Neil Woods celebrated the start of Wales week in style beating Wrexham last night and remember we have Newport to come on Saturday. This was very much a game where Eagles dare with Rob the winger playing grasping the nettle for his gaffer and playing a starring role last night.
An early nerve settler on 17 from Watt was followed by Connell the Blundell goal machines eighth of the Season before Knight-Percival got a 90th minute consolation to set up a frantic last 4 minutes of added time.
The line ups
Grimsby Town
———————38 Richard O’Donnell (G)————–
19 Wood (D) 5 Kempson (D) 16 Watt (D) 3 Ridley (D)
2 Bore (M) 28 Wright (M) 8 Cummins (M) 29 Eagle (M)
——–18 Carlton (F) 17 Connell (F) ——-
Wrexham
—————————–21 Christie (G)———————–
4 Andrews (D) 15 Sinclair (D) 5 Blackburn (D) 3 Ashton (D)
————12 Keates (M) 18 Tolley (M) 6 Harris (M)———
11 Andrew Morrell (F) 7 Gareth Taylor (F) 9 Andrew Mangan (F)
Any win will do if you were in Neil Woods winless in five shoes on Monday, however this morning things look rather different with the Mariners now unbeaten in three. Such is the fickle nature of football, particularly with two games each Conference week thus far; that the Mariners now sit ninth, just four points off the playoffs.
In fairness Woods got his first break since well before Kenny Arthur`s fracture, when Morrell, a summer target fluffed his lines from six yards in the second minute. Honestly, at times our defence makes each and every inhabitant in the Pontoon touch cloth simultaneously. Eagle then showed we too had some firepower when he had a fireball deflected wide and from the resulting corner Cummins fired one straight down Maxwell`s throat. Connell then attempted an audacious 30 yarder that Maxwell did well to get to.
Taylor was causing problems down the flank and cut inside to unload a 30 yarder, not a million miles over, as all and sundry looked eager to take a punt. Well it is the Blue square Bet and the fayre looked every bit as exciting as anything the Champions league might offer, albeit from the comfort of an armchair. Mangan & Taylor conjured some quality in the 13th minute, and were it not for a Watts slider, we could have seen the Morrell tell his own story.
Eagle was really on a mission and cut inside onto what many regard to be his wrong foot, only to see Maxwell deny him. He could do little a minute later however. Eagle`s sublime delivery was only half cleared and Bore headed the ball back into the box for Watt to wallop the ball home in the style of his countryman Hot shot Hamish.
Wright has clearly been brought in to sit in the hole, disrupt and then distribute to the flanks or front two early. He does it well as we retained procession well, much to the frustration of the Dragons, who took it out on Eagle. Harris got a yellow prior to his substitution for a lunge that in all fairness should have been red. As should Sinclair who brought down Eagle with all in the ground, bar the ref seeing a penalty.
Cummins blasted over a gilt edged chance after some great work from Carlton and Connell, before the lad himself showed himself to be mortal. Bore squared but the Blundell blunderbuss hammered over when all in the ground would have had their house on him getting on the score sheet.
Early doors second half and the Dragons were denied by a double save from O`Donnell although Tolly really should have done better from 6 yards. Eagle, his best game so far for the Mariners then saw another 25 yarder saved by his Nemesis on the night Maxwell. Even the Riddler went for a long shot, albeit a porridge disturber come ‘cough and drop` straight at the keeper.
One potential worry was watt limping off midway through the half, to be replaced by the more than capable Garner. A Scot for a Scott so to speak. The visitors were all at sea from another Eagle set piece and then second cross, but Kempson somehow powered his header a fivers breadth past the post. Wright almost capped a great debut when. having played a one-two with the inventive Eagle, he alas saw his twenty yard scud skid past the post.
The crowd were roused and duly got our reward for braving the North sea coastal elements as Connell got his seventh goal in seven games. Eagles threaded him in, and cool as a cucumber he did Maxwell up a kipper to slide home. Another superb Eagle cross found Connell on 70, but his diving header went wide. Wright too was up for some showboating with a 40 yard chip, but Maxwell was wise to that one. He got a deserved standing ovation for a great debut when he left the field to be replaced by Hudson.
Wrexham then got one almost out of the blue to set up a tense last five minutes. Obeng sent over a sublime ball which Knight-Percival converted with a diving header to give O’Donnell no chance.
Grimsby Town 2 – 1 Wrexham
Blundell Park, England
Attendance: 2,532
Referee Davison, Robert
Scorers
Grimsby Town Steven Watt (17) Alan Connell (65)
Wrexham Nathaniel Knight-Percival (90)
Grimsby Town Wrexham
Shots (on Goal) 19(10) 9(3)
Fouls 7 7
Corner Kicks 6 2
Offsides 5 8
Time of Possession 45% 55%
Yellow Cards 1 2
Red Cards 0 0
Saves 2 5
Grimsby Town
38 Richard O’Donnell (G)
19 Wood (D) 5 Kempson (D) 16 Watt (D) 3 Ridley (D)
2 Bore (M) 28 Wright (M) 8 Cummins (M) 29 Eagle (M)
18 Danny Carlton (F) 17 Alan Connell (F)
Substitutes
30 Steve Croudson (G) 6 Scott Garner (D) 4 Mark Hudson (M)
7 Lewis Gobern (M) 10 Lee Peacock (F)
Wrexham
21 Christie (G)
4 Andrews (D) 15 Sinclair (D) 5 Blackburn (D) 3 Ashton (D)
12 Keates (M) 18 Tolley (M) 6 Harris (M)
11 Andrew Morrell (F) 7 Gareth Taylor (F) 9 Andrew Mangan (F)
Wrexham Substitutes
2 Obeng (D) 20 Knight-Percival (M) 17 Cieslewicz (M) 8 Brown (F) Pogba (F)
Grimsby Town Substitutions
Scott Garner for Steven Watt (49)
Lee Peacock for Danny Carlton (75)
Wrexham Substitutions
Nathaniel Knight-Percival for Jay Harris (26)
Adrian Cieslewicz for Andrew Morrell (50)
Curtis Obeng for Neil Ashton (57)
Grimsby Town Yellow Cards
Eagle 84
Wrexham Yellow Cards
Jay Harris (24)
Curtis Obeng (62)
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