Cod Almighty | Diary

The best of bad lots

25 May 2021

Grimsby's first three managers were Welsh, Scottish and Lancastrian. When we turned to the Sheffield-born Frank Womack, one of his former players said he balanced "necessary tact" with "Yorkshire bluntness". That former player will be about 125 years old now but, wherever he is, he may want to listen to our latest Yorkshire incumbent's short interview with BBC Humberside. He'd enjoy the necessary tact of not naming the players under contract but with no future at Town, and the bluntness of calling players "delusional".

The nearest Paul Hurst comes to imparting news is to confirm that there is top-flight interest in the youth-team player Ben Grist. The road between highly-fancied young prospect and actual stardom is rocky and uncertain. There was the lad playing in our youth team who Manchester United were patronisingly said to have "discovered" when they offered him a trial. Middle-Aged Diary is pretty sure he never got a professional contract, with Manchester United, us, or anyone else. I'll display a bit of tact of my own in not naming a couple more who apparently went off the rails after leaving our youth set-up for supposedly better things.

On the other hand, there is Cameron Jerome, who we got shot of and went on to play in the top division with Birmingham and Stoke. Perhaps Joe Hope can take encouragement from him. Linked with Everton a couple of years ago, yesterday he joined Darlington in the Conference North.

Taking a more direct route to a professional career is Luis Adlard, who this morning signed a one-year first professional contract with the Mariners. Good luck to Luis, and we hope to see him in action before too long. Town play Cleethorpes on 17 July, before a crowd of up to 1,000. There are details of ticket arrangements on the official site.

Nowadays of course, we'd love to be patronised by the likes of Man United. This is the owner of Peterborough who, following their promotion, have paid us a £100,000 bonus for Siriki Dembele: "I always throw in add ons when I buy players as I'm happy to spread the wealth among lower league clubs". Thanks so much, Lord Bountiful. I may be wrong, but wasn't it Peterborough we decided it wasn't worth pursuing for a bonus when they sold on Ryan Bennett, as the legal costs made the claim too uncertain?

It'll be a long summer, so let's while away the weeks by compiling an XI. A few years ago, in happier times, we compiled a team of players who had given good performances at Wembley. This close season, by contrast, lets pick players who have performed well in relegation seasons. Two rules: they have to have still been in the squad when relegation was confirmed, and they have to have actually played well in that season. Mark Lever and Peter Handyside, for instance, were both in the team relegated in 1996-97: both fine players but it is hard to see how any central defender in that particular team could stake a claim.

Two players do though. John Oster is ruled out of consideration for 2002-03 as he declined a contract to join us permanently and left before the season was over. But when he made his debut at Charlton in October 1996 he was a revelation. As for Clive Mendonca, 19 goals in a relegation team speaks for itself.  

I'll pick one more obvious choice. Donal O'Riordan was named in the third division team of the 1987-88 season, despite leaving the pitch in tears following the 1-1 draw with Aldershot which sent us down. Whether he plays midfield or defence we'll see, but he's surely in the team.

Now it is over to any of my fellow diarists who care to take up the theme, and to you.

Want more?

Mark Stilton continues his epic review of the Fenty Years. It's 2004 and new chairman Fenty starts a long-running feud with Radio Humberside while offering the illusion of progress on a new stadium. Meanwhile, the club's debts to the Inland Revenue, the bank and to directors move in mysterious ways.