2021/22 Squads

[Gladders]

Our retained list:

Club News - Grimsby Town Football Club

www.grimsby-townfc.co.uk

No major surprises. I'm hoping that we'll be paying off a big chunk of those under contract.

Phillip Day the old regime's chairman Yes Man who was sticking around to aid with the transition has now resigned:

Club News - Grimsby Town Football Club

www.grimsby-townfc.co.uk

Good riddance, merely a Fenty puppet. Unsurprised his input was needed for just over half a week.

Yup, deffo need to lose Williams, Rose, Scannell, Gibson, Morais and Waterfall imo.

Already at 22 if those three offered accept a new deal. Don't think I would have kept Spokes or Battersby, even though prolly cheap either

 

[pontoonlew]

I can’t get my head round people not rating Spokes, he’s had some excellent performances having come from barely above Sunday League. Considering it was his first season as a pro I’m sure he’ll prove to be a good player in NL.

 

[GTFCfish]

I can’t get my head round people not rating Spokes, he’s had some excellent performances having come from barely above Sunday League. Considering it was his first season as a pro I’m sure he’ll prove to be a good player in NL.

Completely agree, I’ve always rated him and think he will thrive under Hurst in the National League but it seems I’m in the minority.

 

[Son of Cod]

I think people are lavishing praise on both Spokes and Coke way too much personally. I still don't really know what Spokes does, properly? Someone on The Fishy was describing him as the grafter in midfield? I definitely haven't seen much of that if that's the case. He seems tidy on the ball and doesn't give it away as much as Clifton and Coke. We'll be needing a very good CM signing if all three of these are on our books next season, in my opinion. None of them are Disley level and that's what we need to be aspiring towards.

Coke being lauded as some sort of godlike footballing genius is quite baffling. He was decent enough, but let's not go overboard. Not sure how good he's going to look without Matate alongside him slicing through the middle of teams and smashing into everyone.

 

[Gladders]

Aye, I didn't see much of anything from Spokes, he had one decent game where he looked great other than that he was average, hope he proves me wrong.

Coke is better, he works hard and breaks up play but his basic passing is poor, gives the ball away a lot.

Clifton is the best of the three, runs all day and can play in multiple positions. But we deffo need a player like Hessenthaler back, we have missed him since he left, someone who can break up play and get it moving forward again.

 

[Son of Cod]

Aye, I didn't see much of anything from Spokes, he had one decent game where he looked great other than that he was average, hope he proves me wrong.

Coke is better, he works hard and breaks up play but his basic passing is poor, gives the ball away a lot.

Clifton is the best of the three, runs all day and can play in multiple positions. But we deffo need a player like Hessenthaler back, we have missed him since he left, someone who can break up play and get it moving forward again.

I hope Spokes does go on to be decent too. I'm not saying he's shite or anything either, I just haven't noticed him a great deal other than he's fairly tidy.

Yep, Coke is basically Derek Niven.

Hessenthaler was quality, agree that he's definitely been missed this season. I felt like it was less apparent with Coke and Matete in the middle, but at the start of the season we were crying out for him. I always liked Hess playing deeper, just in front of the CBs. I'd loved to have seen him in the same team as Matete. Danny Rose has been a frustrating signing and a poor replacement for Hess. Frustrating in that there's clearly a very capable player there who hardly ever shows up.

 

[Son of Cod]

Club News - Grimsby Town Football Club

www.grimsby-townfc.co.uk

 

[pontoonlew]

I think people are lavishing praise on both Spokes and Coke way too much personally. I still don't really know what Spokes does, properly? Someone on The Fishy was describing him as the grafter in midfield? I definitely haven't seen much of that if that's the case. He seems tidy on the ball and doesn't give it away as much as Clifton and Coke. We'll be needing a very good CM signing if all three of these are on our books next season, in my opinion. None of them are Disley level and that's what we need to be aspiring towards.

Coke being lauded as some sort of godlike footballing genius is quite baffling. He was decent enough, but let's not go overboard. Not sure how good he's going to look without Matate alongside him slicing through the middle of teams and smashing into everyone.

I’ve no idea what people see in Giles Coke either, seems to be a typical Grimsby thing of rating players for the sake of it and others diving on board.

As for Spokes, I think his ability with a ball at his feet is fantastic, in his better performances (3-4 good games for me) he showed an ability to glide with the ball and get us up the pitch. His issue last season was keeping up with the pace which contributed to tired passes in important areas. The fitness will undoubtedly come and I’m happy for you to quote me on the fact he’ll be an important player for us next season.

