Alfreton Town 0-4 Grimsby Town

Alfreton Town 0-4 Grimsby Town

Pre-Season Friendly

Saturday 16th July 2022

As pre-season games go, this was really comfortable for Grimsby Town as they cruised to this victory over Alfreton Town at the Impact Arena (if it's still called that nowadays).

Knowing a few players on both teams, it was the perfect game to go to!

It's easy to buy into what Alfreton are all about, especially with Billy Heath as gaffer, and what you see is very much what you get with them. Down to earth and straight-talking he's recruited a team to play to a certain blueprint who'll work hard, be big, strong and efficient with one of the consistently smallest budgets in the National League North.

Yes, they might have lost this game quite handsomely but when the proper business gets underway in a few weeks I've got no doubts they'll grind out results and be eager to replicate or even improve upon their 9th placed finish (just two points adrift of the Play-Offs) last term.

Plus, there won't be many opposing players who'll relish coming up against either Matt Rhead or Tom Denton (or both if they're paired together) during the course of the season.

Grimsby went up to League Two through the Play-Offs last year and, though I already know what they're about, even I've got to admit that even I was surprised with just how good their football was at times and how dominant they were in this game. Nobody should get too carried away because it's only pre-season and it doesn't mean much in the grand scheme of things; however they're definitely ahead of a few of their League Two rivals right now in terms of how well their preparations are going.

From the first minute to the last in red hot temperatures which made just watching this game uncomfortable - even in shaded areas, Paul Hurst's team were on top and had Alfreton 'penned in' with their opener arriving just past the quarter-hour mark as John McAtee (the undoubted star player at Blundell Park who I get the impression is very settled where he is right now) volleyed home at the far-post off a set-piece.

George Willis made a very good save from a point blank header to prevent the Mariners from quickly doubling their advantage but the home 'keeper was powerless to deny Grimsby finding the net for a second time on 24 minutes as Luke Waterfall was on target.

Alfreton might have feared they were in for a bloody good hiding at this point but to their credit they dug in and showed a bit of resilience to not get completely steam-rollered. They were always second-best and didn't muster up their first shot on target until just past the hour when one of their substitutes, Lewis Whitham (infamous for the 'made it' video when he joined the club a few weeks ago) fired straight at the 'keeper from the edge of the area.

Both teams made substitutions en masse during the final half-hour and Stephen Wearne made it 3-0 on 72 minutes when the ball dropped kindly for him inside the box and he slotted past the 'keeper.

One of the benefits of watching U19s football regularly is you get to know 'up and coming' players at various clubs and it's to Grimsby's credit they have some good lads on their books right now. For the final 15 minutes, they put on five youngsters; Aaron Braithwaite, Jamie Bramwell, Harvey Tomlinson, Edwin Essel and Jaz Goundry in addition to Evan Khouri who'd come on a short time earlier during the first block of substitutions.

Amongst those names, Aaron Braithwaite is a player I rate highly with how he goes about the game (and it was pleasing to hear from a couple of his new team-mates that he's made a good impression since they reported back for training) and he managed to complete the scoring on 84 minutes; thus also continuing his uncanny knack of scoring whenever I turn up, with a close-range tap in when 'open top bus' hero Danny Amos kept the ball in play through persistence and laid it on a plate for him in the centre.

Young Azza can now always say he's scored for Grimsby's first team and I hope it's just the start of what will hopefully be a year where he achieves more milestones and improves as a player, grows in confidence and does as well as he possibly can. I'll always back his ability and I just hope 'luck' (as much as everything else) falls in his favour when that's needed.

Likewise, I wish the same for Jaz Goundry (one of those old-fashioned defenders who possesses a fantastic attitude and willingness to learn which has also been spoken about), Jamie Bramwell (who is very similar in playing style albeit a year younger) plus Edwin Essel, Harvey Tomlinson and Evan Khouri.

Braithwaite, Bramwell, Tomlinson and Essel are all eligible to play in the Youth Alliance again this term and their presence, if used in those games, will have an impact on some of the now second-year scholars who've got a very good chance of earning a pro contract in my opinion.

Grimsby's media team opted not to interview Aaron afterwards (probably much to his relief!) but instead there was a nice moment where he was congratulated on his goal by the gaffer during the post-match warm down.

One surprising thing about the whole afternoon was the attendance was only just over 400. I expected it might be double that figure (if not more) and considering at least half of the crowd were away fans, it highlights that Alfreton is a small club and shows how well Billy Heath is doing to consistently keep them 'punching above their weight' in the National League North every season.

Next Up: FC Edinburgh vs Cowdenbeath at the new council-owned Meadowbank Stadium which cost £48M for a stand with three rows of seats behind an athletics track. I can't wait...