Football League World
·12 January 2025
Football League World
·12 January 2025
Striker Stefan Payne's short stint with Grimsby in 2021 began brightly enough, but quickly turned sour and ended in disgrace.
When seasoned striker Stefan Payne netted on his Grimsby Town debut just days after then-manager Paul Hurst had brought him to the club, Mariners fans were hopeful the well-travelled attacker could provide the goals to keep them up.
That wasn't to be the case, however, and the former Tranmere Rovers man soon let down his manager, teammates, and the club's fans in bizarre fashion.
Payne arrived at Blundell Park in January 2021, as the Mariners boss, starting his second term in the Blundell Park dugout, frantically looked to overhaul a poor squad assembled by predecessor Ian Holloway mid-season in an attempt to keep a struggling Grimsby side in the EFL.
The powerful forward had worked under Hurst previously, as part of the Shrewsbury Town squad that reached the respective Football League Trophy and League One Play-off finals in 2018, though he and his teammates would lose out on both occasions.
Payne was a key member of a Shrews side that punched above their weight that season, but despite having all the attributes necessary to succeed in the professional game, the 33-year-old has failed to settle anywhere for too long throughout a nomadic career in the game.
Prior to joining the Mariners at the age of 29, the 6ft striker had played for the likes of Sutton United, Gillingham, AFC Hornchurch, Dover Athletic, Barnsley, Bristol Rovers, and the aforementioned Tranmere and Shrewsbury. However, Hurst, who has a track record of signing players he's worked with previously, hoped the Londoner could settle enough to score the goals needed to keep his side up.
Payne signed a short-term deal until the end of the 2020/21 campaign, departing Prenton Park after 18 largely disappointing months in Birkenhead. However, his time on the East Coast would be even shorter, though certainly memorable.
The experienced attacker's spell in North East Lincolnshire began brightly enough. Introduced as a second-half substitute in the late January home clash with Stevenage, Payne grabbed what looked to be a vital equaliser in the final minute of stoppage time, though the Mariners somehow contrived to lose the game 2-1 in the few seconds that remained.
That summed up the season for Grimsby's long-suffering supporters, while that goal was the high point of Payne's brief stint in a black and white shirt.
The forward failed to find the net or impact any of his side's next 11 (13 appearances in total) matches as the Mariners, ultimately unsuccessfully, scrambled for survival.
Payne was, however, selected to start the game at Bradford City on April 10th, in what would be his final appearance for the club, following a regrettable first-half incident.
With his side trailing the Bantams 1-0 as the half-time interval approached, veteran Felipe Morais played a misplaced through ball for Payne. The striker was obviously unhappy at the quality of the delivery and failed to chase after it, much to the Portuguese's annoyance.
This caused a clash between the pair as Payne appeared to aim a headbutt in the direction of his teammate, resulting in him being sent off and leaving his colleagues to play the remainder of the game with 10 men.
While they battled hard, Grimsby lost the match, and Payne, who'd let the club down when they needed him most, and Morais never played for the Mariners again.
Finishing the campaign bottom of the entire Football League, Grimsby were relegated to non-league for the second time, while Payne's career drifted back in that direction, too, with the 33-year-old now plying his trade with ninth-tier side Lydd Town. Morais, for his part, has now retired and is now, somewhat ironically, part of the coaching staff at Bradford, where he enjoyed a successful three-year spell earlier in his playing days.
One of former Mariners boss Paul Hurst's strengths has always been signing committed, reliable players with good character and a strong work ethic.
It's one of the reasons the 50-year-old so often returns for players he's worked with previously. His management model and tactical style relies on that trust, application and accountability.
While he couldn't keep Grimsby in the EFL in 2021, he brought in the likes of Lennell John-Lewis, Giles Coke and Jay Matete, who all made a positive contribution and improved the squad as a whole.
While Hurst would assemble a squad very much in his mould and return to the Football League at the first time of asking in the following campaign, the signing of Payne, his playing style, and the manner of his departure were all contradictory to this.
The attacker's release at the end of his short deal was of no surprise to anyone. Nor is his career trajectory since. The striker laboured in his efforts and often looked disinterested, offering little as an attacking threat to his side, before seeing red in West Yorkshire. If anything, his short spell with Grimsby encapsulated their 202/21 season as a whole.
Live
Live