Ethan in to Rob the Silkmen of a reward

ETHAN Robson settled the scores as Grimsby Town returned to winning ways with victory over Macclesfield.

After playing out a goalless Carabao Cup tie – which was ultimately settled on penalties – less than two weeks ago, the sides were closely matched once again.

But it was Robson – on loan from Sunderland – who produced that one moment of quality for Grimsby, who now prepare for a dream trip to Chelsea on Wednesday night.

And the win was one that Grimsby boss Michael Jolley was more than happy to accept.

“It wasn’t the greatest of games. I think there were two factors involved in that,” he said.

“Number one, the wind was probably worse than it appeared to some people, and it had a big impact on the game in both halves.

“It was also two teams who know each other extremely well, so to some extent cancelled each other out. The combination of those two factors meant it wasn’t a great game.

“In those circumstances, what’s important is you do the basics well, you defend your goal, and you take your chances when they come along.

“In the second half, we had more width in our game, more switches and more crosses. I thought we caused them more problems in the second half.”

Chances were at a real premium in the opening 45 minutes.

Jake Hessenthaler curled an effort straight at Macclesfield goalkeeper Owen Evans, while at opportunistic strike from Arthur Gnahoua kept James McKeown honest at the other end. As the clock ticked by, Matt Green passed up the best opportunity of the first half, heading over under pressure from inside the sixyard box.

After the restart, the introduction of Max Wright added extra energy to the Grimsby ranks. Robson, though, ultimately proved to be the difference as he marked his first League Two start with a determined run and finish.

“We made poor decisions, whether that was shooting too early or dragging a shot wide when we had more space to move in to,” said Macclesfield boss Daryl McMahon.

“It’s frustrating because we have done it a lot this season.

“Are they a better team than us? I don’t think so to be honest.”