GRIMSBY TOWN suffered their fourth straight League Two defeat as they crashed 3-0 to Wycombe Wanderers at Adams Park.
Despite dominating possession, Town struggled to create anything of substance in front of goal and in a forgettable game, couldn't manage a single shot on target over the 90 minutes.
The home side only had three such shots themselves but crucially, all three ended up in the back of the Mariners' net.
Town went behind on 24 minutes after Gary Holt converted a low cross from Scott McGleish.
McGleish then scored the other two goals himself after the break, the first one from close range after his initial shot had been blocked by Justin Whittle.
He then converted a penalty in stoppage time after Newey had brought down Matt Bloomfield inside the box to complete an unhappy afternoon for Town and their 255 travelling supporters.
New striker Martin Butler was thrown straight into the Town attack, starting up front alongside Isaiah Rankin as Alan Buckley opted to go with a 4-4-2 formation from the kick-off.
Phil Barnes started in goal, while Shaleum Logan kept his place at right back after a man-of-the-match display against Rochdale last week.He was joined in defence by Justin Whittle, Nick Fenton and Tom Newey.
Danny Boshell returned in central midfield, as did James Hunt, who came in for the injured Paul Bolland.Peter Till lined up on the right wing, with Ciaran Toner on the left.
The Town bench had a balanced look to it, with Andy Taylor and Gary Jones providing the attacking options, Jamie Clarke and Ryan Bennett the more defensive choices and Gary Montgomery the reserve goalkeeper.
Wycombe would be looking to move into the play-off positions with a victory this afternoon and they named an attack-minded line up, with Paul Lambert naming three forwards in a 4-3-3 formation.
Sergio Torres, John Sutton and Scott McGleish were those strikers, while the experience of Gary Holt and Martin Bullock would also look to cause problems from midfield.
The Mariners were looking to get their league campaign back on track after three consecutive defeats, all by a 2-1 scoreline, either side of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy success at Rotherham.
Town's first move forward saw Butler play the ball to Toner.He moved into the area before going down but no appeals were made for a penalty and Wycombe cleared.
The home side's first shot was then taken by Gary Holt from wide on the right. It didn't trouble Barnes, going well wide.
Barnes had to be alert after a Nick Fenton backpass fell short on eight minutes.The Town stopper managed to beat home striker Sutton to the loose ball and cleared it upfield.
Wycombe won a corner on 13 minutes after Newey beat Bullock to a cross.It fell to Tom Williams, who beat three defenders before going down.The referee decided not to award a free kick and Town broke through Logan.
Town had a corner four minutes later after good work by Till but from a good attacking position, the Mariners could only work the ball back to Barnes before launching another move forward.
Neither side had managed to stamp their authority on the game after a scrappy first 20 minutes, with both teams struggling to keep possession and efforts on goal being few and far between.
But when that first opportunity did come, it fell the way of the hosts and they converted it into the opening goal on 24 minutes.
Scott McGleish broke down the left and pulled the ball back into the box.GARY HOLT was there and the ex-Nottingham Forest midfielder had the time and space to calmly sidefoot past Barnes and put Wycombe ahead.
In doing so, Holt earned himself the distinction of scoring Wanderers' 1000th goal since their promotion to the Football League in 1993.
Town won a throw midway inside the Wycombe half on the half-hour and enjoyed a spell of keeping possession before Butler was fouled by David McCracken on the right side of the penalty area.
The free kick was whipped in towards the far post but Fenton was penalised for pushing.
Butler was fouled by McCracken again four minutes later and this time, the resulting free kick was cleared for a Mariners corner.
Boshell's kick was cleared before a James Hunt cross was put out for another corner as Rankin waited to connect.
Town were looking better going forward and were beginning to put pressure on the home defence, although Wanderers keeper Frank Fielding still hadn't been called into any serious action.
Wycombe won a free kick on 41 minutes but Barnes came out to collect it under pressure from Russell Martin.
They then had a chance to extend their lead just before half-time when McGleish broke into the Town box.Justin Whittle did just enough to put him off as he shot and the ball went behind for a goal kick.
That was the last action of a first half that had seen few genuine opportunities for either side but Wycombe had taken their one chance and therefore, they led at the break.
Town began the second half well, keeping the ball and winning a string of free-kicks before McCracken became the first man to be booked, fouling Butler.
Logan beat two before passing to Toner on 52 minutes.The cross from the Irishman was cut out and cleared by the home defence.
Soon afterwards, the Manchester City loanee was forced off the pitch for treatment after taking a knock to his ankle.
Town were then pulled up for offside when Butler tried to get onto a through-ball from Hunt.
Peter Till broke forward for Grimsby on 57 minutes before shooting from 25 yards.Fielding wasn't troubled though as the ball sailed over the bar.
Logan then crossed towards Butler three minutes later but the striker couldn't quite get his head to the ball, instead seeing it cleared by the Wycombe defence.
The home side had an opportunity on 65 minutes when Martin Bullock looked set to shoot from the edge of the box.As he pulled the trigger though, a Town defender managed to get to it and eventually, the Mariners cleared the danger.
Town were looking for a spark that would suddenly bring what had been a poor game to life and would level the scores.
At the same time, Wycombe knew that a second goal for them would almost certainly kill off any hopes the Mariners had of taking something back to Cleethorpes from the game.
Alan Buckley made his first substitutions on 70 minutes, sending Jamie Clarke on in place of Boshell and replacing Peter Till with Ryan Bennett.
The second of those changes saw Bennett slot in at right back, with Logan moving forward into a right wing position.
The 19-year-old had looked dangerous going forward since his arrival from Eastlands and Town fans would have hoped that he could make the difference in a more advanced position.
But those Town hopes looked to have been dashed on 77 minutes, when Wycombe doubled their advantage.
Scott McGleish had a shot from the edge of the area blocked by Whittle.A scramble ensued and McGLEISH was there to poke the ball into the net, left-footed from close range.
Wycombe then made a double substitution, with Bullock and Sutton being replaced by Stefan Oakes and Reuben Reid.
And Reid thought he had put his side further ahead when he put the ball into the net with ten minutes to go.The linesman's flag came to the rescue of the Mariners and referee Stephen Cook blew for the offside decision.
Town sent on Andy Taylor to replace Rankin, while Paul Lambert used his final substitution to bring on Andre Boucaud in place of Sergio Torres.
Grimsby were searching for a consolation goal and Newey made a good run forward before looking for Butler.The striker slipped and the chance had gone, despite the efforts of Toner to keep the opportunity alive.
Three minutes of added time were signalled and in the last of those, Town's miserable afternoon got worse.
Matt Bloomfield turned Newey inside the box and the Mariners left back brought him down.
The referee immediately pointed to the spot and the penalty was emphatically converted by McGLEISH in what was the last action of the game.
Town had never really looked like getting anything out of the game and after four straight league defeats left them just two points off the bottom of League Two, they must now regroup ahead of next week's home clash with fellow strugglers Bradford City.
