Ryley Reynolds says he has already settled into life at Blundell Park and is determined to help Town push for promotion this season.
The midfielder made his full league debut for the Mariners in Tuesday night’s 2-2 draw at Accrington Stanley, having previously featured from the bench during the opening weeks of the campaign.
Reynolds impressed during his first league start, helping Town control large spells of the first half and playing a part in Andy Cook’s second goal after his flick-on found Kieran Green.
The 21-year-old says he has enjoyed his opening weeks at the Club and believes David Artell’s system suits his style of play.
Here’s everything Ryley had to say ahead of Saturday’s trip to Cheltenham Town…
On settling into life at Grimsby
Reynolds says he has quickly felt at home after joining the Mariners on loan from Notts County.
“Yeah, really enjoyed it. Being involved in the first team was something that I wanted to achieve this season and be right amongst a squad that’s going to try and win things.
“So, it’s been really good and I’ve enjoyed my time on and off the field. I think the lads are a really good bunch and, yeah, it’s been really nice actually.”
On his first experience of Blundell Park
Reynolds made his first appearance at Blundell Park on the opening day of the season and was immediately impressed by the atmosphere created by the Mariners faithful.
“I’d never actually been to Blundell Park before, so I didn’t actually know what to expect.
“I’d heard a couple of good things about the stadium. It’s a really prestigious and old one, but it was amazing. Honestly, the atmosphere was brilliant and we got the win on that day.
“So, that was a great experience for me.”
The midfielder says the support can make a genuine difference on matchdays.
“When people talk about the 12th man in the stand, that was one of those days and I think that definitely helped us get over the line that day.
“So, hopefully more of that to come.”
On adapting to Artell’s system
Reynolds believes Town’s style of play has allowed him to utilise some of his strengths in midfield.
“It’s a different system than I’m used to under the gaffer, as in my position, staying a bit higher, making a lot more forward runs and being involved, which suits me down to the ground, I think anyway.
“It’s just a little bit of a few tweaks where I’d usually come down or want to play more. Just trying to learn how the team works.
“But yeah, I feel like I’ve settled in really well and I think I can prosper in this system. So, it should be a really good season.”
On making his full league debut
Reynolds made his first league start for the Mariners at Accrington and believes Town had enough opportunities to take all three points.
“Personally, I think I had a good game. First half we were very much in control.
“It looked like we could have maybe nicked two or three more goals and really seen the game out.
“Obviously, Accrington’s not an easy or nice place to go, especially on a Tuesday night. Although we wanted the three points and we still think we should have had it, sometimes you can say a point is okay there.
“But that game, we should have come away with three.
“To make my league debut, it was a special moment for me and everyone that cares about me. So yeah, it was really good.”
On his own performance
Reynolds played a key role in Town’s second goal, flicking the ball on for Kieran Green before he set up Andy Cook.
The midfielder says competing for second balls and helping Town win territory is an important part of his game.
“I thought I had a really good game. I thought I was competitive in those sort of games where Accrington are quite direct.
“It’s something that I’ve evolved in my game, where I’ll be very competitive in the midfield and try and win those second balls, those flick-ons for Greeny and he goes through and sets Cookie up, stuff like this.
“I thought I put myself about very well and I competed well. I think that showed in the performance, especially first half, that we sort of ran over the top of them and dominated.”
On what supporters can expect from him
Reynolds believes he can contribute both defensively and creatively as the season progresses.
“I think there’s a blend to my game which helps me out where I can do both sides.
“I’m very happy to do the dirty work and win the ball back deeper down and try to play forward, but also I can get on the ball higher up and make stuff happen.
“So, yeah, I think you can definitely expect to see more of that rough and ragged sort of stuff, but also expect nice, clean and tidiness on the ball and try and make stuff happen that way.
“I hope to provide a lot more assists and pre-assists this season.”
On becoming a fans’ favourite
Reynolds enjoyed a successful loan spell with Kidderminster Harriers last season and believes his work rate and commitment helped him connect with the supporters.
“Yeah, definitely. I think once I’d got in the team and they saw how hard I worked and how much I committed to the philosophy of the club.
“And just my desire ultimately. I just want to win football games and it doesn’t matter if it’s my parent club or my loan club.
“I’ll put a million percent into every single game and hopefully that will be enough to win it.”
On competition for places
With Town adding Mark Shelton and Fin Cartwright to their midfield options on deadline day, Reynolds says the competition can only push him to improve.
“From a Grimsby perspective, that’s a good thing. We needed to bolster.
“I know Geza does go away with the Faroe Islands, so we definitely needed one or two more.
“Ultimately for me, it just means I need to keep upping my game and stay near the top of that list.
“Hopefully I can keep getting more starts and adding on. But ultimately that should push me to want to stay in the team and push for more.
“I like the challenge and hopefully I can step up to it.”
On his ambition for the season
Reynolds is clear about why he made the move to Blundell Park and has set his sights firmly on promotion.
“I’ve come here for one reason only, to help the team get promoted.
“So, if they’re going to help that along the way, then ultimately that’s a good decision for the club.
“Hopefully we can get that done by the end of the season and we can look back on this and it’ll all be positive.”
On facing Cheltenham
Reynolds expects another difficult test at Whaddon Road but says Town will travel with confidence.
“I think they’ll be energetic and they’ll like to play. Obviously they’ll be at their home pitch, so they’ll be hoping to beat us ultimately.
“But I think we’ll go there with no fear like we always do. And if we implement what we’ve been doing on the training ground, then I think we can definitely take three points and come up the table a little bit more.
“It should be a good game.”
On what Town need to improve
For Reynolds, the key is to trust the team’s style of play and be more clinical after creating a number of opportunities against Accrington.
“I think on Tuesday night it was a little bit too direct. Obviously Christy coming off and getting a little knock didn’t help.
“But I think if we trust it more and just try and play a little bit more football our way, I think we’ll be able to break them down.
“I think we’ll do enough to get the three points.
“We had a lot of chances on Tuesday night that we should have put away and we didn’t, but the fact that we’re creating those chances means that there’s only goals to come.”
You can watch Ryley’s full pre-Cheltenham interview here:
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