Cod Almighty | Diary

Liquid Neutral Earthing Resistor

11 December 2019

Miss Guest Diary writes: When Macclesfield's game against Crewe was postponed last weekend, a little ripple went around social media about the possibility of no relegation slots at all in the bottom division this season. Some expressed relief that Town could then relax and play without fear. Others were dismayed at the prospect of Fenty using it as an excuse to take the cheapskate option of not appointing a new manager this season.

No real football fan should want to see another club go out of business. The anguish of the fans and community for the demise of Bury earlier this season was hard to watch. And for fans of lower division clubs like ours, often mixed in with the sympathy was the feeling that it could be us next time. So I was pleased to see that local businessman Joe Sealey, son of former Man United goalkeeper Les Sealey, appears to be riding to Macclesfield's rescue. He'll have to get a move on, though, as there is a winding-up petition due to be heard next week.

I confess to having an additional Christmas-related personal reason for wanting Macclesfield to stay in business.

I'm not a big fan of Christmas: I gave up exchanging gifts with people years ago. But I do like to get together with family and friends for lots of eating and drinking and playing silly games. As kids grow up and move away and have families of their own, the logistics make it increasingly difficult for that to happen. This year, though, my brother and his wife decided to make it easier by renting a big house for a few days with his grown up children and their partners. When they invited us too, we regretfully declined in favour of a trip to see Town at Macclesfield on Boxing Day.

The next thing we knew the invitation was repeated because they have rented a house less than 30 miles from Moss Rose. It would be somewhat embarrassing for their generous gesture to have been wasted if the game didn't happen, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Macclesfield.

I have long thought that Moss Rose is a lovely name for a football ground and wondered where the name originated. A dilatory look around the internet failed to produce the answer, but it did lead to the discovery that it is one of the oldest stadiums in the league. Also, that Macclesfield secured promotion to the league for the first time in 1995 but weren't allowed to take up their place due to deficiencies in the stadium. This was despite the fact that Chester had played League games there four seasons earlier while the Deva Stadium was being built. Macclesfield had to win promotion all over again two seasons later. I literally cannot imagine what it would feel like if something similar happened to Town and it has made me feel even keener for them to survive.

Talking of stadium names, I see that Lincoln City have sold the naming rights to Sincil Bank and that, for the next three years, it will be known as the LNER Stadium. I am sure Cod Almighty readers could come up with a few choice phrases to fit that acronym.

I know naming stadiums after commercial enterprises is increasingly common these days. Every time I've been to Cheltenham's ground, it seems to be called something different; my favourite was The World of Smile. More usually commercial naming seems to be reserved for when a club gets a new ground. Remember those red baseball caps dished out at Blundell Park what seems like a lifetime ago for the proposed Conoco Stadium in Great Coates. But renaming a ground at which you've played for over a hundred years just to earn a few quid seems somehow tawdry.

Having said that, I wouldn't put it past Town's board to embrace the idea. Maybe the only reason Town still play at Blundell Park is because no local business thinks it worth putting their name to the ever-diminishing enterprise that is Grimsby Town.

Right, that's it, my tyres need pumping up. Just like Town.