Exclusive: Joe Jacobson tips Grimsby Town "real shock" in new play-off claims | OneFootball

The Mariners have been one of the many surprises packages of this season's fourth tier.

Former Wycombe Wanderers defender Joe Jacobson has predicted that David Artell's Grimsby Town could be a surprise package for any team they face if they were to get into the play-offs.

The 2024/25 edition of League Two has been full of surprises. Walsall looked like they were going to run away with the division title when the new year rolled around, and yet now they are in serious danger of finishing outside the top three.

Nobody at the top have truly separated themselves from the rest of the pack since then, leaving it all to come down to the five games of the season.

Grimsby are one of the teams who are looking to shock their competitors and hold onto their position inside the top seven until the start of May.

You would have got very good odds on them to end up in the play-offs at the start of the season and yet, despite some believing that their ranking throughout the season, which has been consistently inside the top 10 through most of the campaign, was a bit of a faux one, they have held strong and look like serious contenders to be playing for a chance to go up to League One.

Grimsby Town have surprised everyone this season

Artell, as the manager, has been credited as being the main catalyst behind their improved results across the campaign. Jacobson, theex-Wycombe Wanderers defender turned EFL pundit, has been really impressed by the work that he has done at Blundell Park this time out.

He exclusively told Football League World: "David Artell has done an incredible job, hasn't he? I don't think anyone would've put Grimsby in the top half, let alone in with a shout of getting into the play-off places, but they deserve it.

"They've got a few experienced boys like Danny Rose who's evergreen at this level and will consistently get you 10-15 goals in that division - he's done that again this season.

"And they are where they are because they deserve to be. If anyone takes them lightly, then I think they're in for a real shock.

"David Artell is someone who really galvanizes his squad. He's that leader, the group comes across really, really well. So it wouldn't surprise me if they were in the top seven when the final whistle goes on the final day of the season."

Grimsby will face a tough challenge in the play-offs

If they do manage to maintain their position in the league, then the Mariners will certainly be viewed as the underdogs of the competition. Their opponents, no matter who they are, will have bigger and better squads, on paper.

Pretty much all the sides in the current top seven, bar Town, had real firm aspirations of being promoted before the season started. For the Mariners, this wasn't what was expected of them. They have surpassed expectations at every turn.

Defying the usual norms and logic is what Grimsby have been able to do all season. They have been the outsiders all season, which is very represented by their goal difference compared to the rest of the top seven.

The challenge may be daunting, but it shouldn't frighten them.