A Fine Night at the Park

By: Andrew Doherty
Date: 03/12/2024

CRISIS, what crisis? Well there isn't one as Town sit mid-table but I do baulk at the idea that there's been no problem with our home form. Six consecutive home defeats in all competitions isn't good, however you spin it. Abject home performances pre-date the arrival of our current Head Coach.

I could go back a long way but a case in point would be the last time we played today's opponents Accrington Stanley at Blundell Park. This was in October 2023, just before the end of the Hurst era. We lost 0 - 2. Town's performance was marked by a lack of fluidity and better game management by the opposition. Leaving aside the delusional claims that we should have won, were the better side, the opposition has more money etc etc, that summary applies to this season, at home at least. This evening gave us the chance to rectify the situation, with the added bonus of having had 10 days to prepare and time for important players to return to the side. The fear was that it was going to be a case of another fine mess, Stanley.

Town's starting XI was: Wright - Cass, Rodgers, McJannet, Hume - Luker, Green, McEachren, Davies, Svanthorsson - Obikwu. Having two up front did not appear to be an option in this apparently hybrid line-up. Accrington were in blue tonight with the lower section of their shirt looking like a paint spillage. Town attacked the Osmond end for the first half as Accrington kicked off. Within a minute Luker had a shot and won a corner. Hume's corner wasn't dealt with. The ball fell to Rodgers who turned and drilled his shot home from the left. Town 1, Accrington 0. Town's movement was good as they looked to pass the ball and spread the defence. They were duly rewarded on 11 minutes when a stellar ball by Hume from the left found Luker on the right. Luker cut inside, found space and slammed a left-footed shot against the post and into the net. Town 2, Accrington 0. Accrington struggled to get going. Town looked confident. Hume won a corner after a pass from Cass. The ball came out to McEachren who slammed his shot wide. 19 minutes had gone. Knowles kept the ball in play before playing a suicidal back pass to Obikwu who composed himself and slotted the ball under Accrington keeper Crellin. Town 3, Accrington 0. Moments later Knowles had a chance to make amends but his shot was wide. Accrington, with an FA Cup visit to Liverpool to look forward to after Saturday's exploits against Swindon, looked shell shocked. Town continued to look busy. On 28 minutes Svanthorsson sliced through the defence, supplying Green who didn't quite gain control, resulting in Crellin making a save with his legs. Hume was then dragged back by Khumbeni in a desperate attempt to stop another Town offensive. Accrington attacked but Town got the ball clear and broke out. McEachren found Svanthorsson who was tripped in the box by Coyle - penalty for Town. Davies stepped up and sent Crellin the wrong way. Town 4, Accrington 0. Town were putting the knife in on Stanley. In response the Accrington manager brought on two substitutes with 10 minutes still left in the half. On 39 minutes Svanthorsson showed his pace again. Love received a yellow card for his attentions. Accrington almost put themselves on the score sheet on 40 minutes with a fierce shot from Ben Woods on the left but Wright got down well to save it. But this had been a rout in Town's favour. Town had one final chance when Luker's shot was stopped with a desperate block. The half-time score was 4 - 0 to Town. This was as welcome as it was unexpected, except to the 40 Accrington supporters who were present in tonight's crowd of 3,874.

Rose replaced Obikwu for the second half. Nice work by McEachren started an attack as Town continued to show intent. Rose chased down a back pass to put Crellin under pressure. A mistake by Awe led to a Town attack. Town now had time. McEachren again started the move. Svanthorsson found space and with Luker and Green involved, the ball fell to Hume whose shot went over the bar. On 54 minutes Tharme replaced Rodgers. Town continued to bear down on Accrington who were unable to create anything meaningful. They did win a free kick on the edge of the penalty box after Green bundled over Henderson, but the free-kick from Love flew well over. Some slackness started to appear in Town's play but the defence stood firm until the 62nd minute when Henderson received a cross from Love on the left. With Hume not seeing the need to challenge, Henderson turned and slammed his shot past Wright. Town 4, Accrington 1. On 65 minutes Ainley and Thompson replaced Green and Davies. Accrington were now starting to apply pressure, winning a corner after a defensive panic. Town cleared the ball from the corner and worked it forward. With McEachren involved, Luker found Ainley on the right. The ball was played across. With Svanthorsson waiting to tap the ball in at the far post, Aljofree got there first and turned it into his own net. Town 5, Accrington 1. Khouri replaced Hume on 69 minutes. Town won a corner on 70 minutes and Svanthorsson went close with his shot as the ball pinged around. On 76 minutes Accrington won a free kick on the right. Hunter's delivery was good, connecting with Awe's head. The header was powerful and accurate but Wright pulled off a superb save to tip the ball over. On 79 minutes Wright passed the ball out to Cass whose touch was poor. If there was one area of criticism in this good performance from Town, it was the way that Wright cleared the ball. Seizing the opportunity, Josh Woods latched on to the loose ball and smashed it home. Town 5, Accrington 2. After good work from Khouri, Svanthorsson put Rose through on 82 minutes but Rose fell over as Town put together another dangerous attack. Thompson then played the ball across the face of the goal with no-one able to take advantage. Rose then ran clear after a pass from Ainley and earned a corner following a shot. Rose was then the villain after a lovely initial turn and run before giving the ball away and allowing an Accrington shot at the other end. In added time, Svanthorsson, who had been causing problems all night, was bowled over by O'Brien 25 yards out. Ainley's floated cross was headed clear. That was the last of the action as the referee blew his whistle for full time: Grimsby Town 5, Accrington Stanley 2.

There was plenty to be excited about here. It wasn't a 10 out of 10 performance as Accrington's goals were the result of poor marking and management of the ball in defence but apart from this Town pressed, moved and showed relentless energy to dominate Accrington. Mr Artell can with justification point to improvement in this performance. The teamwork and many individual performances were excellent. It remains to be seen if we can keep up this level of performance but we proved here that we're capable of it. Moreover this must have massively boosted Town's confidence.

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