Grimsby Town supporter frustration is more than justified as August 10th looms: View | OneFootball

While patience is necessary, Grimsby supporters have every right to be a little concerned as their club remain unprepared for the season ahead.

Highlights

There's still plenty of time left in the summer transfer window for Grimsby Town to strengthen their squad, but given their obvious difficulties throughout their last campaign, supporters have become understandably anxious about the recent, somewhat prolonged lack of action in terms of recruitment to alleviate some of those issues moving forward, with their opening League Two match just a couple of weeks away.

The Mariners face a tough start to the upcoming season, with games against recently relegated League One sides Fleetwood Town and Cheltenham Town, along with the likes of Notts County, Bradford City and Chesterfield on the horizon. While it's unlikely that every piece of the jigsaw will be in place by August 10th's opener on the West Coast, some supporters are growing concerned that David Artell's side are perhaps looking a little unprepared for a demanding fourth-tier.

Pre-season results and performances have, as expected, been mixed, and ultimately, what happens in friendly matches, where the intensity is incomparable to competitive fixtures, and the mix and match line-ups along with summer fitness-building can create a distorted picture.

What is worrying sections of the Grimsby support, however, is some of the ingredients badly lacking last season are still to be addressed. The lack of pace, physicality and know-how throughout last year's squad led to a draining slog of a campaign, one where the Mariners scrambled to avoid the drop out of the EFL, and by and large, those attributes are still missing for the most part, and the lack of recent activity of late to try and rectify this has caused some frustration.

There are some mitigating factors at Grimsby to consider

The modern game, and world in general these days, sees a plethora of information instantly available through multiple sources. Fans are able to keep up-to-date with all matters related to their club and their competitors.

This can, on occasion, cause comparisons to be made too soon and realistic expectations to be somewhat unfairly heightened. Grimsby are trying a different approach, both to their recruitment strategy and their stylistic approach.

Perhaps the data-led methods now undertaken have identified players that can only leave their current club once a replacement is through the door. There's every chance the Mariners will look to the loan market to add some depth and quality to their ranks, and could be currently awaiting the green light from their parent club(s). Should that happen swiftly, there's still more than adequate time to build the required understanding.

Another factor to consider is the amount of injuries Grimsby have had to manage through early pre-season, and when those players return the picture could look significantly better. Mariners fans have suffered an awful lot of disappointment over the last two decades, and this has, understandably, led to something of a hyper-sensitivity about things potentially going wrong.

Patience is often thin on the ground in football these days, and while fans have every right to be a little concerned about where their side stands at present, allowing time for those final pieces to be added and the coaching staff to implement a consistent structure is perhaps wise at this point.

Grimsby's social media platforms have been equally quiet of late. Supporters have commented on the lack of updates on all matters surrounding the club, from the release of this season's third kit to confirmation of previously mentioned new investors in the club.

Again, with their competitors being more active and informative to their supporters, unfavourable comparisons are being made questioning why the Mariners aren't giving their fanbase a similar output.

Rightly or wrongly, socials play a huge part in today's game. Fans crave a constant connection with their club(s), and, again, unrealistic comparisons and expectations are made in regard to this. Perhaps there is an understandable explanation as to why some announcements are yet to be made. Confirmations can only be made public when the time is right, but the relative silence, both on player recruitment and other general matters surrounding the Blundell Park outfit has been notable to some in recent weeks.

Frustration and worry linger with two weeks until the start of the season. Whilst understanding is needed, it is more than justified as we gear up for another fiercely competitive 2024/25.