Source: Northern_Echo
Darlington 0 Grimsby Town 1
Darlington 0 Grimsby Town 1[LNB] DARLINGTON suffered their first defeat of the season after putting in a deeply disappointing performance at home to Grimsby Town that saw them booed off at The Northern Echo Arena.[LNB] Angry manager Mark Cooper tore into his players during the post-match inquest, and then apologised to the fans, labelling the display atrocious and revealing some of last night's line-up will be dropped.[LNB] He even suggested some players will be leaving the club as a result of their performance.[LNB] His team were ponderous in possession, they were unable to retain the ball and they failed to create scoring chances until the latter stages by which stage Grimsby were ahead thanks to a 48th minute goal.[LNB] The first half was atrocious.[LNB] I can only apologise,[LNB] said Cooper. Players have to stand up and be counted. We prepared well but there was no spark there until they scored and then we looked a different team and created a few chances. There's a lot of work to do.[LNB] One or two players have had their chance and that will be them done for a while. I've got to change things around.[LNB] There are some lads that have waited patiently who will get their chance now.[LNB] They've got to have more devilment about them.[LNB] They've got to want to get the ball down and play. The last thing I said to them before they went out is go and enjoy yourselves. But they looked scared to death. Until Grimsby scored we were atrocious, after then we had a go and could have got a point.[LNB] For all that Darlington were poor, so too were Grimsby before the break during a drab first 45 minutes.[LNB] Three days after the bore draw at Kettering Town, very little of note occurred during an uninspiring opening.[LNB] Perhaps frustrated by the lack of creative football, seven minutes before the break Grimsby striker Alan Connell took matters into his own hands by trying an audacious effort from 40 yards.[LNB] Unfortunately, however, the quality of the effort it sailed high and wide was in keeping with a turgid first half.[LNB] But the 45 ended with three much-needed moments of incident.[LNB] First, Darlington defender Paul Arnison was spoken to by referee Richard West after a strong slide tackle on Bradley Wood, and from the resulting free-kick Mariners' centre-back Darran Kempson launched himself at Quakers keeper Sam Russell.[LNB] Kempson, somehow, escaped unpunished for the unnecessarily heavy challenge, but Steven Watt did go in the book in first half injury time for fouling Gary Smith, and he started the second half by putting the visitors ahead from a corner.[LNB] The centre-back rose at the near post to firmly plant home Rob Eagle's centre.[LNB] Darlington's response was to send on Joe Clarke in place of Josh Gray, at the break they had replaced Richard Offiong with Michael Smith, and the goal at least sparked some life into Quakers.[LNB] They got men forward, with their first shot of the evening coming when Gary Smith let fly from 20 yards Substitute Chris Senior injected some spark and his first involvement was to send over a cross that Michael Smith nodded wide, though Connell was soon inches away from making it 2-0.[LNB] His header, from a Bore cross, was narrowly off target, and the same player was denied by Russell who had to tip another header away at full-stretch.[LNB] But Darlington finally raised their tempo in the final ten minutes.[LNB] Clarke whipped a longrange effort wide of Arthur's left post and a goal-bound shot from John McReady, selected in midfield ahead of Jamie Chandler, was deflected wide by a stray defender's leg.[LNB] Striker Liam Hatch header over a Senior cross and then the duo were desperately close to connecting with a low Arnison ball fired across goal.[LNB] Grimsby were still keen to add a second but Russell again denied them, and again it was a Connell header that he tipped over.[LNB] In the seventh minute of injury time came Hatch's final chance, he headed over an Arnison corner.[LNB] Cooper blasted: Some players did not perform tonight, I'm not going to hide from that. The only positive was that McReady, Michael Smith and Joe Clarke have come out of it with a bit of credit.[LNB] When you prepare as well as we do and you ask players to do jobs but they don't do it, that's a kick in the face for me and the supporters and I won't put up with that.[LNB] Matchfacts Goal: Watt (48, 0-1) Bookings: Hatch (40, foul); Watt (45, foul), Cummins (73, time wasting); Arnison (79, foul) Referee: Richard West (Hull) 5 Attendance: 1,993 Entertainment: [LNB] DARLINGTON (4-4-2): RUSSELL 7; Arnison 6, Miller 6, Hone 6, Brown 4; McReady 6, Terry 7, G Smith 5 (Senior 63, 7), Gray 5 (Clarke 49, 6); Offiong 4 (M Smith 46, 6), Hatch 6. Subs (not used): Jack (gk), Chandler[LNB] GRIMSBY TOWN (4-4-2): Arthur 6; Bore 7, Kempson 6, Watt 7, Ridley 5 (Wood 24, 6); Gobern 7, Hudson 6, Cummins 6, Eagle 7 (Peacock 76); CONNELL 7, Corner 5 (Ademeno 60, 6). Subs (not used): Garner, Samuels[LNB] MAN OF THE MATCH SAM Russell kept the score down in the second half[LNB]
