Cod Almighty | Diary

If you aren't arguing, you aren't really there

15 August 2014

At Cod Almighty we have been known, just occasionally, to make the odd sarcastic comment about the coverage of Grimsby Town by its own website, on social media and by the Grimsby Telegraph.

A regular target is the recurrence of certain types of interview. There is the once-weekly appearance of a player saying "sorry we've been a bit shit lately, but we'll get better soon, honest". There is the heartbreaking annual interview with a young striker saying "I can't wait to break into the first team, but meantime the lads and the gaffer are great and I'm learning so much about the game". Paul Hurst's relative longevity means at least we have been spared the "everything was really rubbish here and its taken me longer than I'd have liked to turn it around, but we'll get better soon" interview for a couple of years. All these, and more, Cod Almighty has detailed over the years.

It is, then, only fair to admit we are guilty of our own repetitions. However, two 0-0 draws is probably not justification enough for Middle-Aged Diary's annual invocation of 1997-98 in response to a disappointing start to the season. I'm on holiday next week, but if the Mariners fail to pick up a win from our matches against Dover, Gateshead and Alfreton, you may want to make a note to avoid Cod Almighty on Tuesday 26 August to avoid Repetitive Reading Injury.

For tomorrow's game, the manager formerly known as Shorty – and known by me but no-one else as Football Club Repairman – seems at a bit of a loss as to which players may be available to face Dover. The uncertainty just adds to the excitement. Get yourself down to Blundell Park tomorrow, enjoy the game and enjoy arguing about the side Hurst should have picked. Worry about the implications later.