-making situation at the club you have to question one or two of the signings. It's a nervous time waiting for all those early season games. And it's not made any easier by the managers' refusal to pick their first team in its entirety for any of the pre-season games. Sure, it brings competition to the squad but it would be nice if they went for it tonight so we can chew it over next week before the season starts. Let's hope it's a good game tonight with no injuries. See yer.