Cod Almighty | Diary

Big old shiny thing

27 November 2013

Hello darlings – your London Diary here. I woke up this morning with a bit of a spring in my step. We're still fourth in the league, we're still in the FA Cup and I'm going to Coalville on Saturday for a new awayday. What a day. Then I got a speeding ticket through my door. In some weird twist of fate, I got the speeding ticket from the average speed camera on Peaks Parkway on the way to Blundell Park on Saturday. Oh cruel, cruel world. I don't even have a horsebox story to appeal my penalty. Fancy taking the points John? Come on mate, do it for the fans.

So, what do I think about building a stadium on Peaks Parkway? Well, speeding ticket from the new driveway aside, I’m not sure. What's that? The CA Diary being all cynical? Surely not! I've put forward my proposed plans in a previous diary – you all remember the plans? We keep the same stadium and have a car park over the railway with a tunnel and bridge. Admittedly, I haven't done my homework, but I reckon it can work.

I would love for Grimsby to be the new Swansea/Brighton/Doncaster with a new stadium aiding success, but my only concern about building a new stadium is how on Earth is it all going to get paid for? And by whom? At what risk? Where will the revenue come in from?

And 14,000 seats? Last Saturday we played Barnet, which was a juicy fixture on paper. Edgar Davids was playing and we'd just beaten our neighbours in the FA Cup and yet we only managed to get in 3,500. Where are the other 10,500 fans going to come from? We struggle packing this park, let alone a park twice the size.

So if John Fenty is dead set on this stadium being built – and it's clear that he is, as he's using Fentyspeak again – then he needs to outline where this money is coming from to build the new stadium. It's all a bit hush-hush at the moment as to the funding. We need it in black and white please, outlining everything. It's easy to get excited about a big new shiny thing, but that big new shiny thing can quickly turn into a big old rusty thing. So once we know who's building the shiny thing, who's paying for it, who's cleaning it – or 'the facts', if you will – then we can all either get behind the park, or head to the hills running. What we can't afford is to be another Darlington.

In other news, seems that Ritchie Jones has left BP. Although having had a few good games for the Town, it seemed that he was just too far down the pecking line in what is a very strong midfield squad. All the best Ritchie.

Right, that's me for the day. I better book on to a speed awareness course. SEE YA.