Bristol Rovers head to Grimsby Town this weekend less than 72 hours after the Mariners’ shock victory over Manchester United

Daniel Hargraves Bristol Rovers reporter

17:00, 28 Aug 2025

Bristol Rovers’ next opponents Grimsby Town beat Manchester United on penalties in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night(Image: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images))

Darrell Clarke is solely focusing on preparing his Bristol Rovers team for their trip to Grimsby Town this weekend amid national noise surrounding the Mariners’ incredible Carabao Cup victory against Manchester United on Wednesday evening.

Grimsby will host Rovers less than 72 hours one of the greatest nights in the club’s history in which the League Two side beat giants United on penalties at Blundell Park after a 2-2 draw.

David Artell’s side went 2-0 up within the first half hour before second half goals from Bryan Mbeumo and Harry Maguire levelled things. Mbeumo then went on to be the player to miss the decisive penalty after a marathon shootout which finished 12-11.

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It is unclear how long for or how hard the Mariners celebrated their cupset but Clarke isn’t thinking about the potential aftermath of such a historic night for the Gas’ next opponents.

“I can’t control that,” the Pirates head coach declared when asked if such a win could impact Grimsby ahead of Saturday’s game. “I don’t know the answer to that. All I know is that we’ve got to make sure we’re at our best against a team that’s unbeaten this season to pick up the three points.

“My focus is purely solely on that, having a game plan in place to try and go up there and win the game. We’ve always been the same so it’ll be a good test, but it’s one we’re looking forward to.”

After a difficult start which saw Rovers lose their first three league games as well as being knocked out of the Carabao Cup by fellow fourth tier team Cambridge United, the Gas have picked up four points from two home league games via a goalless draw with Oldham Athletic and a first victory of the season, beating Cambridge 1-0.

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They also claimed two points from their opening EFL Trophy clash against Tottenham Hotspur Under-21s on Tuesday night having recovered from 3-0 down to draw 4-4 before going on to win the penalty shootout.

However, Grimsby have made an excellent start to their league campaign, cup success aside, with three wins and two draws in an unbeaten opening five games. Artell’s men are also the joint-top scorers with 10 goals.

As a result, Clarke has issued his players the target of registering a third consecutive league clean sheet, something the club hasn’t achieved since March 2022 in their last League Two promotion season.

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“It’s going to be a good test against a free-scoring Grimsby team,” the Gas boss exclaimed. “They’ve been high up on the expected goals, touches in the box, so we’re going to have to defend really well to try and get our third clean sheet.

“I think it’s probably two, three years since the club’s had three clean sheets in a league game [in a row], so that’s a little bit of a target for the boys to aim for on Saturday, and we’re going to have to be at our best to keep a clean sheet there.”

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