Jason Stockwood wants stunning cup win to thrust Grimsby into ‘global’ spotlight

Grimsby vice-chair and co-owner Jason Stockwood wants the world to “sit up and pay attention” to the club and the region after their Carabao Cup success against Manchester United.

The Mariners triumphed 12-11 in a penalty shoot-out at Blundell Park to book a third-round spot, having led 2-0 before the Premier League side fought back to level terms.

Stockwood has been attending matches at Blundell Park since the 1970s, and became co-owner of the club in 2021.

Under his tenure they have secured promotion from the National League and reached the FA Cup quarter-finals, but he told the PA news agency: “This win sits right at the top.

“The difference between (the FA Cup run and promotion) is that this felt more deserved. I’m proud of all those moments, but the fact that we deserved that last night, and the fact that we represented the club and the town in such a positive light, at home, feels extra-special. That’s probably the top memory of my life as a Grimsby Town supporter, not just our tenure as owners.

“We’ve got a long-term plan for the club, and we’re trying to use that to elevate the aspiration, the quality, the professionalism and the standard of football as a catalyst for the region.

“We’re trying to tell a positive story about the quality of people, the spirit of the people and what the town can be.

“We’re transitioning from a post-industrial fishing port to a green energy powerhouse. It’s happening already, and we want the world to sit up and pay attention. Last night was just a wonderful marker for us to put us in the spotlight globally.”

Stockwood said he watched the United players arrive at the ground and thought they “didn’t look up for it”.

He added: “It’s a bit of a rude awakening, and they just looked like they were not used to this.

“If you have a great culture, great coaches, players with real talent, ambition and heart, culture matters. Culture can trump trying to buy success sometimes.”

Central to that culture, Stockwood believes, is head coach David Artell, who took charge in November 2023.

“He’s a student of life, not just of football. He’s someone who loves seeing players develop,” Stockwood said.

“Our job is to match his ambition with what we’re trying to do and go on that journey together. I can’t throw out enough superlatives for him.”

Stockwood says everyone at the club has ambitions to progress through the leagues.

“We never plot a destination or a timescale. We talk about wanting to go through the leagues at the right pace and bringing the community with us,” he said.

“But you know, why not? You only have to look at a Bournemouth or Brighton and see what they did. It shows what is possible with the right culture, the right money, and the right sort of support. We’re not going to stand still for long, it’s just not in our nature.”

Stockwood is a major advocate for fairer financial distribution in the game, and is a big supporter of independent regulation.

“Football in this country belongs to all of us,” he said. “The Carabao Cup is nothing, and the romance and the reason why people love the sport is nothing, without all the clubs up and down the EFL, so the regulator is a way to ensure that there is a fairer financial distribution and there are better owners and directors brought into the game.”