Cod Almighty | Diary

That's the joy of following Town

10 January 2023

Can I start my diary today by wishing a belated Happy Birthday to the one and only George Kerr, who turned 80 yesterday. A Grimsby Town legend and one of the few players or managers that has the respect of both Town and Scunthorpe fans.

I think it is the combination of the excitement of promotion in 1979 under Newman and then winning the third division the following year under Kerr that forged my love for the club. That 4-0 drubbing of Sheffield United on the final day of the season is up there with any game I've watched since. I still feel for my friend Liz who had been to every home game with me that season but couldn't go to the last game because British Home Stores café wanted her to start her Saturday job on that day. They obviously had no understanding of culture or how important this game was to the Town.

You can forget your Buckley ball, your McMenemy or your Shankly, George Kerr will always be my favourite Town manager. I was thinking of stories you hear about managers and players, particularly their interactions with fans that you come across when you chat to people at games and I wondered if we should start a collection before they are all lost in the mists of time.

2023 in Grimsby Town-land: there doesn't seem to be an awful lot going on does there? You can guarantee that this is the Cod Almighty equivalent of the commentator's curse and as soon as this is published there will be loads of exciting news. We've come down from our cup victory against 'league above' opposition; we've rationalised that it might not be a glamorous draw but we have a chance of progressing and at least we're still in the cup; and we're ever hopeful but not expecting too much excitement on the transfer front. Just because we're in the fourth tier and not as glamorous as some, that doesn't mean we'll stop checking social media. You never know what gems are just around the corner, that's the joy of following Town.

UTM!