It was grim in Grimsby for the Stan as they were brought back down to earth after the celebration of having booked their place in the St James’ Park senior cup final 3 days earlier. Although there was limited action from both teams, Grimsby Borough seemed to want the result more & they definitely needed it as the 3 points meant that they are now mathematically safe from relegation. In the 1st half, Grimsby converted almost all their chances into goals while the Stan only had one clear effort. 3 substitutions at half time saw the Stan get back into the game in the 2nd half but they could not overcome the 3-goal half time deficit. There were 2 changes from Wednesday’s Senior Cup win over Newcastle University with Hornsby & Burn replacing Chrisp & Robson.
With the wind behind them, Grimsby showed they meant business when, in the 2nd minute, they had a shot but it went wide of the Stan goal. They had another weak shot in the 8th minute but 4 minutes later they were in the lead through a Wireko shot from the edge of the Stan box. The Stan defence stopped a Grimsby attack in 14 minutes & did really well a minute later when a Grimsby header was cleared on the goal line followed by Brass saving the rebound effort. The Stan should have scored in the 29th minute when a Burn free kick saw the ball somehow not go in the net as it hit the bar & then also the keeper before being cleared. Grimsby though went 2-0 up with their next effort in the 37th minute when Flett lobbed Brass. A minute later & Brass stopped a Toppo shot but Ceesay put the rebound effort into the net for 3-0. It was a relatively quiet 1st half but despite this Grimsby had a comfortable 3 goal lead & the Stan had only really threatened through one free kick.
Hoping to take advantage of both the wind behind them & fresh legs, the Stan made 3 substitutions at half time with Lamb, Evans & Errington replacing Hopper, Payne & Walker. After a quiet start to the 2nd half, Brass had to save in the 51st minute. The Stan were looking better this half & in the 61st minute they came close when they forced a good save from the home keeper, but the rebound Stan shot went over the bar. In the 67th minute, the Stan got a goal back from a set piece with man of the match Capewell scoring. Although Grimsby were tiring as the half went on, it was them who scored again on the break in the 87th minute when Ceesay was supplied in the Stan box & he made it 4-1 to Grimsby allowing them to avenge their 4-0 defeat to the Stan in December.
Although the 1836 miles on the road this season ended with a defeat, a great season overall was celebrated on the long bus journey home. The Stan hope to bounce back on Saturday & secure a 7th place finish, their highest in their history, when they host Hallam in the last league match of the season.
Stan Team: Brass; Johnson; Hornsby (Y); Burn; Capewell (Y); Shepherd; Hopper (Lamb 46); Payne (Evans 46); Pearson; Walker (Errington 46); Storey. Sub not used: Gordon. Attendance 165. Man of the Match: Dan Capewell.
Kevin Mochrie
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