Who Are Ya? - Grimsby Town (#2) - Vital Lincoln City

Thank you to Grimsby Town supporter Paul for answering these questions!

Thank you to Grimsby Town supporter Paul for answering these questions!

How Long Have You Supported Grimsby Town?

Around 10 years now. I’m a younger fan (19 now and my first game was 2006) so I haven’t had the best of times watching us. Only one successful season to show for it! I’ve been luckier than most to see us finish in the top 5 for four of those years though, albeit being in a lower league.

Last Season’s League Finish?

14th.

What Do You Think Of Your Manager?

I’m still not sure. He’s obviously very intelligent, speaks very well and just seems to have the right personality about him. He’s only one game into his tenure here but he’s given us signs, whilst very small, that we are heading in the right direction. There’s his sex conviction hanging over him but I’m hoping that it can be forgotten about – he was cleared by the Scottish FA and has had many jobs since (even with yourselves). We don’t know much about his transfer system, despite bringing in Andrew Fox and Gary McSheffrey pretty quickly. His interviews have stated that he wants to play ‘fast, attacking football’ and a team that works hard. Are these just cliches? Who knows. I believe that it will take longer than 10 games to implement, especially with a group of players so low on confidence. We’ll have to wait until next season on that front.

Hopes/Expectations This Season?

To stay up! I’d be ecstatic to finish 22nd, such is the current situation.

One(s) To Watch?

In terms of players to watch, we’ve got rid of our good ones. Sam Jones was sold to the Shrews and Jamey Osborne back to Solihull (which was an appalling decision). We still have Siriki Dembele but he’s been injured, out of form and is also a work in progress.

Top Seven Predictions?

Luton Town, Accrington Stanley, Exeter City, Notts County, Coventry City, Mansfield Town and Wycombe Wanderers.

Whilst I predict this, Luton have dropped off badly and Accrington are flying. Can all change in 10 games. Lincoln and Swindon to just miss out.

Bottom Two Predictions?

Heart: Barnet and Forest Green Rovers.

Head: Grimsby Town and Barnet.

Thoughts on Lincoln City?

Very solid if unspectacular. Loss of Raggett was key in January as he hasn’t been replaced. Cowley has done very well to get the best out of (previously) average Conference players like Rhead and Waterfall. Think the midfield is one of the best in the league, aided by good wingers. A new GK, CB and fast striker in the summer and the Imps will do well next year, providing no one gets sold.

Score Prediction?

Lincoln 3-0 Grimsby.

Random Fact About Your Club?

We had the first foreign manager in English football, hiring Elemér Berkessy in 1954.

What are your proudest and most embarrassing moments as a Grimsby Town Supporter?

Proudest moment was seeing the ‘Fish’ chant sung by thousands at Wembley against Bristol Rovers. Also, winning promotion!

The most embarrassing moment(s) would have to be losing 5-0 and 4-0 respectively to Braintree and Halifax. Some proper harrowing results in the Conference years.

Do you have a Supporters Trust and what role do they play at the Club?

We do indeed. They pay 30k a year for a seat on the board, to make their point, see it rejected and then watch the rest of the board agree with Fenty.

To be fair to them, they do try but Fenty and Blundell Park make things very difficult. The previous SLO was a great person to speak to about any issues but she was replaced when she focused on the supporter’s issues rather than the club, despite that being her job.

Which was your favourite match involving Grimsby Town?

There are lots to choose from: the Wembley win against FGR or the 3-0 home win against Eastleigh the season before. We also had a fantastic game against Wrexham on the TV about 5 years ago, which was one of highest standard Conference games I’ve seen.

Which was your least favourite match involving Grimsby Town?

Either the Gateshead playoff defeat or relegation at Burton. Me and my dad left at half time so in a way, we were thankful to not see the aftermath. There have been a lot of similarly gutless performances before and since.

After all the recent speculation of who your new manager may be and those reported to have turned the Grimsby job down, are you confident that the new incumbent will get you moving up the table and to safety?

Not at all. Make no mistake, this squad is worse than the one that went down last time because that team could score. However, unlike that squad, this one has triers who just aren’t very good. If someone can instill some belief into this team, we have a chance. None of this is Jolley’s fault; I’m just hoping that he can turn the tide sooner rather than later, starting with a win on Saturday.

Paul Hurst is doing well at Shrewsbury, do you think it could have been Grimsby in League 1 under Paul Hurst?

