Cod Almighty | Diary

Don't Fall Asleep

9 January 2026

For the rest of this season, at least, Jackson Smith is here to stay. The Barnsley keeper confirmed his loan deal by popping down to Weelsby Woods and giving one of the lions a little tap on the head to show how happy he is to be here. Artell is happy too, telling us in his own slightly haphazard way that the FA would've expected the club to do something more long-term than perpetually renewing emergency loans, and that Pym is still at the club and that he and Pym get on great, thanks; they have breakfast and dinner and tea and days out to Lego Land, and, no, Pym hasn't left the club. In fact, he'll be back in February, not sure when, but he'll be here.

Whether he'll be able to get the shirt back from Smith is another matter. If we're looking to change our keeper in February, however, then the season's a dead dog, so, really sorry, Christy, but let's hope you're not needed till next season. It's not going to be an issue, though, because, while Artell can be vague, he's rarely subtle, and his admission that this deal would've gone ahead even if Pym had stayed fit tells us all we need to know about his confidence in our number one. Be competent, Smith, and you'll be first choice for the rest of your time with us.

Weston-Super-Mare tomorrow. The Seagulls are on a good run, second in their league and desperate to be this year's FA Cup dream team. Let's hope they have a 'mare! Sorry. I know, BOTB Diary already nicked all the puns on Wednesday, so straight on with a preview of the game. I know nothing except they're called the Seagulls and have a player called Kite and another called Dawes, so ornithological puns may be a seam to mine. They have a goalie called Glover too and ex-Mariner Luke Spokes has just joined them from Kidderminster. Spokes is another of those Holloway names that I've wiped from my memory so I have no idea if we need to be wary of him. Hoodoo puns on hold then.

Town's preparations for the game are well underway. Smith was the only sort-of-new signing at the time of writing but in a perfect Radio Humberside storm exciting young forward, Tyrell Sellars-Fleming has reportedly been recalled from Scunthorpe by Hull to be sent to Grimsby. That makes us Ronnie Barker, I suppose. Anyway, TSF has played out wide for Scunthorpe. Does that mean he's here as cover for the ever-absent Svanthorsson, to push the ever-present (who thought we'd be saying that!) Vernam or is DA expected to clip his winger-tendencies a-la Kabia? In the way of all the best storms, we'll have to wait and see.

Besides, we already have our new centre-forwards: Soonsup-Bell, Rose and Gardner. The old cliché of players returning from injury being like new signings feels apt here. When a successful January signing is made one of the first wishful thoughts to come March is, imagine if Burnett/Nolan/Holohan/Thompson had been here all season... Well, imagine if we'd had a fit Danny Rose, the Cameron Gardner that played against Manchester United and the fit-and-ready Soonsup-Bell who led the line so well in the last two league games? It's what we're already saying, so these 'new signings' are already in March!

Rose and Gardner are not, however, up to speed so are unlikely to feature - March may have to wait till March after all. Kabia has had some rest, so may come back into the starting line-up. Soonsup-Bell, and many of the supporters, may feel a little cheated if this happens given his impact from the start of the last two games. I'd like to see us continue with the Thai terror if only because it makes the bench stronger. One man who certainly will start is Harvey 'the Nosebleed' Rogers. DA is insistent that his place in the team is well-earned and it is his form that saw the early release of Eccleston. HR is clearly a dedicated, enthusiastic player who can follow instructions and be where he needs to be when he needs to be there, but he's also clearly a player who has a suspect first touch, something that lets us all down when he's in those excellent positions.

But no moaning today because, just like the Nosebleed in every game, your A46 Diary is up for the cup! This season has already given us what is arguably our best cup memory, so another tie against lowly opposition isn't exactly a juice-flowing encounter, but I'm still hot with cup fever from that night in late August and dreaming of another chance of giant-killing, Grimsby-reapering glory.

In our last snatch at FA Cup glory, the 2023 charge to the quarter finals, we beat a team from above us in every round, a still-unique achievement and one that, statistically at least, might be even more impressive than the slow creep of the Grimsby Reaper as it finally laid its bony hand on Amorim's shoulder this week. This season's run is the opposite as we've taken on lower opposition in each round. Can Artell's mighty Mariners avoid three banana skins in a row and take us to Old Trafford to complete a perfect cup double?

If he engineers the chance to do that, then we are not dream makers but dream killers. In A Nightmare on Harrington Street, we stalked the dark dreams of Ebbsfleet and Wealdstone, not as the Grimsby Reaper, more a Grimsby Freddie Kreuger, a Greuger, a burnt devil in black and white, blades for fingers, number 6 on his back and murder in his mind. Artell as the architect of nightmares controls the Greuger, sending him on his murderous missions into the minds of Seagulls fans.

 One, two, Greuger's coming for you
 Three, four, you know you’ll never score
 Five six, grab your walking sticks
 Seven, eight, gonna know your fate
 Nine, ten, never sleep again

 Happy third round weekend! Into them, Town!