County return to Edgeley Park as league leaders this weekend, looking to keep top spot with a ninth straight win in all competitions, against Grimsby Town.
A dominant second-half performance saw County stroll to victory at Harrogate Town last weekend; a seventh win on the bounce in League Two that saw us move above Notts County into 1st, following their 4-1 loss at home to Mansfield Town. It was our first time ending the day top of an EFL division since August 2000, and our first time top of the fourth tier since January 1991, on the way to promotion under the legendary Danny Bergara.
With still over two thirds of the season to play, manager Dave Challinor will not be getting ahead of himself just yet, and it remains incredibly tight at the top. We sit two points above 2nd place Notts County, but only three points separate us and 5th place Wrexham, with Gillingham just one point further behind in 7th.
Opponents Grimsby have been something of a bogey side for County in recent years too, with the Mariners unbeaten in the last five league meetings between the two sides. They were one of only two teams to do the double over County last season, winning 3-1 at Edgeley Park and 1-0 at Blundell Park.
They come into this game struggling for form in League Two however, with last weekend’s 2-0 defeat at home to Accrington Stanley making it just two wins from ten for Paul Hurst’s side. Defeat was compounded by the sending off of experienced defender Luke Waterfall, who will miss Saturday’s game due to suspension.
Our Opponents:
Promoted to the Football League alongside County in 2022 via the National League play-offs, Grimsby enjoyed a largely positive return to League Two last season; securing a top-half finish to go with a thrilling run to the FA Cup quarter-finals, beating Premier League Southampton along the way.
Victory at Edgeley Park in October actually lifted them ten points above the Hatters after 13 games as they readjusted to EFL life quickly, but their cup exploits looked to take a real toll on their league form in the second half of the campaign, slipping as far down as 17th in March.
That cup run was ended by Brighton in the last eight, but a stronger finish to their league campaign saw them eventually end the season in 11th – their highest league finish since 2005/06, when they ended up in 4th.
The loss of New Zealand goalkeeper Max Crocombe to Burton Albion over the summer was a significant one, but the Mariners have been able to reinvest the money gained from that surprise FA Cup campaign. Sierra Leone midfielder Kamil Conteh has added real quality in the middle of the park after his move from Middlesbrough, whilst forward Abobaker Eisa has five goals already since joining from Bradford City.
They were just two of 12 new additions over the summer as Hurst looked to revamp his squad, but results have been disappointing in the opening months of the campaign. The Mariners have won just three of their 13 league games so far, with five defeats along the way – leaving them 18th coming into this game, just four points above the drop zone and eight points off the top seven.
Their recent form against County will give them plenty of confidence coming to Saturday, however. They have won the last three meetings between the two sides, and were one of only three visiting sides to win at Edgeley Park in League Two last season.
Match Stats:
- Grimsby’s recent purple patch in this fixture sees them hold the historical advantage, winning 34 of the 79 previous encounters, compared to County’s 26. Our only win in the last six meetings came in the Buildbase FA Trophy; a 4-0 win at Edgeley Park in 2021.
- That defeat at Grimsby last October was also the last time County were beaten by more than one goal. In our 113 games under Dave Challinor, we have been beaten by more than one goal on just three occasions (twice v Wrexham, once v Grimsby).
- Callum Camps’ next appearance will be his 50th for the club since joining from Fleetwood Town.
- Victory on Saturday would be our ninth straight win in all competitions. The club record currently stands at ten games, set twice under Dave Challinor during the 2021/22 season.
