David Artell admitted the Mariners’ first-half performance was not good enough as Grimsby Town suffered a 1-0 defeat to Port Vale at Vale Park, while insisting his side must work hard and stick together to turn around their recent run of results.
Town were beaten for the third consecutive game, with Artell acknowledging that the hosts deserved their half-time lead after a difficult spell in the opening period.
However, the head coach was encouraged by the Mariners’ response after the break, with Town enjoying more possession, creating opportunities and hitting the crossbar through Charles Vernam.
Artell also praised goalkeeper Christy Pym’s performance, Maldini Kacurri’s defensive commitment and the travelling supporters for their backing throughout the afternoon.
Here’s everything the head coach had to say after Saturday’s fixture…
On the overall performance
Artell made no attempt to disguise his disappointment with Town’s first-half display, but felt his side improved considerably after the interval.
“First half wasn’t good enough. Second half was much better. We’re not dressing it up. First half was poor.
“After the first 15 minutes, there’s nothing in the game. The last half an hour there was. Christy played unbelievably well to keep us in the game.
“You think you’ve just about got to half-time and they scored a good goal. But you can’t say it wasn’t coming.
“We told them at half-time exactly what they needed to do, and I thought they did that well. We looked much better, much more like us. It could have ended a bit differently, but that first half wasn’t good enough.
“We’ve got to be much more consistent than what we’ve shown today.”
On Town’s first-half struggles
The head coach identified the distance between Town’s defensive, midfield and attacking lines as a key issue, allowing Port Vale to make the most of their physicality and threaten on transitions.
“From 15 to 45, I thought that was as insipid as we’ve been at any point this season.
“They’ve got the most ground duels in the league, and you could see that. The distances between all three lines were massive, and that was a problem for us.
“You can’t make the ground up. You can’t run quicker than a football. When you’re that spread out as a team, it’s a problem.
“In the second half, we addressed that and were much better. They looked dangerous on transitions, but we were having more of the ball and looking more dangerous ourselves.
“We’ve got to understand and recognise that after five minutes of them trying that, we’ve got to be much better than being disjointed.”
On Christy Pym and the defensive effort
Pym produced several important saves to keep Town in contention during the first half, while Maldini Kacurri also made a crucial intervention by throwing himself in front of an effort from close range.
Artell acknowledged the importance of those contributions, but reiterated his frustration that the players had not responded sooner to the problems identified before kick-off.
“We were indebted to Christy to have a really good game and keep us in it.
“This is a tough place to come, and all the data suggests they shouldn’t be in the league where they currently find themselves. We knew it would be tough, and we spoke with the players about that.
“It’s frustrating because it’s no surprise what’s happened in the sense of what they were trying to do to us. We gave them the answers before the game, we had to tell them again, and then suddenly they picked it up.
“You’ve got to be better than that, because that’s what good teams do.”
On the second-half response
Town offered a much-improved display after the restart, pushing Port Vale back and creating several opportunities to find an equaliser.
Vernam was particularly influential from the left, striking the crossbar and forcing an excellent save from the home goalkeeper, while other deliveries flashed across the penalty area.
Artell was pleased with the response but felt his side needed to do more in the final third.
“In the second half, much, much better. They looked dangerous on transitions, but really only from set-pieces and the odd set-piece. There wasn’t much iron in the pitch. It was all in their half, and we were better for it.
“We hit the bar, we’ve looked dangerous and we’ve had balls flash across the box. On another day, we create and we score.
“Charles hit the bar there, and the keeper made a great save to tip it onto the bar. It did look dangerous.
“We’ve got to do more in that end of the pitch, that’s for sure. That’s part of it. It’s not just one thing. There are always lots and lots of things we’re constantly trying to get better at, because if you don’t, the game has you.”
On three consecutive defeats
The result marked Town’s third successive defeat, the first time Artell has experienced such a run as Grimsby manager.
Despite the disappointing sequence, the head coach stressed that the team’s earlier performances should not be forgotten and insisted the focus must be on correcting recent shortcomings.
“We weren’t a good team overnight. We’re not a bad team overnight. It’s as simple as that.
“It’s about working hard, addressing where we feel we need to address and continuing to work hard.
“The defeat at Newport should have been a win. It was probably a draw. We definitely deserved to lose last week, although we could have made it a draw as it turned out.
“So we’ve had two bad performances really, or a game and a half of bad performances in three. We’ve got to make sure we don’t let that continue.
“You don’t go six or seven or eight unbeaten at the start and then lose three on the spin. You’re not as good as you think you are, and you’re not as bad as you think you are. That’s the reality of it.
“It’s down to us to turn that around.”
On getting back to basics
Artell believes the answer lies in hard work, improving the details of Town’s performances and ensuring the lessons from recent games become part of the squad’s habits.
He pointed to the contrast between the Mariners’ display at Newport and their performances against Shrewsbury Town and Port Vale as evidence that standards must be maintained consistently.
“Very little has changed. The performance at Newport, we deserved to win the game. Nine times out of 10, you win that game.
“The Shrewsbury game was completely unacceptable, and that half-an-hour spell today was unacceptable.
“In 10 or 11 games, we’ve had a game and a half where we’ve played poorly. It just so happens it’s the last game and a half, and we’ve got to make sure that’s nipped in the bud.
“I thought we showed that in the second half. We were much better. We were the better team, but we didn’t do enough to create a goal.”
On the players’ commitment
While critical of the team’s tactical organisation during the first half, Artell was keen to defend the players’ work ethic and desire, highlighting Kacurri’s willingness to put his body on the line.
He also paid tribute to the travelling Mariners, who continued to encourage the side despite the result.
“I don’t think anyone can level at the players’ work ethic, desire or endeavour. The fans demand that.
“I thought the fans were fantastic. They gave the lads plenty of encouragement and were singing all throughout the game. They were brilliant.
“I don’t think anyone can argue that the players aren’t trying. We’ve got to be much smarter and much cleverer, all on the same page, and if not, we’ll have a disjointed 30 minutes like we had.
“We’ve got to make sure we don’t have five minutes, never mind 30.”
On the challenge ahead
Despite the recent results, Artell remains convinced that Town can respond positively, stressing that the responsibility lies with the players and staff to work together and rediscover the consistency that characterised their unbeaten start to the campaign.
The head coach is already looking towards next Saturday, when the Mariners will have another opportunity to put things right.
“Ultimately, it’s down to us. It’s down to us to work hard, stick together, right the wrongs, give them the answers again and again and again so it becomes habit.
“And then test ourselves next Saturday.”
You can watch David’s full post-match presser here:
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