The Diary

Cod Almighty | Diary

Rising slowly

3 August 2018

Wicklow Diary writes: Between one thing and another, I haven't been to a home season opener in yonks. I'm going tomorrow and I'm bloody excited. A glorious living postcard on the darkest, wettest winter night, it's nice to experience a pristine Blundell Park in short sleeves and a single pair of socks.

Like many, my excitement has been bubbling away since the Notts County game and isn't just due to the prospect of dazzling grass and fresh paint. The season that we couldn't wait to end was rather good in the end, as well described by Ron Counte this week.

I sat with my sons in the Lower for that County game and get a bit emotional when I recall the support we were part of. Once started, it was contagious and relentless from all around us. Voices both young and old urged their side on: Come on lads, we can do this. He's terrified of you Mitch, you've got him. Go on JJ, skin him. Sometimes perceived coolness gets in the way of support. A misplaced pass is met with tuts or derision and not with encouragement. Not on this day. Backs were to the wall with no thought about keeping up appearances. We can do this, not you can do this. After the bitterness of the previous months it was truly remarkable how Michael Jolley revived a dying club.

All this excitement must lead to high expectations, yes? Well, no. Stuff expectations. I have hopes. That's all. Anything else can take the fun out of it. Besides, as stated on Twitter during the week: 

But come on you Cods, you must have a prediction for us? Nope. That internet is rife with predictions and polls and CA aims to reach the parts others don't. We're happier in a world where Accy Stanley can emerge and romp to the title. Predictions lead to expectations. Expectations can be dangerous. High ones, anyway. Before you know it you're booing the manager and sticking up banners on overpasses.

That was one of the pains of non-League: if we weren't winning and winning with bells on every week, there was murder. There's no fun in that. You might as well be a Manchester United fan, a world where victory is expected and you are defined by your failures. 

That internet makes for some entertainment, though. Everyone is tipping Lincoln for the top three, and they're even tipping themselves for the title. They must be greener than the Blundell Park grass to fall into that trap. Our best guess is that all teams will play 46 games and will finish between positions 1 and 24. 

JJ Hooper was one of the beneficiaries of the Jolley revival. After months of toiling against eddying currents, here was a player who suddenly had the tide in his favour and a support willing him to get the ball. JJ spoke to Humberside yesterday and told us the players have set their own private target. When pressed on how we will improve on last season he elaborated that "if we can stop goals going in and score more goals we can definitely do something". JJ, I could hug you. In a world of a million tweets and a thousand pre-season predictions, the simple maths of football still trumps every opinion.

New skipper John Welsh has also been talking in front of a microphone and showing his skipperly qualities. Have a listen to his iFollow freebie on the official site or catch his chat with James Findlater in the Telegraph. If you're not fired up, you soon will be.

Tomorrow's opponents are Forest Green Rovers. You hardly need reminding that the corresponding fixture against FGR last season, back in December, was Russell Slade's last win. Shudder. Fitting, of course, that the final victory of his second spell was a let-down. A real let-down. After going 1-0 up against ten men we declined the invite upstairs for a coffee and hopped in the cab with a clumsy parting peck on the cheek. The enjoyable 3-0 romp in the return fixture in May was much more rewarding.

FGR, what about them? They've a new kit with three stars on it, which everyone has been having a bit of a giggle at. All publicity is good publicity, or so they say. They've still got Mad 'Gavin' Gunning, who could make his first BP appearance since leaving us. Like us, their squad has been overhauled over the summer, with only Town and Cheltenham making more changes. Manager Mark Cooper is still there though, and we hope he tells his team to attempt to play it out from the back in the comical fashion of that previous visit.

Rovers have suffered only one pre-season defeat, at home to Leeds. Their schedule included a a 2-0 win at the marvellously named Brimscombe & Thrupp of the Hellenic League and a 2-2 draw with Swindon Supermarine. There was also a 6-6 draw with Weston-super-Mare thrown in for good measure, so like any pre-season, the results count for little. To be truthful, I'm only mentioning it at all in order to include Brimscombe & Thrupp. I need to know more about them. Oh, and despite attention from higher divisions, pesky goal-getter Christian Doidge is still there and was among the goals in the warm-ups.

For us Mariners, Elliott Whitehouse and Harry Cardwell are the only two ruled out. Harry missed most of pre-season and is about three weeks away from matchday squad consideration. Ali Koiki hasn't joined yet but his arrival hasn't been ruled out by Michael Jolley. On the rumour front, Hard Transfers has tweeted that there's a chance that we could be making a "massive, huge" signing today too. They're never wrong, are they?