Boro Defender Trial

By: Fishy News Team
Date: 23/01/2002

GRIMSBY manager Paul Groves has arranged for Middlesbrough central defender Paul Crager to have a trial with the Mariners and the 19-year-old junior professional took part in this afternoon's reserve game with Huddersfield.

The new Town boss is to rely on his contacts within the game to recruit new players into his squad, after the Mariners dismissed their chief scout shortly after Lennie Lawrence was sacked as Grimsby Town boss, as part of a cost cutting exercise by the GTFC Board.

Groves' first loan signing was Robert Taylor from Wolves, who arrived last week for a month-long stint at Blundell Park. It is too early to say whether Paul Crager will follow in either a temporary or permanent arrangement, but Town's general shortage of defensive players mean first team football would surely be a carrot with which Grimsby could tempt the Boro-born defender to leave the Riverside for pastures new in Cleethorpes.

Reserve team coach Paul Wilkinson said of Crager: "He is a young lad. Obviously with Simon Ford having moved up now, we're looking at replacements. We have now come to the stage where we have to look to next year as well. There are lots being released from academies now and it's important that we look at them again."

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