In their last six games, Grimsby Town has amassed ten points thanks to two victories, four draws, and just three goals allowed. But the preceding six games told a different tale, yielding a startling 21 goals conceded while only managing two points. The side from the East Coast looks much better for the quick and necessary changes that were done.
Late in November 2023, Artell was announced as the new manager of Blundell Park, replacing Paul Hurst, who had led Grimsby. Artell immediately attempted to change the Mariners’ style, attempting to adopt the patient, slightly technical passing approach that had worked for him at Crewe Alexandra. At first, the players appeared to adjust to this, putting up strong displays against Crewe, MK Dons, and League One team Oxford United in the FA Cup. Artell’s first home game in charge was against the latter team.
But from then on, things started to go apart a bit, because it was evident that Grimsby’s industrious, aggressive team wasn’t quite cut out for the complexities Artell was searching for. The Mariners gave up a concerning amount of goals early in the season, which led to a lot of errors and a loss of confidence.
Artell’s team gave up five goals or more three times in the first half of 2024; their most embarrassing performance was perhaps a 1-6 loss at home against Walsall on New Year’s Day. After Grimsby’s humiliating 5-1 loss to Doncaster Rovers, their local rivals, in the middle of February, things reached a breaking point. The supporters watched their team give goals and victories to their opponents by playing a style that didn’t fit them, and as a result, their confidence began to decline.
The Mariners have looked like a completely different team ever since that day. With a more direct approach, Artell’s team has switched to (mostly) a 3-5-2 system. Playing the percentages more aggressively and snatching up second balls in advantageous spots is a strategy that is significantly more in tune with the skill set of this Grimsby Town team, and determined performances have led to positive outcomes.
This change in approach and perspective is thought to have resulted from a heart-to-heart conversation among the manager, coaches, players, staff, and board members. Co-owner Jason Stockwood was eager to emphasise that these were group decisions rather than the product of any one person’s input.
Stockwood clarifies “open and honest” discussion
Like the players, supporters were happy that a more practical strategy had been chosen and that the results had improved. However, some thought this had occurred because players and owners had asked Artell to alter his playing style following the Doncaster game. Following the stalemate at Gillingham on Saturday, Mariners Chair Stockwood wanted to explain this.
Stockwood acknowledged that recent improvements were the outcome of a “balanced, open and honest discussion for all of us and what we collectively needed to change” in response to a post on the social media site X. However, Stockwood stressed that “no one ‘forced’ anyone” into any adjustments.
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