Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Friday 2 July 2004

2 July 2004

The day dawned, young Hockless leapt out of bed, faced himself in the bathroom mirror, and decided that today, of all days, he had to be the headline news on the official site. To do that he had to promise to sign a one-year playing contract with the club. So that's what he's done. Your increasingly regular (must be the prunes) Guest Diarist just hopes his place will be in a midfield four, not as part of a front three. The international tournament quaintly nicknamed Euro 2004 has amply demonstrated how lonely and crap strikers become when playing in a formation ending in three, don't you think?

The Grimsby Telegraph is positively awash with quotes about the deal. Telling us that his decision was a 'huge weight off my shoulders', Hockless plaintively adds that: "I'll be hoping to figure more in the first team this season". Town Chairman Peter Furneaux, spitting Fenty's hankie from his mouth, declared: "We believe that by keeping players who have the club at heart and also having a manager that is prepared to move to Grimsby, we are heading in the right direction." The Telegraph adroitly segues Furneaux's plea for fans to buy season tickets with the information that sales have broken through the £100,000 barrier recently. Sounds a lot, but it's not - between 600 and 650 I reckon. For waverers, the deal where you get a one day sentence to be served at Pleasure Island free with your season ticket ends on July 17th.

Meanwhile that marketing executive-in-demand and part-time Aldershot striker, Tim Sills, has been enjoying another media interview, saying: "I have not made a final decision about where I will be playing next season. A couple of weeks ago there was an offer from Grimsby Town. They are a big club and only two seasons ago were in Division One. But they put a deadline on the offer and I don't think I will be going there. There has also been interest from Ian Atkins at Bristol Rovers which would give me league football. But Terry (Brown, Aldershot boss) has made an improved offer to me and at the end of last season it was my intention to stay at Aldershot and try to win promotion. I think it's fair to say it will be a choice between Aldershot Town and Bristol Rovers and I intend to make that decision by the weekend." As Mr Diary pointed out, only a few days ago, that rotter Atkins will say anything to get his way with young footballing men, and has already signed enough players to sink a harem. In fact, the aptly named Paul Trollope who spent about a month on loan with Town in 1996 has gone there this very week. So don't go to the Gasheads Tim. You won't like it one bit. Whether this interview, or even this crazy column, will inspire Russell Slade to have another try for you remains to be seen. But we need strikers from somewhere, and we need them fast. See yer.