Cod Almighty | Diary

Approval from on high?

29 July 2019

Sunday 28 July. Lots of fans and probably a fair few locals went along to the fun day at Blundell Park. Coming the day after what sounds to have been an encouraging performance even in defeat by Peterborough, it was a great way to engage and start the new season off with that feel-good factor. There was lots going on and it looked great with football activities, non-football stuff, dancing, players and much more. Let's not just turn up in the next few weeks, let's welcome our team onto the pitch and let them know we're behind them. Well done to all involved.

Move on less than 24 hours and the club puts its size nines in it again. More accurately stadium manager Nick Dale has, but this is a multi-million pound business and the current story fed to the local rag can't have been put out without approval from on high, surely? If it has, Fenty needs to be implementing an investigation and look to get rid of him.

One of the choicest quotes: "Grimsby Town is the one club in the English Football League that people don’t want to play because it comes at a cost". That is utter rubbish. We are in the fourth division and most clubs are glad to see us as we generate a fair bit of income. If other clubs genuinely are saying this then the responsibility lies with Nick Dale for the picture he paints of our fans.

He bemoans the legislation not being tough enough, the number of repeat offenders and there needing to be more engagement with young people. Legislation around what you can and can't do at football is far stricter than any other part of life in this country. Who could engage with youngsters? Nick Dale and the club.

Trentside Diary has been to many away games. There are occasionally a few numpties but they tend to be few and far between; a few boisterous teenagers who have had a few cans, but with decent stewards they usually calm down. Poor stewarding and policing will escalate a situation. Stewards experienced in managing a crowd will change the whole dynamic. Don't get me wrong: I don't support violence or hateful behaviour at football or anywhere else in my life but our club is really bad at dealing with this both at home and away.

What a PR disaster! Fenty and the rest of his incompetent merry men need to be gone.

Look at Notts County. In dire straits, down but not out, they were put up for sale at the end of January and now at the end of July the deal has been done. I wonder at how someone manages to put a football club up for sale and complete the deal with 'i's dotted and 't's crossed in six months. It just goes to show that if there's a willingness to get the deal done, it will happen.

Despite what Fenty has said over the last umpteen years, I'm really not convinced that he's as keen as he makes out to sell. In January he said "Since 2010, when I stood down as Chairman, the door was wide open for an approach". Do you really believe that? That in nine years there hasn't been anyone - individual or consortium - who couldn't have taken the club forward? I certainly don't. He likes the glad-handing and status he perceives he gets from being a football (non)-chairman far too much.

I much prefer the attitude of Andy Holt at Accrington who said yesterday "When our supporters decide my time is up, I'll go. No way would I stay in place if I've lost their support. It's their club, I only work there".

Listen to a successful Chairman, Fenty. That Nick Dale can make the comments he has made, now of all times, is yet further proof that you need to be gone. Someone needs to breathe new life into our club. UTM!