Brigg Town 4-3 Grimsby Town (U18s)

Brigg Town 4-3 Grimsby Town (U18s)
Pre-Season Friendly
Wednesday 14th July 2021

Another night, another game... this time at Brigg Town's Hawthorns Stadium for a hastily arranged pre-season game against Grimsby Town U18s.

Initially, the Zebras were meant to be playing Cleethorpes Town until a Covid-19 outbreak put paid to that plan. Fortunately, Grimsby were able to step in at less than 48 hours notice and I've no doubts whatsoever the Mariners' crop of young and mainly first-year scholars will have learned plenty from this experience.

Their three best performers on the night - Will Hodgson, Harry Milner and Aaron Braithwaite, each bagged a goal and on the whole the team gave a good account of themselves, despite there being a spell just prior to half-time when it seemed they might capitulate altogether and end up on the end of a hammering.

Brigg fielded quite an experienced side including some players who've been around the non-league circuit in the past such as Chaz Fisher who wore No.6 and operated at centre-back.

Despite their seniority, nevertheless, it was Grimsby (wearing their sky blue away strip) who looked much more purposeful and creative during the early exchanges and although both their front players were thwarted by the linesman's flag on more than one occasion, they took a merited lead around the quarter-hour mark. 

Will Hodgson picked up the ball around 20-25 yards out, looked up and unleashed a thunderbolt shot which was as close to perfect as you can imagine. Being sat directly in line with the ball as it left his foot, it was always destined for the top corner; the Brigg 'keeper knew it and there was simply nothing he could do to stop the shot. The accuracy was superb!

However, it wasn't long until the Zebras managed to force their way back into things. Slowly but surely, the NCEL (Division One) outfit got on top and created some openings with warning shots being flashed both over the upright and narrowly wide, as the Mariners began to almost subconsciously drop back too deep when not in possession an succumb to the difficult proposition of playing against men.

Grimsby's slight and very young-looking 'keeper demonstrated his potential with a series of saves before he was eventually beaten with a low drive around the half-hour mark - an equalising goal which had been coming and it resulted in the floodgates opening. The turnaround was soon completed before Brigg quickly added a third goal (in somewhat controversial fashion as it was amidst cries for a foul) and then struck again to make it 4-1 before 40 minutes. The hosts caused no end of problems by breaking through the Mariners midfield, being direct in running at defenders, and using their experience well.

The young visitors probably knew they'd shown a bit too much respect to their seniors at this point. However, they did pull a goal back before their much-needed half-time team talk as No.7, Harry Milner (who was probably the best of the bunch for Grimsby) cut inside and produced a decent low finish.

As is standard practice during pre-season, the interval saw both teams make a string of substitutions and the second period saw a much more disciplined display by Grimsby's youngsters. They obviously took on board whatever was said to them during the break and demonstrated this by keeping their shape better, not shirking the task of playing against a mens team, coping with the perceived rough treatment which they felt they were getting at times, and trying to implement their attacking ideas in the same manner which they'd done during the opening 15-20 minutes.

Milner, who rode a few heavy challenges - including one where he appeared to have been unnecessarily caught in the face by Brigg's No.8 afterwards, was lively and creative. Meanwhile, the equally impressive Aaron Braithwaite competed well, got stuck in and brought a wry smile to the faces of many onlookers when he accidentally bumped into a Brigg player (who had a very burly physique) and subsequently used him as leverage (twice) to get back to his feet.

The hosts again had more possession after the re-start but were met with resolute defending and pretty much every ball or cross they put into the box was claimed well by the Mariners' substitute 'keeper.

Although clear-cut chances were few and far between, Grimsby drip-fed on a few substitutes (who, again, acquitted themselves in a decent manner) and they set up something of a grandstand finale when they grabbed a goal right at the end of the 90 minutes. Following a foul which was given on the edge of the Zebras' box after a quick breakaway attack, Braithwaite's low set-piece strike took a wicked deflection off the defensive wall which diverted the ball beyond the 'keeper - though it proved to be pretty much the last action of any note as the referee soon blew his whistle to draw an end to proceedings.

Overall, as stated before, the Mariners youngsters can take comfort in their overall collective display and given this was probably the first exposure to senior football for some of them, they didn't disgrace themselves one iota and will have learned plenty - which was no doubt the objective beforehand anyway.

Brigg aren't a bad team and have experience throughout their squad and they'll probably have a decent season in the NCEL (Division One). The perceived 'rough treatment' dished out at times (which a few amongst the crowd were unhappy about) is part and parcel of what can be expected in senior and non-league football and if lads can get exposure to it at a young age, learn how to handle it and overcome it, then it's only going to aid their development and make them better players in the long-term. The football talent and/or technical ability is nearly always apparent in academy scholars but coping with the physicality, sometimes, is where players struggle.

Furthermore, if you forget about the 15-20 minute period before half-time during which they fell apart and lost all shape and structure, the rest of the performance wasn't bad. They competed, made tackles, challenged for the ball, posed their own problems at times, weren't over-awed or brushed off the ball too easily and it's a credit to the youngsters involved. Some aspects of the overall display were surprisingly quite good, other bits and pieces will need improvement (i.e. timing runs better to avoid being flagged offside, releasing the ball quicker and not taking too many touches and general decision-making) and they'll no doubt get fed back during training/coaching sessions in the weeks to come. 

However, as a starting point in a first friendly against a decent mens team for the NCEL (Division One), it certainly wasn't a bad showing and with more time, experience and learning, there is the makings of a decent team within this set of scholars.

I haven't got the names of the Brigg players (hence the lack of names being attributed to their goalscorers) but if they're updated on the NCEL website then I'll copy them to this post in due course.