Grimsby League Cup preview

[Sweden Stag]

After the 2-2 draw at Crewe on the opening day of the new season, the Stags are in League Cup action on Tuesday night. The opponents are last season’s FA Cup quarter-finalists Grimsby Town at headquarters.

This will be the first time ever that the sides clash in the League Cup. But the sides have locked horns once before in the FA Cup, and that was as far back as in the 1961-62 campaign. Then, on November 4, 1961, the Stags progressed to the second round by winning 3-2 at Field Mill, only to be kayoed at Southport in the second round.

Last season, Grimsby made headlines thanks to FA Cup giant-killings, eventually reaching the quarterfinals, the Mariners’ best FA Cup run since 1938-39, when they then as a Division One side reached the semifinals. By reaching the quarter-finals, Grimsby dumped five higher-ranked sides out, a record, in form of Plymouth, Cambridge United, Burton Albion, Luton after a replay and Southampton at their headquarters, respectively.

And before last season, Grimsby at times had glorious FA Cup moments. In 1995-96, Grimsby did the same, albeit in a home replay, the same to West Ham as the Stags had done in their giant-killing campaign of 1968-69 vintage, winning to a 3-0 scoreline. The reward for beating West Ham was in Grimsby’s case a home fixture against Chelsea, who needed two games to progress.

In 1988-89, Grimsby kayoed Middlesbrough at their place in the third round of the FA Cup.

In the League Cup, Grimsby have at times tasted glory in form of giant-killing. In 2005, a full-strength Tottenham side travelled to Blundell Park. On September 20, 2005, Grimsby deservedly hit the headlines by winning by the only goal of the game. On that same night, the Stags dumped Southampton out to the same scoreline as at Blundell Park.

But Tottenham are not the only top-flight side to have been dumped out by Grimsby in the League Cup. The other are Everton, who in 1979-80 crashed out at Grimsby to a 2-1 scoreline in front of way over 20000 at Blundell Park, and a few seasons later, in 1984-85, Grimsby travelled to Goodison and stunned the Toffees by netting the only goal of the game.

Meanwhile, the Stags have had some League Cup glory over the years. The best bit is easily the dumping out of Leeds over two legs in 1994. First winning at Elland Road thanks to a Simon Ireland header, then holding on to a goal-less draw at headquarters some weeks later.

During the 1975-76 campaign in which the Stags finished their third division season with nineteen games unbeaten, two top-flight sides returned kayoed from Field Mill, Coventry and Wolves, respectively, before giving Manchester City a good run before bowing out to a 4-2 scoreline at Maine Road.

In a few weeks’ time, the sides will clash at Blundell Park. More on previous league games and players appearing for both sides will figure in that preview.

Come on Mansfield!