Stat Attack: Notts County vs. Grimsby Town, Saturday 3 September 2016

Notts County and Grimsby Town have met a total of 78 times over the years, with the first fixture coming on 5 October 1893. Notts won the Division Two clash 2-0 at Trent Bridge.

The Magpies have 27 wins, while the Mariners have 32, and 19 games have been drawn.

The two teams last met on 17 February 2010 at Meadow Lane, with Lee Hughes opening the scoring and Jamie Devitt equalising for a 1-1 draw.

Grimsby Town FC was formed in 1878 after a meeting held at the Wellington Arms public house in Freeman Street, Grimsby.

Several attendees included members of the local Worsley Cricket Club who wanted to form a football club to occupy the empty winter evenings after the cricket season had finished

The club was originally called Grimsby Pelham, this being the family name of the Earl of Yarborough, a significant landowner in the area.

In 1880 the club purchased land at Clee Park which was to become their ground until 1889 when they relocated to Abbey Park, before moving again in 1899 to their present home, Blundell Park.

The club is the most successful of the three professional league clubs in historic Lincolnshire, being the only one to play top-flight football. It is also the only club of the three to reach an FA Cup semi-final (doing so on two occasions) and is the only one to succeed in two finals at the old Wembley Stadium. It has also spent more time in the English game's first and second tiers than any other club from Lincolnshire.

Notable managers include Bill Shankly, who went on to guide Liverpool to three League titles, two FA Cups and a UEFA Cup triumph and Lawrie McMenemy who, after securing promotion to the then third division in 1972, moved to Southampton where he won the FA Cup in 1976.

Alan Buckley is the club's most successful manager; he had three spells as team manager between 1988 and 2008, guiding the club to three promotions and two appearances at Wembley Stadium during the 1997–98 season winning both the Football League Trophy and the Football League Second Division Play-Off Final.

In 2008 Buckley took Grimsby to the capital again, but lost out to MK Dons in the final of the Football League Trophy.

The Mariners had also reached the Football League Two Play-Off final in 2006 at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, but lost the match 1–0 to Cheltenham Town.

Later trips to the Wembley in 2013 and 2016 saw them defeated in the FA Trophy final by Wrexham and FC Halifax Town respectively.

Grimsby managed to reach the Conference play-off final in both 2015 and 2016, after losing to Bristol Rovers they defeated Forest Green Rovers to earn promotion back to the Football League.

Initial relegation from back in 2010 made them the fourth club to compete in all top five divisions of English football (after Carlisle United, Oxford United, and Luton Town).

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Wes Atkinson will be available for Notts County against Grimsby Town on Saturday despite his red card in midweek.

Atkinson was sent off along with Hartlepool's Toto Nsiala in injury time towards the end of the EFL Trophy tie between the two clubs on Wednesday night but the defender's suspension will be served in the next group game in that competition, rather than in League Two.

Magpies manager John Sheridan made several changes in midweek and the likes of Adam Collin, Matt Tootle, Richard Duffy, Michael O'Connor and Jon Stead will probably be recalled to the starting line up.

Teenage forward Aaron Collins can also be added to Sheridan's squad after signing on loan from Wolves.

Grimsby boss Paul Hurst, meanwhile, could include two deadline day signings in his squad for the first time.

QPR midfielder Brandon Comley and Barnsley striker Shaun Tuton are both available after completing loan moves to Blundell Park, but Manchester United keeper Dean Henderson will not arrive until Monday after international duty with England Under-20s.

However, Hurst will once again be without Dan Jones (knee), Sean McAllister (groin) and Rhys Browne (hamstring).

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