Going forward, we will no longer tolerate the nonchalant altitudes exhibited by some of our players, once you put on that shirt, you must give your all .
Grimsby Town were unable to follow up the Newport County win with another positive result as they were narrowly beaten 1-0 away at Harrogate Town.
A George Thomson goal from a distance early in the second half was enough to see the Sulphurites through to victory over David Artell’s men, who could not respond and fell to back-to-back away defeats.
It was an open start to the game, with both teams committing plenty of players forward in their early attacks, which opened up the option to counter quickly when the ball was turned over.
Thomson threatened to score directly from a corner with some help from the strong winds at the EnviroVent Stadium, but Jake Eastwood managed to palm away the inswinging delivery, which was swinging into the top corner of his net.
Gavan Holohan gave Town their first real opportunities of the game when he broke into the Harrogate box and shot on goal for the first time. However, James Belshaw was fast off his line and smothered the Irishman’s effort.
Doug Tharme’s long throws gave Grimsby numerous opportunities to enter the Harrogate box, but for the most of the first thirty minutes of the game, Harrogate held them off. After a fast start by both teams, the first half did not end with many opportunities due to a lack of quality in the possession of the ball.
A few minutes prior to halftime, the Mariners believed they had scored the first when Justin Obikwu headed
Though Tharme flicked the ball on, the former was ruled to be offside. The referee confirmed the decision to disallow the goal following a lengthy conversation with the linesman, who raised his flag as soon as the ball was about to enter the net.
Due to that call, the clubs were even at halftime with the hosts possessing more possession of the ball, but Town appeared more likely to score due to better opportunities generated. By all accounts, the hosts had a quiet first forty-five minutes, but Thomson’s well-hit long-range shot into Eastwood’s net gave them the lead. The custodian may have noticed it too late as it went through a few bodies.
In the first and second periods, Holohan had two good opportunities to tie the score. In the second, he scored from the edge of the six-yard box after Danny Rose’s deflected shot had bounced to him.
The Town midfielder saw it as a great opportunity, knowing that his team wouldn’t likely receive a much better opening to tie the score. Though they hadn’t produced much outside the goal, Harrogate did threaten Eastwood twice in quick succession. Matty Daly took advantage of a clumsy touch from Tharme to get the ball in the box and attempt a shot, but the Town ‘keeper made a great save.
Thomson, the goal scorer, then attempted another long shot, but Eastwood saved this one as well.
The home team comfortably dominated the game, winning both the physical struggle and the three points as a result thanks to another excellent stop by Eastwood in extra time.
Starting lineup: Andrews (Green 62′); Obikwu (Wilson 74′); Thompson, Holohan (Vernam 74′), Andrews (Hume 69’), Mullarkey, Tharme, Rodgers, and Smith.
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