Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Tuesday 25 May 2004

25 May 2004

Sixteen. Two to the power of four. The age of consent. The number of ounces in a pound. The number of pieces on a chessboard. And also the number of players signed by other third division clubs so far this month, while GTFC have been thinking about considering maybe having a meeting to talk about discussing a longlist for a shortlist for interviews for, oh, what was it again, ah yes, the manager's job.

And while the club has procrastinated, the best player on its books, Mike Edwards, has become one of those 16. Yep - steady Eddie has slipped through Town's fingers and "reportedly" signed for Notts County on a two-year contract, says the Mariners' official website (and you'd think they'd know for sure one way or the other, wouldn't you). After joining from Hull last summer, the player made 35 full appearances for Town, scoring once, winning Cod Almighty's Unsung Hero award, and proving to be the one fairly reliable component in the worst GTFC defence in living memory. The Diary wonders whether Peter Furneaux might be intending to delay the appointment of a manager for a further two years in the hope that Tony Crane will follow Edwards out of the door when his contract expires in 2006.

"Considering the financial mire the club are in," writes Keith Collins in an email to the Diary, "and the way the board apparently thinks, I believe we will not have a new manager until mid-July. He will then have the pick of the remaining 'frees' to sign the week before the season starts. Think of the savings on the wage bill."

Well, whoever the new man turns out to be, the club has at last confirmed that he won't be the old man. "Nicky Law's contract with Grimsby Town expired on the 10th of this month," says Mr F in an interview on the OS, "and he has been advised that he will not be re-employed as manager." There's some stuff about the players who are under 24 being offered new contracts - nice to see that something was learned from the Danny Butterfield debacle, then - and the new manager needing to "instil a work ethic", but the long and short of it is that by the time Law's replacement is announced Town's competitors in the third division will have signed closer to 160 players than 16. "Nobody has been appointed as manager yet," announces the chairman, helpfully. "The situation is under constant review, and we must make sure that the right candidate is available. We have spoken to some prospective candidates, but only to ascertain whether they would be interested to come to Grimsby." You just take your time, Pete. No rush, is there.