Cod Almighty | Diary

We're the Grimsby, the mighty Grimsby...

31 March 2025

Miss Guest Diary writes: So what did you do on Saturday with no Town game to follow? With three points safely in the bag from Town's Friday-night win at Colchester (what a game!) our journey back from down south was sheer pleasure. We spent it listening to the post-match interviews and reading the socials, with a quick pitstop in Waitrose at Saffron Walden for a sausage bap and a foray into Robert Dyas for some bird food and a broom.

Sidebar: if you want to visit somewhere that epitomises white, middle-class privilege then it's surely Saffron Walden. I could not imagine any of the people we encountered there visiting Grimsby or even knowing where it is. I know this is a bit rich coming from me as a southerner – someone who, when I got together with Mr B, had to explain to her sister that Grimsby is nowhere near Newcastle and reassure her mother that she would not be required to eat tripe – but I guess since moving north 20-odd years ago I have shed my southern ways.

Back to Town. One of the CA team sent me a GIF he'd somehow created from the TV coverage showing me and Mr B clapping Evan Khouri's goal. He spoilt the gesture by accompanying it with a prediction that Town are definitely getting promoted. Regular readers will know that I am uneasy at that prospect, fearing Town are not yet ready to compete with some of the bigger clubs in the division above. If they could play every game the way they did on Friday, then who knows – but I feel the formation as well as the skill and team spirit are crucial.

Town have now played 11 times since switching formation to playing three at the back in the game away at Bromley; of those games we've won seven, drawn two and lost two. And I think we all recognise that Town only managed to avoid relegation last season because of the same switch in formation. My biggest concern going forward is that Artell sees the current three-at-the-back formation as a temporary measure adopted to cover injuries to key players and that next season, whichever division we are in, he will revert to his favoured 4-3-3. You know, that formation where we shipped three or more goals on ten occasions earlier this season.

I sought reassurance from Mr B that Artell would not change a winning formula; unfortunately he did not provide it. His experience of watching and analysing football tells him that managers tend to revert to favoured ways of setting up the team once they have the opportunity to acquire players who they believe will fit into their chosen system, and Artell will be able to chase such players in the summer. I genuinely fear that if we do go up and he plays 4-3-3 in the division above against the likes of Bolton or Charlton or a newly-relegated Hull we may end up conceding in double figures.

On a more positive note, we were sitting a few seats away from Evan Khouri's parents on Friday night and it was simply a joy to behold their obvious pride in their son. His mum scrambled over the seats to get down to the front as quickly as possible when the game ended. His dad took a more dignified route, which gave us the opportunity to congratulate him for having such a splendid lad. Evan made it into the Football League Paper's team of the day, and he is definitely my player of the season.

UTM