Not this season. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Hurst and think he’s a great manager but the squad he assembled last season, whether down to budget, ability or spite, was painfully average, with the exception of Omar Bogle. What Hurst does well is making teams hard to beat, installing a fantastic team spirit and is certain for giving 95% every game. However, he’s very stubborn, a bit toothless when it comes to attacking and will always play percentage football, which is why he will not win a title in his career. I think he’ll end up at somewhere like Sheffield Wednesday, at the top of the Championship or bottom of the PL. England is a bridge too far (for now).

Appointing the new Grimsby manager seemed to take an age, are you happy with the appointment? If not, who would you have liked Grimsby to appoint as manager? Some up and coming non-league manager? Or youth team manager for example? Or an experienced hand in league 1 or 2?

I wasn’t unhappy with it. My biggest concerns were his lack of experience and the fact that he never stays anywhere too long. He has had a long career in coaching and has contacts all over the game, despite never being a player himself. He has a clean slate from now and he’ll also have one when the season ends, hopefully with us still in League 2.

I would’ve gone for a younger manager from the Conference, someone in the mould of Marcus Bignot, who we didn’t check out extensively enough. Someone like Luke Garrard may have been a good option and I wouldn’t have been disappointed in John Askey. Alternatively, I was open to Phil Brown and Stuart McCall, as both have had some form of prolonged success. The only sort I’d steer well clear of are your Martin Allen’s, Dean Saunders, Russell Slades; leave them in prehistory where they belong.

Did Grimsby do good business in the January transfer window? With the appointment of a new manager after the window had closed do you think the new manager can really put his stamp on the team and make a difference with the players at his disposal?

It was dreadful. As I’ve stated, we sold Sam Jones on deadline day, loaned Christ Clements to relegation rivals FGR with no recall clause, sold Jamey Osborne back to Solihull, released Akwasi Asante to Tamworth and got rid of none of the players that had gotten us into this mess. We signed a load of loanees including Simeon Jackson and Easiah Suliman, meaning we have more loanees than the allocated match day limit. The remit was to get rid of all traces of Marcus Bignot and sign players on the cheap, which was done with aplomb. The summer transfer window was bad enough but we spent January buying nails and a hammer for the coffin we’re falling into. Things will never change under the current ownership.

Were fans really as confident in August as they made out that they would compete this season? Or did most see the squad wasn’t good enough?

I don’t remember our fans being that confident? We obviously had people with more extreme thoughts that we’d either challenge for promotion or be in a dogfight but most that I know thought we’d finish comfortably mid-table. And we were fine, for a while. And yes, while the players are not great, with the right coaching, they can get results, as shown in the first half of the season. I don’t think anyone expected such a slump in form though. Perhaps it’s the consequences of signing a care home in the summer coming back to bite us? Shows what a poo-show Slade has left us in. Plonker.

As we both unfortunately know, the National League can be a bugger to get out of, from the outside it seems Grimsby would require rebuilding from the bottom to get back up, is that fair?

I wouldn’t say things are that bad. We’ve been improving the youth set up over the past year so we should see the results of that in the next couple of years. The new stadium has been an on-going process for 20 years so I don’t expect anything new on that front. The board we have are essentially pawns to Fenty, who is the King and Queen and every other piece too. If he left the football side of the club to the people who know football, things would run a lot smoother. He’s a tight-arse at heart. He will not speculate to accumulate so whoever comes in will be working on a budget, relative to the league we’re in. We’ve only 5 contracted players for next season anyway, so Jolley has a lot of freedom on that front.

What’s been the main reason for not pushing on since promotion?

A board who didn’t think to promote to new fans by only targeting 3000 season ticket sales. Offers could have been given and we could have shifted at least a few hundred more in my opinion. There were some rumours of broken promises to Paul Hurst too, such as not receiving the extra staff he had asked for, amongst other things. Once Hurst left, it went a bit stale, as people realised that Bignot was a bit mental, Bogle was sold in January and we took a couple of hammerings after that. We still had some good results but that couldn’t save Bignot. Then came Slade…so much promise yet so little delivered.

And because these seem a bit harsh: What’s your favourite derby day moment?

The Joe Colbeck corner goal in 2012. Capped off an excellent day. I can’t remember the 5-1 and playoff games of previous years.

Did the alarm bells starting ringing in pre-season when Slade seemed to be signing quite a few 30+ year old players? I think you’re back four had an average age of 34 at one point this season!

We all thought that Slade had signed an experienced bunch who would sit back, soak up the pressure and the play the ball through for our quicker attackers to slot the ball home. When it quickly emerged that they couldn’t defend, the midfield sat back, as did the forwards and the spiral has continued downwards. I’m fine with experience as long as they can still play!

Who Are Ya? – Grimsby Town (#1)