Jolley’s so angry, but Boro break their duck

MICHAEL Jolley lambasted his Grimsby players after a meek defeat handed Stevenage their first League Two win of the season.

Kurtis Guthrie and Charlie Carter struck before the break as Stevenage came out firing in their bid for a league win at the 13th attempt.

Ahkeem Rose’s late strike ensured a nervous finish, but the Grimsby equaliser wasn’t forthcoming, leaving Jolley fuming at the end.

“The comeback was almost irrelevant, the first 45 minutes were our worst performance of the season by a distance. I could have made 11 subs at the break,” he fumed.

“I’m really disappointed with the way we went about the game in the first half.

“We gave two incredibly bad goals away, didn’t create enough chances and we didn’t move the ball well enough.

“We improved somewhat in the second half, I thought some of the players who came on did well, but we had too much to do by then.”

The hosts started brightly and drew first blood after 16 minutes. Luther Wildin found Guthrie in the area with a driven cross, and his clever back-heel flick beat visiting stopper James McKeown at the far post. The home side doubled their lead shortly before the break when Carter swept home after 43 minutes, thanks to clever combination between Guthrie and Wildin.

Both sides fashioned good scoring opportunities in the second half, but Elliott Whitehouse missed a great chance for the Mariners when he hooked his effort over the bar.

Grimsby eventually pulled one back when substitute Rose blasted home from a counterattack after 79 minutes, but the hosts held on much to the relief of interim boss Mark Sampson.

“I’m really happy for the players, the staff, supporters and the football club. That result has been coming,” he said. “We knew we’ve been starting games well, and showing enough to win games but, ultimately, we just needed to get over the line in a league match.

“The feeling in that changing room is very different to what it was this time last Saturday. There is a feeling and a sense of optimism, confidence, and belief that we needed this to get the ball rolling.

“We’ll keep this snowball rolling down this hill.”