 

[Son of Cod]

I’ve no idea what people see in Giles Coke either, seems to be a typical Grimsby thing of rating players for the sake of it and others diving on board.

As for Spokes, I think his ability with a ball at his feet is fantastic, in his better performances (3-4 good games for me) he showed an ability to glide with the ball and get us up the pitch. His issue last season was keeping up with the pace which contributed in tired passes in important areas. The fitness will undoubtedly come and I’m happy for you to quote me on the fact he’ll be an important player for us next season.

Let's hope you're right mate, I'm happy to tip my hat to you if you are!

 

[PaulHaddock]

I think out of Clifton, Coke (if he signs) and Spokes, only one of them should be on the pitch at a time if we have any real aspirations this season. We need at least one other central midfielder with some real quality.

 

[EnglishRed]

A wall of Grimsby chat.

Its like the old days.

 

[GTFCfish]

A wall of Grimsby chat.

Its like the old days.

Basically this was what the League 2 forum was like if you just swap Grimsby for Port Vale.

 

[Master D]

A wall of Grimsby chat.

Its like the old days.

They’re definitely excited to be back.

 

[EnglishRed]

They’re definitely excited to be back.

they know their real place is with us

Forever, and ever, and ever, and ever....

 

[Son of Cod]

They’re definitely excited to be back.

Grimsby coming back to The Conference:

Southend arriving in The Conference for the first (?) time:

 

[pontoonlew]

Basically this was what the League 2 forum was like if you just swap Grimsby for Port Vale.

Can’t wait to tell everyone how we’re relegation certainties whilst sat in mid-table or call the chairman ‘our Jason’.

That or say we’d have waltzed the league had we not gone on that pesky 18 game winless run

 

[Son of Cod]

Can’t wait to tell everyone how we’re relegation certainties whilst sat in mid-table or call the chairman ‘our Jason’.

That or say we’d have waltzed the league had we not gone on that pesky 18 game winless run

Tbf they saved us all from COVID with their food parcels.

 

[jacobncfc]

Ruben Rodrigues - Extremely frustrating. Technically extremely gifted but not performed consistently. Also been out of favour, with some suggestions from the management duo that there’s some issues around homesickness and that kind of thing (unsurprising considering his family can’t even visit). Hope we persevere.

Calvin Miller - Contributed very little.

Funny how quickly things can change. These two have been the key to our recent revival.

 

[Shrimper92]

PB has indicated a wish to keep Demetriou, White and Holmes next season. Awaiting the others. We've sold Kenny Coker to Norwich and there are rumours of Oxley going to a Northern LG2 team. Also that Elvis is leaving

 

[chipmunx]

PB has indicated a wish to keep Demetriou, White and Holmes next season. Awaiting the others. We've sold Kenny Coker to Norwich and there are rumours of Oxley going to a Northern LG2 team. Also that Elvis is leaving

not us i hope.

 

[#Beebot]

Maidenhead:

GKs
Taye Ashby-Hammond - coming up to 2 years here now, hard to believe he's still a loanee as he feels like part of the furniture. His reflexes are great, but unfortunately his small stature lets him down and there are too many shots that he just can't reach - Release

Rhys Lovett - signed from Gloucester on a short term deal a month ago. Has looked reasonable since Taye broke his finger a few weeks ago. Undecided

DFs
George Wells - excellent signing from Slough in the summer, one of the most consistent LBs in the division. We may lose him to a league club. Keep

Manny Parry - had a slow start, but he's been excellent since, very dependable Keep

Alan Massey - must be on about 250 appearances for us now. I keep expecting him to look past his best soon but if anything he's got better this season. Keep

Remy Clerima - utility man who is frequently unavailable due to his other job, generally consistent and a useful part of the squad when available. Keep

Ryheem Sheckleford - OK right back who has some good games but errors in him too. Undecided

Seth Twumasi - cover at RB or LB, but his best performance of the season was on the left wing a couple of months back when he ripped Torquay apart. He cannot play CM, despite Dev's insistence on deploying him there at times. Undecided

Jerry Wiltshire - CB cover, has also been played at holding midfield and emergency striker. Not spectacular but I've seen worse. Undecided

MFs
James Comley - my player of the season, one of the best creative midfielders in the division, has really stepped up his game this year. Keep

Rohan Ince - we were only able to get him due to his injury record, and he's stayed fit most of the season. Very consistent and reliable holding midfielder at this level. Keep

Shaun Donnellan - another excellent holding midfielder, just a shame he's been out injured for the last few months. Keep

