The victory over Yeovil Town at Blundell Park in October appears to have been the worst thing that could have happened to Grimsby Town.
A penalty from striker Lennell John-Lewis, who has now been loaned out to York City, and a late second from strike partner John McAtee kept the Mariners top of the National League.
But, following that result, they won just one of the next 11 matches including seven league defeats and exits from both the FA Cup – at the hands of lower league Kidderminster Harriers – and the FA Trophy.
In comparison, the defeat on the east coast sparked Yeovil who turned a run of eight games without a win in to an unbeaten streak.
A defeat at a resurgent Southend United blotted Grimsby’s otherwise decent looking copybook having picked up wins at home to Aldershot and Woking and away at Dover.
The loss on Essex was their eighth of the season, a stark comparison from their form at home where no other team has picked up more points than the Mariners.
FROM THE MANAGER
Speaking to Grimsby Live about his side’s struggles on the road manager Paul Hurst said:
“The away form is obviously not as good as our home form, I think that’s quite normal for most teams.
“More so, it was that period where it was a difficult run of games for us where we weren’t even picking up draws when we should’ve taken something from a lot of the games.
“That’s what I would look at [as the reason for being outside the play-offs] but we’ve still got lots to play for. We said prior to the game that, irrespective of the result tonight, there’s still lots to play for and the season isn’t going to be defined this evening.
“I did say we’ve got a couple of really tough away games, I think I’d forgot that there was another one after the next one.
“The travel doesn’t make it easy but we’ve got to lick our wounds, we can’t change tonight’s results but what we can do is go to Yeovil and hopefully put on a performance that will warrant three points.”
TEAM NEWS
Striker Ryan Taylor is hoping to make his return from injury in the trip to Huish Park.
The former Plymouth Argyle man has not played since the middle of February having returned to training last week.
However, on loan Aston Villa midfielder Arjan Raikhy seems likely to miss out after limping off in the win at Dover Athletic at the end of last month.
He joins local lad Max Wright in the treatment room along with creative midfielder Jordan Maguire-Drew, who was on the bench against Southend in midweek and could feature.
A FOOT IN BOTH CAMPS
There’s a striker apiece with history in their opponents’ dressing room for this weekend’s fixture.
Yeovil Town frontman Adi Yussuf spent the second half of the 2016-17 at Blundell Park having been released by Mansfield Town, scoring twice in 11 times before departing to Barrow.
Whereas in the Mariners’ squad, Tristan Abrahams is on loan from Carlisle United and had a 15-game loan spell at Huish Park in the ill-fated 2018-19 season, scoring just three times as Yeovil exited the Football League.
In the Mariners’ camp is also forward Joel Grant who was part of Gary Johnson’s squad in our Championship season in 2013-14 and stuck around for the ill-fated plunge through League One in 2014-15.
He departed to be a fan-funded acquisition for Exeter City before spending time with Plymouth and Swindon Town, where he was last season before joining Grimsby in the summer.
But, injury has blighted his season and he’s been put up for loan but, speaking last month, manager Paul Hurst said there had been no interest in the Jamaican international.
Other honourable mentions for having spent time with both clubs are late Yeovil Town legend Stuart Housley who played 34 times in five years at Grimsby in the 1960s before moving to Huish.
The Doncaster-born winger had two spells as a player with the Glovers followed by holding just about every other role at the club before sadly passing away earlier this year.
Phil Jevons, a hero of our Football League heyday, joined us from Grimsby Town where he was similarly popular having scored 18 times in 63 appearances between 2001 and 2004.
Still doesn’t hold a candle to his record of 42 in 84 matches in green and white. What a player!
Others who have a foot in both camps:
- Terrell Forbes
- Russell Slade
- James Tilley
- Rhys Browne
- James Berrett
- Diallang Jaiyesimi
- Jordan Cook
- Mitch Rose – yes, he’s bottom of the list for a reason.