Paul Hurst says he is determined to help John McAtee out of a difficult spell after the frontman inspired Grimsby’s 3-0 romp at Crewe.
The frontman scored only his second goal of what will be his final campaign at Blundell Park. McAtee joined Luton last summer, but was then loaned back to the Mariners before his season was disrupted by shoulder surgery.
His third-minute blast was added to by George Lloyd and, with Crewe failing to make an impression after making five changes in 15 second-half minutes, Hurst’s men sealed the victory through a late effort from substitute Tom Dickson-Peters.
“It was a great strike from John and I am pleased for him as he knows full well that he has not been playing as well as he can,” said Grimsby boss Hurst.
“He has not been quite himself in games, but once players are under your care the biggest part of being a manager is trying to get the best out of them. With John that sometimes means getting to him, so I was delighted with how he has responded.
“George Lloyd didn’t do too badly either and I was really pleased with him and Tom (Dickson-Peters) when he came off the bench. The first thing he did was win a good header and then he got his goal. He gave us something we’ve been missing. He’s a pest up there, but he can also play.”
McAtee picked up Lloyd’s flick-on just over the halfway line and raced clear before curling a finish into the far corner beyond keeper Dave Richards.
Lloyd doubled the lead with a low finish into the bottom corner (31).
Crewe boss Lee Bell made a flurry of substitutions at the start of the second period, which included handing debuts to loan signings Sean Robertson, from Forest Green, and Ryan Finnigan, from Southampton.
But the changes had little impact and it was in the first half that the Railwaymen went closest through a free-kick from Callum Ainley, which flew just wide.
Dickson-Peters completed an easy win when he drove in off the far post in the 84th minute after Daniel Amos’ mishit effort dropped at his feet.
Bell said: “We need to analyse this result quickly and the players will need to watch their games back quickly too.
“We must not let this change what we’re trying to do at this football club.
“It was a long afternoon and it was a poor performance. We let the players know how we felt about it.
“We will review it tomorrow and while we won’t get too much at them we have got to address this quickly.
“When we go 1-0 down we have got to avoid conceding again and falling further behind like we did today.”
