Cod Almighty | Diary
So let's get trashed on tonic wine and we can all crash round at mine
1 November 2017
You remember the end of Escape to Victory, don't you? The exhibition match staged in occupied Europe during the Second World War? There's the team of vicious nazi thugs. There's the team composed of skilful, honest Allied prisoners of war including Pele, Bobby Moore, Michael Caine and Sylvester Stallone. And there are the spectators – a local population cheering on the charismatic celebrity team to express their dissent against the brutal regime that has invaded their homeland. I've no idea why I was thinking about that during last night's game between Russell Slade's current GTFC squad and the Craig Disley All Stars.
In some ways last night's farewell to Diz was a bit of an odd event. For one thing, those people currently employed by the club – or hoping to be soon – had a quite different agenda from those who played for Town in the recent past.
Perhaps we shouldn't speculate on what kind of feelings Slade or, say, Sam Kelly experienced while witnessing an outpouring of love for their immediate predecessors at Blundell Park which has been notably absent during their time at the club so far. But it was a truly bizarre spectacle to see reserves, youth team graduates and trialists doing their best to impress against a team including representatives from the world of popular entertainment. Where their careers will take Jason Akiotu and Corie Andrews we cannot say, but I doubt that much of what they witness will rival the sight of Lloyd Griffith thundering out of his goal like an aroused triceratops.
For another thing, it was a bit odd because football memories and farewells are seldom orchestrated.
When Town beat Yeovil 4-2 back in April, your original/regular Diary kept a gaze focused on Disley throughout the second half, because I suspected it would be the last time I would ever see him in a Town shirt. I was nearly right.
But when we feel good remembering the football, about its heroes and their achievements, it's not because our attendances were complete, our memories neat and tidy like programmes shelved and catalogued. The roots of the emotion are less tangible and more organic. There are always details that flicker out of our reach when our memories strain to bring them back. There's always a last hurrah that eludes us somewhere, a final fling we miss because we're queueing for a cup of tea or having a baby. But I still went, because I just wanted to cheer a bit more and show those players some more love, and because I hate nazis.
So Ahkeem Rose overcame his work permit issues, Hearn and Hannah are still a bloody good partnership, and at the age of 41 Michael Boulding can still reach a fairly impressive lick of pace with instant acceleration from a standing start. Huge thanks to all the players who came. It was kind of beautiful, wasn't it?
The financial position of the Ginger Pirlo is not the only one to have shown an improvement this week, as Town have released their accounts, and the tl;dr is that it looks a bit better because of money from the Football League in general and Wigan Athletic in particular. There is no official statement on where we go once the Omar Bogle money is all spent and the new season ticket holders all grow tired of Sladeball, but Comrade Fenty can at least be found talking up the latest iteration of his plans for a new stadium with fireworks exploding above it on a permanent basis.
This time I find my interest piqued by John's mention of "much-needed affordable housing" around the development. I know I haven't lived locally for a while, but every time I look at house prices around Grimsby, you can still get a four-bedroom end terrace on Freeston Street for less than Peter Furneaux used to spend on a pair of gloves.
Last up today, and speaking of Town's most recent big-money export, congratulations to Omar Bogle for working hard to gain a first-team place at Cardiff and then scoring his first goal for the side last night – their second in a 3-1 win over Ipswich. Bogez' team ascend to second place in the second division as a result. As reasons for not joining the Disley All Stars go, I suppose it's a fairly reasonable one. See ya.