Match Discussion: Play-off eliminator - Grimsby Town (H)

[DangerousSausage]

Play-off eliminator - The Mariners (H)

Team: Grimsby Town

Date: 23/05/2022

Where: Fortress Meadow Lane

 

Monday night is the big night! So it's time it had its own thread

How do you think we'll do? What team should we put out? And have you got your tickets yet? I've already reserved a place in my armchair

I'm feeling encouraged by our strong home form. Grimsby are on an unbeaten run away from home, but over the season as a whole they were only the ninth best away team with 30 points from 22 games. They also appeared to lose some momentum once their play-off place was secure. But the play-offs are completely different to league games, so none of that counts any more. At least we can rest assured that we'll be taking the opposition very seriously, which was somewhat lacking in the odd game this season.

Not happy with the club capping the number of away tickets at 2,000, I don't ever remember us doing that before and it could well end up with away fans in the home ends, all for the sake of keeping the JS stand half empty.

[DonnyNotts]

Fully agree about away support, can see many being mixed in with Notts supporters 

[menzinho]

Notts are kind of damned if you do damned if you don’t with the ticket scenario. I can see why we’ve capped Grimsby allocation; it’s our home game and we’ll want to get that home crowd advantage. I’m not sure Grimsby can really complain, we finished 5th and there’s nothing stating we can’t do it, a lot of teams in this league can’t even offer 2,000 seats for away fans! Maybe we could’ve allocated an extra lot once they’d sold out, that might have stopped some fans moaning. There probably will be a few fans in the home end but it should be dealt with, most Grimsby fans will realise it’s not worth the hassle to come and only get chucked out.

As for the game, it’s all about our ability to deal with Grimsby’s press (assuming they do!). If they do push up then we’ve got to exploit all the space in behind. So Woots hold up play and runners to exploit the space will be key. It’s a shame Nemane is suspended as we could’ve pinged balls over the top for him and Cal to chase. Having Cameron and Brindley back will help us in defence, I suspect it’ll be a 3-5-2 then we could change to a back 4 and push another play forward if we are being penned in.

Going to be a close game, but I'm hopeful our good home form will see us through.

[Dripsey3]

It's not going to be a repeat of the last game. Notts will have learned from their mistakes in that game. You can't allow Grimsby to dictate the play. You have to close them down and force them into errors. Notts are more than capable of doing that. It might take 120 minutes but I feel Notts will prevail. 

[DangerousSausage]

Can't say I agree @menzinho. Whether they have 2,000 or 4,000 in the ground is irrelevant, it's up to the home fans to drown them out, and 4,000 aren't necessarily louder than 2,000. Also, football is a spectator sport. Our club jealously protecting some empty seats so we can have fewer Lincolnshire folk in the ground singing about fishing is just wrong. It would be like Wrexham only giving us 1,000 tickets if we get through (although at least they can fill the seats themselves).

Gut feeling is we'll win this. The nerves are really starting to build now.

[Dripsey3]

Grimsby have had more of the ball in the first but didn't do much with it. Notts looked dangerous on the break. Notts have upped their tempo in the 2nd half and are putting Grimsby under slightly more pressure. Cal going off injured is a huge blow. 

[Fozzy]

Yet again, as soon as we come up against a side that has more fight and passion for the game, we roll over and have our bellies tickled.

Burchnall and his team just seem to have been oblivious this season to see our inability to defend crosses into the box and it was our undoing yet again. Stupid free kick to give away though to give them the chance to equalise. Big decisions need making regarding our playing style as it is obvious that we need a more defensive back line (which means bigger and stronger) along with someone in the centre of the pitch who can break up play and is useful in the air.

I would be very happy to sacrifice this tippy, tappy football for more pace and aggression. Both Warnock's and Allardyce's sides were successful because they bullied the opposition, but could also play in the right areas of the pitch. As Warnock said once, play your football in the oppositions half.

Interesting few weeks coming up, but at least we will now find out if FGR were really after Burchnall, or was it someone else after all. 

Recruitment will have to be spot on as I fear that fans patience will wear thin very quickly next season.

[menzinho]

Gutted, yes we didn't play that well but we were still 30 seconds from winning and that hurts.

They were a more cohesive unit and attacked in numbers better, that said they didn't exactly carve us open and most their shots came from outside the box (set-piece goals aside). We just looked a bit all over the place a times, big gaps between the defence, midfield and attackers. We like to have control of the game but we never got it. I thought we went into that game with the mentality of keeping it tight and we didn't want to commit too many players forward so we struggled to really get at them.

Losing Cal so early meant we had use our only attacking sub way too early. Once we went 1-0 up we crying out for some fresh legs (and pace) upfront but all we had were defenders and midfielders. Grimsby had 2 forwards on their bench and they won the game for them...

[DangerousSausage]

Thought I'd wait a day until waxing lyrical here. Our team always seems to find new and creative ways to twist the knife.

It was a ragged performance alright. All our creative outlets were isolated and we were unable to sustain any pressure. For all Grimsby's possession and pressure (and they were definitely the better side), Slocombe had little to do apart from dealing with crosses, and we were seconds from beating them. I doubt Wrexham are worried on last night's evidence. Richardson's foul was unnecessary and stupid, but was also precisely what can happen if you allow yourself to drop deeper and deeper when under pressure. The further away you are from your own goal, the less likely it is that something like that will happen.

So now I feel utterly sick of it again. A lot needs to happen if we're going to challenge for top spot, we've had three goes at it now and haven't come close, and I despair at the thought of another play-off "campaign". This time our top scorer is leaving and possibly the manager too, and it's not a given that we'll be in the top five every season - we could quite easily end up treading water like Yeovil, for instance. And, as if it isn't dystopian enough, you have the prospect of Florist playing in the PL and the Stags taking on Derby and Barnsley while we play Dorking (no disrespect intended). But we have to pick ourselves up again. We need to add some steel (also of the mental variety), learn to mix it up a bit more and work out how to keep clean sheets. Then who knows. In the meantime, I think we all need a summer off.

[gtownjohnno]

Did anyone else think that the published attendance was a bit shy... I thought it was nearer 14000 than just over 12000.. 

On 18/05/2022 at 21:21, gtownjohnno said:

Been watching this game and several of the other play off games..... Is it my imagination???? Because I've seen more head tennis in these games than I've seen at Meadow Lane all season.... Anyone else noticed this??? 

 

[DangerousSausage]

1 minute ago, gtownjohnno said:

Did anyone else think that the published attendance was a bit shy... I thought it was nearer 14000 than just over 12000.. 

 

I was watching it on a tiny little rectangle on my old smartphone, but that looked about right to me. The Family Stand was mostly empty, and the corners of the Main Stand also had lots of empty seats. The Lane always looks fuller than it is because of the black seats.

[Fozzy]

17 hours ago, menzinho said:

Once we went 1-0 up we crying out for some fresh legs (and pace) upfront but all we had were defenders and midfielders.

Exactly.

In such a crucial game he should have chucked Knight on the bench. In the case if it going to extra time he was allowed an extra sub, so why not gamble?

Some very big holes need filling this summer, if we have to sell Ruban and Roberts to help fill them, then so be it.