MATCH PREVIEW | GRIMSBY TOWN

The Bees make the journey to the seaside in the North-East tomorrow to face Grimsby Town in matchday 25 of the 2025/26 Sky Bet League Two season.

With two games being postponed earlier this month due to cold temperatures, the Bees are yet to take to the road in 2026 and are looking forward to stepping onto the pitch in a competitive fixture for the first time since our New Year’s Day victory over Crawley Town at the Hive.

The Bees are on a three-game unbeaten run following the conclusion of the congested festive period and hope to extend that when visiting Blundell Park in tomorrow afternoon’s 3pm kick-off.

Barnet’s last five results:

Barnet FC 2-1 Crawley Town

Bristol Rovers 0-2 Barnet FC

Newport County 0-0 Barnet FC

Barnet FC 1-3 Salford City

Chesterfield FC 3-1 Barnet FC

Grimsby Town:

The Mariners currently sit 12^th in the table, with the Bees sitting one place and point above tomorrow’s hosts.

Both David Artell and Dean Brennan’s sides have won nine games so far this campaign, with Grimsby drawing seven and losing eight.

The Cleethorpes-based club went on a winless run of eight games before the festive period, but have since turned the tide and are unbeaten in three, with three clean sheets to add accompany that stat.

As well as coming off the back of two wins in the league, the Mariners have also progressed to the fourth round of the Emirates FA Cup, beating National League South Weston Super Mare 3-2 on Saturday, with Kieran Green’s late header proving to be the match-winning moment.

Last time out in the league, Grimsby made the journey to the Lancashire coast and came away with all three points against Fleetwood Town.

Jaze Kabia’s 89^th minute header following a delightful delivery from Darragh Burns secured victory at the Highbury Stadium for the visiting side, making them only the second team to defeat the Cod Army on their turf this season.

In their past three games, late winners in the 80^th minute or beyond have shown the Mariners’ must-win mentality up until the final whistle.

Grimsby Town’s last five results:

Grimsby Town 3-2 Weston Super Mare

Fleetwood Town 0-1 Grimsby Town

Grimsby Town 1-0 Shrewsbury Town

Grimsby Town 0-0 Oldham Athletic

Bromley 2-0 Grimsby Town

In the opposition dugout:

With no change in management since the reverse fixture, David Artell has now surpassed three years as Mariners’ Head Coach.

The 45-year-old states his side have outplayed opposition on numerous occasions, even during their winless run, with performances warranting more points than the table suggests.

The former Crewe Alexandra manager has made three additions to his squad so far during the transfer window, adding Tyrell Sellars-Fleming and Andy Cook to his attacking options, with Jackson Smith settling in between the sticks until the end of the season following a string of emergency loan spells.

The latter of the forwards, Cook, returns to Grimsby over a decade after his two-year spell in black and white. Across his career, the 35-year-old has scored over 250 goals in over 680 senior appearances. Despite returning from an ACL injury earlier in the season, the experienced talisman has significant goalscoring pedigree to help the Mariners push on in the second-half of the campaign.

One to watch:

With an attacking line full of flair, experience and young energy, one name that’s stood out this season is Charles Vernam.

Currently in his second spell with the club, the 29-year-old wide forward can create something from nothing in the final third and has a superb strike catalogue to his name.

After an injury-ridden 2024/25 campaign, it was uncertain as to whether Vernam’s career would continue at Grimsby Town, but after a deal with Swindon Town broke down, the winger hoped to remain in David Artell’s plans going forward.

Fast forward six months and the forward has scored eight goals and notched ten assists across all competitions, his ability to turn and get away from defenders making him a key member of Grimsby’s front three.

Last time out:

It was a memorable fixture against the Mariners in September at the Hive. The visitors had only lost one league game, and the Bees were searching for their first home win of the campaign.

A Nnamdi Ofoborh double followed by a Lee Ndlovu strike gave Barnet a well-deserved win and clean sheet against a side who are aiming for promotion come May.

The Bees limited David Artell’s side to only one shot on target in a game where possession was fairly shared, but the Mariners couldn’t create when they had the opportunities.

The Bess have come up against the Mariners on 22 occasions and have only taken the three points back to London on one occasion, back in 2008 when Neal Bishop scored to secure victory for Barnet by the beach.

COYB