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Artell’s pride as ‘dominant’ Grimsby Town blunt Crewe Alexandra’s sharp edge

David Artell has praised his Mariners side for stifling one of the most potent attacking teams in the country, following the 2-1 home victory over Crewe Alexandra.

It was Artell’s first chance to lead out Grimsby Town at Blundell Park after tough away trips to MK Dons and Oxford United – with his former club providing the opposition. The Railwaymen last tasted defeat back in October against Stockport and were hoping to go second in League 2 on Saturday.

But Lee Bell’s Alex were soundly beaten on this occasion, as Town adapted much better to the tough conditions – a heavy pitch and strong winds – to the delight of the new gaffer. “I wanted firstly to give massive credit to the ground staff for getting the game on and the referee for giving them a chance,” Artell said.

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“Of course, we’re pleased with the win, because we’re in a results-based business and wins are what we need right now. The pitch did play a little bit of a part in the game, it wasn’t vintage football from either side, but I think there were glimpses of good stuff from us.

“We’ve scored a cracking first goal, a terrific second and ultimately that has proved the difference. We’d dominated set-pieces at both ends, scored two good goals and by half-time were deservedly two goals in front.”



Danny Rose scores Grimsby's second goal
Danny Rose scores Grimsby’s second goal

He added: “Crewe being Crewe, they wrestled back some of the initiative and momentum. We then made a very subtle change from their goal-kicks and that helped us hugely to see out the game.”

The Mariners have let one too many narrow leads slip this term, which has cost them a lot of points, and they were grateful for the two-goal cushion at the end to resist Crewe’s second-half resurgence. But while nerves may have been frayed in the stands, the visitors were limited to just a few chances.

In the end, Artell believed his team could not have done much more to stop their opponents, who had dismantled other teams in the league with their attacking prowess, and that is a big sign of Town’s improvement in recent weeks. The Grimsby boss said: “They had one chance all game, and they’re one of the highest scorers in the country.

“Limiting a team that has got ability all over the pitch to score goals in that fashion is a massive feather in our cap. We deserved the two-goal lead because we dominated possession and dominated the game as a whole.

“The second half was different in the sense that they had more possession and scored the goal to put us under a bit of pressure. I can’t remember them having another chance aside from one or two goal-mouth scrambles, so we defended our box well and we should’ve put the game to bed on the counter, but I’m not going to be critical.”

Original story at https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/sport/

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