Two goals from fleet-footed Andy Campbell were enough to bag the points for
the Blades in a pulsating derby at Blundell Park.
The on-loan striker hit one in either half, the winning goal cancelling out a
Kingsley Black free-kick.
He could have had a third in the final quarter of the game but failed to
connect properly with a right-wing cross.
Campbell's opener came in the 22nd minute.
Leaving the Grimsby defence for dead on the left he advanced and when it
seemed he would cross for the unmarked Petr Katchouro, an early substitute for
the injured Marcelo, he fired a bullet shot across Town keeper Andy Love.
Although the keeper got his hands to the ball he could not prevent it from
hitting the back of the net.
The Blades could have made it two shortly after when Traianos Dellas exchanged
passes on the right with Katchouro.
But as Love advanced he fired into the side netting.
Town had chances of their own in the first half, in particular when
Sheffield-born Jack Lester linked well with Danny Butterfield.
The young right-back fed Stacy Coldicott on the edge of the box whose shot was
saved smartly by Republic of Ireland international Alan Kelly.
On the stroke of half-time Lester broke from halfway and found Donovan on the
right. Last season's top scorer for Grimsby jinked his way into the box before
hitting a shot that Kelly did well to force out for a corner.
The second half came to life in the 51st minute when Black curled in a perfect
free-kick from the edge of the box after a foul by Olivier Tebily on Lester.
Sides were level for just eight minutes when Campbell once again showed his
pace before firing past Love. The goal had Grimsby boss Alan Buckley leaping up
and down on the touchline, presumably in the belief that an off-side flag should
have been raised against the United player.
The score could have read a lot better for the home side had Coldicott
connected better with a pass from Donovan inside the box - he didn't and Kelly
was grateful to grasp the ball on his goalline.
Town captain Paul Groves hit the bar with a looping header and Lester's
overhead follow-up was cleared for a corner.
Campbell missed his chance to seal a wonderful night for himself when he
mis-kicked in front of goal after good work from George Donis, but in the end it
didn't matter.
Teams
Grimsby: Love, Butterfield, Gallimore (Bloomer 74),
Livingstone, Coldicott, Burnett, Donovan, Black (Ashcroft 81),
Nogan (Clare 81), Lester, Groves.
Goals: Black 51.
Sheff Utd: Kelly, Derry, Quinn, Tebily, Jacobsen, Sandford,
Donis, Campbell, Marcello (Katchouro 19), Ford, Dellas.
Subs Not Used: Devlin.
Goals: Campbell 22, 59.
Att: 5,109.
Ref: G Cain (Bootle).
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