Cod Almighty | Diary

And on your shoulder bag I wrote The Silver Jews

20 June 2017

Wicklow Diary writes: One of the constants of following Town down the years has been the quality of the club programme. Much like the team itself, the odd blip is to be expected over such a long-running series. I'm thinking of the 1987-88 season when the programme looked like it was typed by the YTS lads and printed using the students' union copier (considering our finances at the time, it may well have been). Or the infamous occasion we allowed Benny Hill and Bernard Manning to guest-edit for a season and were fortunate to avoid a points deduction for the hideous 'Mandy Mariner'. For balance, an upstart online fanzine called Cod Almighty also had a programme column around then too. What could possibly go wrong...

Last season was another successful one for The Mariner. The title has received several end-of-season awards, including the best division four programme from Soccer Club Swap Shop. Well done to editor Jack Johnson for his continued excellent work.

Patrick Conway, one of Jack's predecessors as editor of The Mariner, has been in touch with CA. My recent fantasising on the return of the corner terracing at BP (I have the numbers picked, I'm just waiting for a large enough lottery jackpot rollover) struck a chord:

Thanks Wicklow Diary for advocating reinstatement of the corner terracing. While we're at it, relocate the police surveillance box to a vacant hospitality box. BP doesn't need car parks inside the stadium. Fond memories of the terracing twixt Pontoon and Main. First game October '56 on the rails, John Scott netting the winner v Port Vale. Then 1979 and Kev Moore going agonisingly close in the FL Cup against Wolves. Had driven down after work from Tyneside and two days later received a speeding fine from Plod for travelling in haste on Laceby bypass.

Rotten luck, that. With more than 23,000 inside BP that night I can't believe there was a copper out to catch you speeding. Must have been a rugby type.

Last week's kit launch reminded me of a piece from one of Patrick's programmes of the early 80s. Our new shirts, particularly the pink/purple third kit, prompted varied reactions but none like the one in 1934 so beautifully described by journalist and Town fan Jack Waterman:

Town had been experimenting with different patterns of stocking. The idea was then fairly revolutionary: that passing would be improved if players could look for a distinctive stocking and not have to take their eye too much off the ball...

Finally came the answer – and one that has stood the test of nearly half a century: all-red stockings. Even among the jazzy variety of strips worn by other teams in 1981, they still add a distinctive and very individual look to Grimsby Town on the field: but in 1934 they were a sensation, and, as the team emerged from the tunnel to light up the gloom of the Humber mist and rain that day, the reaction of a packed Blundell Park was one of total astonishment, if not disbelief. And if the crowd were dazzled, so were Aston Villa. We beat them 5-1, thus starting an unbeaten run of half a dozen games and laying the foundation for finishing fifth from top of the league, the highest ever tide-mark for the Mariners.

Thanks for getting in touch, Patrick. I know we harp on about it on CA but memories like yours of World Cup hero Johnny Scott and Jack Waterman's story of 1934 maintain a magical thread and make every visit to Blundell Park special for me. And thanks also for your work on The Mariner. I'm still enjoying it more than 30 years later. 

If, like me, you weren't at the Wolves match and are struggling to imagine what the Park looked like with 23,115 inside, take a look at this wondrous footage from 1949 of 26,505 for the cup tie with Hull. Amazing. Don't laugh at the defending. OK, do laugh at the defending, particularily for the third Hull goal. Let's give our defence (it looks like number 5, Sibley) the benefit of the doubt and blame it on the Pontoon goalmouth mound.

When you see a heated online debate on whether the club shop should have ordered more pink shirts it's officially time to switch off GYTV, peel yourself from the couch and get outside into the fresh air

I make no apology for looking into the past in today's diary. When you see a heated online debate on whether the club shop should have ordered more pink shirts it's officially time to switch off GYTV, peel yourself from the couch and get outside into the fresh air. Or get a waft of heat and retreat to the back room with the curtains drawn and a stash of 1981 Town programmes.

We're still looking to fill out the Wembley XI. Middle-Aged Diary will have more on that on Thursday and maybe even another poll if you're good. Joseph Sheehan has been in touch, meanwhile, with a cheeky un-nomination: "I personally think Andy Monkhouse should get an honorary mention for not being in the starting eleven."

Naughty, Joseph. Monkers was one of those Marmite players. I liked him myself but I think age and injury caught up with him in the second half of the season. Marmite Marcus Marshall didn't feature at Wembley either, unless you count a brilliant run to the corner for the third goal pile-up. He did help us get there, though, with his 'where the hell has he been all season' cameo at Braintree. Marcus has joined Dizza and Macca at Alfreton as the tit-for-tat war between Shrewsbury, Torquay and Alfreton for most ex-Mariners continues. 

Oh look, another email. This is great, like the pre-Twitter/Facebook days when the diary wrote itself. Or more accurately when feedback was a regular feature and original/regular Diary earned both parts of his name by writing the diary every single day. He's a remarkably normal fella, all things considered. Then again, my definition of normal might be different to yours; after I finished with the football programmes I had a look through the CA postbag archives (I'm available for parties; booking advised). Where have all the old-school emailers gone? Keith Falla, James Booth, Dave Chambers, Jan Przeniczny, Paul Wright and others? We need you guys, especially in close season.

Ron Counte has written some excellent articles in the past few months and John England has contacted us regarding Ron's piece on the Rochdale game from 1979:

Great article by Ron Counte on the Mariners' victory against Rochdale in March 1979. I remember it well – in fact it's one of my fondest memories of that great Town side. My friend Bill and I were late getting to the game due to bad weather and as we reached the turnstiles we heard a cheer. "Oh, we must have scored already!" I exclaimed, as we hurried to take our seats just as Rochdale scored again to make it an unbelievable 2-0 to the home side with minutes on the clock. We needn't have worried, of course, because over the next 85 minutes Town scored 5 without reply. What a game and what a team, promotion 2 months later to Division 3 (now laughably called League 1) and then a further promotion as champions 12 months later. Happy days indeed. Can we have the same again please?!

Yes please seconded. Maybe the purple/pink kit will have the same positive impact that our red socks had in 1934 and indeed in 1979. There you go. We haven't signed anyone yet today and the fixtures are out tomorrow. Yay! Dizza has done a thing with Mike White on Radio Humberside. I got a bit emotional clicking on the link so I haven't been brave enough to listen yet. Give it a listen and let me know if it's safe to proceed.