Ryan Upward - has also improved a lot this season, still injury prone but much like Comley has thrived now that we have actually bothered to sign holding mids to take some pressure off. Keep

Josh Smile - has been injured for much of the season, although tidy on the ball he is too lightweight and doesn't do enough defensively to be effective at this level. Release

Alfie Egan - loanee who has just signed a new deal at Ebbsfleet. Was expecting him to be decent as he is supposedly one of their better players, but looks a little out of his depth at this level. Release

Bradley Keetch - teenage centre mid, still young but I don't think he is up to this level positionally or physically - Release

Wingers
Sam Barratt - you wonder if Southend would still be an EFL club if they had kept him. So dangerous cutting in from the right on his left foot. Will probably make the step back up. Keep

Dan Sparkes - most consistent crosser you'll see at this level, I think he is a useful option for any team in this division, but his flaws are well documented by those who have seen him play for numerous clubs in this league for the past decade or so. Would like some competition for him signed but he should stay. Keep

Josh Coley - had a great start to the season and is dangerous when running at players, but whenever the pace of play slows down and the opposition sit deep he really struggles to make an impact. You can tell he doesn't have an academy background as his passing is awful. Could get better with work. Undecided

Reece Smith - young winger who Dev rates highly, but not enough to give him more than a few sub appearances. I'll take Dev's word for it and say we should give him more time. Keep

Forwards
Nathan Blissett - our marquee summer signing no doubt on high wages. He suits a style that we don't play and his hold up play is sloppy. Useful for some teams in this division I'm sure, but not worth keeping assuming he is probably the best paid player in the squad. Questionable injury record too. Release

Danilo Orsi - why oh why did we move him out wide to accommodate Blissett? Since Blissett's injury he has shown he's the better player by a country mile. With 17 goals, our most prolific scorer ever at this level and the season isn't over yet, but I expect he will be off to the EFL in the summer. Keep

Josh Kelly - one of our own and popular for good reason as he never stops running and is a great finisher, but much like Blissett our style does not suit him and he needs to find a starting spot at a team who will use him in his best position. We always push him out wide now and it doesn't suit him at all. Release

So in all it's the best squad we've had at this level, I guess our biggest challenge is to find replacements for Barratt and Orsi who will surely be off, and maybe Wells too. I suspect many of the undecideds and possibly the releases will stay for that reason.

 

[Shrimper92]

Announced our list and missed off half the squad..

 

[#Beebot]

Announced our list and missed off half the squad..

Fair enough with 9 players already contracted, but you've offered 14 new deals? Mental. You've just gone down and Brown thinks 23 players in that squad will take you back up?

 

[Shrimper92]

I'm hoping most will reject.

Isn't there a squad size limit?

 

[EnglishRed]

I'm hoping most will reject.

Isn't there a squad size limit?

I dont think so, Chesterfield have about 40 players

 

[John Still]

I dont think so, Chesterfield have about 40 players

And they’re all on furlough.

 

[chipmunx]

This is the released portion of our list;-

The following players have been released at the end of their contracts and the Club would like to thank them for their efforts and wish them every success in the future:

Calvin Andrew
Courtney Baker-Richardson
Dion Donohue
Callum Gribbin
Sam Hird*
Josh Kay
Josh Lillis*
Scott Moloney
Mikael Ndjoli
Morgan Penfold
Chris Taylor
Scott Wilson
Yoan Zouma

*The Club is currently reviewing its backroom team and further discussions are due to take place with Sam Hird and Josh Lillis in the coming days.

Baker Richardson i can see possibly joining Barnet again.

 

[chief]

This is the released portion of our list;-

The following players have been released at the end of their contracts and the Club would like to thank them for their efforts and wish them every success in the future:

Calvin Andrew
Courtney Baker-Richardson
Dion Donohue
Callum Gribbin
Sam Hird*
Josh Kay
Josh Lillis*
Scott Moloney
Mikael Ndjoli
Morgan Penfold
Chris Taylor
Scott Wilson
Yoan Zouma

*The Club is currently reviewing its backroom team and further discussions are due to take place with Sam Hird and Josh Lillis in the coming days.

Baker Richardson i can see possibly joining Barnet again.

Did Barrow get relegated without me knowing or do you miss us that much?

 

[chipmunx]

Did Barrow get relegated without me knowing or do you miss us that much?

no and yes in that order, lol... and some on the released list are on loan at NL teams - or may well end up at some next season.

 

[chief]

no and yes in that order, lol... and some on the released list are on loan at NL teams - or may well end up at some next season.

Dior Angus is doing quite a decent job here. Good signing from Barrow.