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League Two Table
| P | GD | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Walsall | 22 | +12 | 43 |
| 2 | Bromley | 22 | +12 | 42 |
| 3 | Swindon | 22 | +9 | 40 |
| 4 | MK Dons | 22 | +19 | 39 |
| 5 | Salford | 22 | +3 | 39 |
| 6 | Notts County | 22 | +11 | 38 |
| 7 | Chesterfield | 22 | +8 | 38 |
| 8 | Cambridge Utd | 22 | +6 | 35 |
| 9 | Fleetwood Town | 22 | +3 | 33 |
| 10 | Colchester | 22 | +9 | 32 |
| 11 | Crewe | 22 | +5 | 32 |
| 12 | Gillingham | 22 | +5 | 31 |
| 13 | Barnet | 22 | +3 | 29 |
| 14 | Tranmere | 22 | +2 | 29 |
| 15 | Oldham | 22 | +4 | 28 |
| 16 | Grimsby | 22 | +3 | 28 |
| 17 | Accrington Stanley | 22 | -1 | 27 |
| 18 | Cheltenham | 22 | -14 | 27 |
| 19 | Barrow | 22 | -10 | 21 |
| 20 | Crawley Town | 22 | -11 | 19 |
| 21 | Shrewsbury | 22 | -16 | 19 |
| 22 | Bristol Rovers | 22 | -24 | 18 |
| 23 | Harrogate Town | 22 | -18 | 17 |
| 24 | Newport County | 22 | -20 | 14 |
Full League Two Table
Prem|Champ|L1|L2|NL|NLN|NLS
SPL|SC|S1|S2
'Piggy In The Middle'
By: Bill Osborne
Date: 19/02/2004
THE decision by the board to give Graham Rodger an opportunity to attempt to turn things round at Blundell Park indicates that they think that is the best solution in the short term.
If it works, he will be offered a contract no doubt. If it doesn't work, he will be on his way. Somewhat belatedly as one would have expected that he would have gone with Mr Groves, which is the usual outcome at most football clubs, but hardened Mariners supporters know that the unexpected is quite common down there at old Blundell Park.
But there it is. The board who have more than 50 applications on their desks for the managers job which they have scrutinised extremely carefully and thoroughly have come up with a master stroke and selected an inexperienced (at manager level) person to do the job that some of the best managers in the world would have difficulty with.
But let me make this quite clear! I am not complaining about Graham Rodger himself. It wouldn't matter to me if it was Mickey Mouse, and Graham Rodger could well turn out to be the answer to our problems. I do not know if that will prove to be the case but neither does anyone else, especially the board!!
But one must question the wisdom of repeating the previous mistake of taking the cheapest option and handing it over to someone lacking in experience and who was a main component of the previous failed management team.
The board have taken an enormous gamble here and we have to hope that they have made what turns out to be a very good decision.
Even if it doesn't work, we have no need to worry. The board will probably appoint Neil Woods as the manager and the tea lady as his assistant and the whole circle can continue going round and round again until we run out of options and I get the job!!
But until then, Rodger is in charge and, like Paul Groves, he is now in the hot seat and will need support, and until he demonstrates that he does not deserve that support, everyone should get behind him. He never made the appointment decision and he would have been foolish to turn it down.
So it really is in everyone's interest to get behind him and the team who have shown a great deal more spirit, if nothing else, over the last couple of games.
Rodger is the 'piggy in the middle' here and it would be very wrong for him to take the flak from those disappointed by the decision of the board.
He deserves a fair go. Let us see he gets one!
This site is written by the fans, for the fans, and we will consider articles on any subject relating to the Mariners whether it be related to current news, a nostalgic look back in the past, a story about a player, a game or games in the past, something about Blundell Park or football in general. Click here to submit your article!
This site is by the fans, for the fans, and we will consider articles on any subject relating to the Mariners whether it be related to current news, a nostalgic look back in the past, a story about a player, a game or games in the past, something about Blundell Park or football in general. Click here to submit your article!
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