What a Differance a Year Makes

Quoted from Poojah

A year ago we were only 3 weeks into our summer break and less than 5 weeks away from our first league game. This time around we’ve been finished precisely 7 weeks, and have another 6 to go; whilst we’ve also known which league we’d be playing in for about 6 months.

In terms of preparation, the circumstances are night and day, and you can see and feel that already in our recruitment. A year ago today, I think I’m correct in saying that the only new players we’d signed were Maher and Orsi.

The extra time at our disposal, the extra money on the back of the cup run and our highest average gate in decades, the improved infrastructure and the partial restoration of the club’s reputation put us in such a better position it’s absolutely unreal.

When you look back at where we were last summer, I really do think that an 11th place finish and an FA Cup quarter final were absolutely remarkable achievements. But then, the fact that Hurst managed to achieve something tangible during the Fenty years was also incredibly remarkable.

I feel Paul Hurst is the sort of manager who, if you give him the right tools and the right environment to work in, will deliver and then some. It’s going to be a very tough league next season, but I am confident of a top 7 finish and genuinely wouldn’t rule out top 3.

I think fans of other League Two clubs might look at that kind of statement and consider it fanciful; the typical kind of bias that most fan bases exhibit during those hopeful summer weeks as the season approaches. But I consider myself fairly realistic; I just don’t see why the transformation that is clearly happening off the pitch won’t be reflected on it.

This will be big season. Mark my words.

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

Like every fan I hope your assessment is correct,  but a word of caution. Our transformation off the pitch is derigour for most professional clubs, so it's not that we are ahead of the curve.

Let's hope Hurst has got the blend right. At least our signings have put to bed the ridiculous notion that players won't come to Grimsby from big cities, prettier towns or how many eateries we've got.

Quoted from buckstown

I have to remind myself that I’m on my annual pre-season wave of optimism. It happens most years and inevitably ends in bitter disappointment (maybe not always bitter), so I try  and find some balance. I was reading another L2 forum earlier this week and it made the point that most fans greet new signings with great joy despite never having seen them play or even heard of them
I’m genuinely excited about the upcoming season and hope that we’ve uncovered some gems, but this is a much stronger league than last year. Play offs would be a good season in my opinion