Bury 3 Grimsby Town 1

Last updated : 27 March 2005 By Footymad Previewer
Whittle-Defence Collapsed
Bury celebrated their 'Fill The Ground' day with a much-needed win against the Mariners at Gigg Lane.

Goals from Chris Porter, Brian Barry-Murphy and substitute Colin Kazim-Richards were enough for the Shakers to secure victory in front of a record home crowd of 5,671 this season in the club's 120th anniversary year.

Bury had hoped for a capacity 12,000 supporters through the turnstiles on what turned out to be a glorious afternoon in the Lancashire town.

But although the final figure was down on what had been expected, there were still plenty of reasons to celebrate.

Victory for Graham Barrow's side avenged a 5-1 defeat at Grimsby at the start of the season, but the match also helped to raise much-needed funds as the club continues to fight for its survival.

Michael Reddy gave the visitors some hope two minutes after the interval. The Mariners striker reduced the deficit with a clinical strike after Bury had failed to clear their lines.

But Kazim-Richards' superb shot on the turn made sure the Shakers took three deserved points for their efforts.

Former Stockport defender Rob Jones forced a headed goal-line clearance from Bury defender Tom Kennedy with three minutes remaining, but by then the damage had been done.

It might have been 4-1 to the home side, but Grimsby goalkeeper Anthony Williams, having raced off his line, got back well to keep Kazim-Richards 35-yard shot out.