Cod Almighty | Diary

A load of Cobblers

11 November 2013

Miss Guest Diary writes: Wow, wasn't it brilliant at Blundell Park on Saturday; I pity any Town fan who couldn't be there. Yes, I know we didn't win but it certainly wasn't for lack of trying. Every player was doing their best and the supporters too. Absent were the usual moans and groans when things didn't go perfectly, replaced by singing and clapping and cheering. To use the modern footballer's favourite adjective: the atmosphere was buzzin'.

You might say that this is no surprise, but in recent years it has seemed that the bigger the crowd, the poorer the performance. Just look at last season's games against Lincoln: we slapped them 4-1 at Sincil Bank but could only manage a 1-1 draw in front of 7,405 at Blundell Park. And then there's the previous time Blundell Park was a sell-out: the last home game of the 2005-06 season which Town needed to win to secure automatic promotion out of the bottom division. We all know what happened then, don't we.

And who were Town's opponents on that awful day? Northampton Town. Is it fate, an omen or merely a coincidence that another home game against Northampton is the 'prize' awaiting Town if they beat Scunny in the cup replay a week on Tuesday? With Town's decent away form (four wins, two draws and three losses) and Scunny's lack of quality, there seems every chance Town can secure that place in the second round. Then we'll need to pack the Park again and recreate that positive atmosphere. Being upbeat and cheerful twice in one season: it's a big ask for us fans.

It was disappointing, though entirely predictable, that there would be clashes between fans before and after the game on Saturday. The police have made a statement to the effect that this trouble was minimal, "causing a small amount of disorder" and meaning that "the majority of people had a safe and enjoyable day". One Scunthorpe fan who feels that this is a misrepresentation of events has penned an open letter to Humberside Police which paints an entirely different, and rather horrifying, picture.

Scunthorpe has released news of ticket allocations for the replay, which indicates there will be around 1600 tickets available for Grimsby fans. But, having read about the experiences of away fans around Blundell Park on Saturday, I'm not sure I feel like bothering.