Grimsby assistant boss Stuart Watkiss feels The Mariners showed positive signs of improvement in their 1-0 victory over local rivals Lincoln.The win, which came courtesy of Peter Bore's first-half strike, took Grimsby into the final of the Lincolnshire Senior Cup, and Watkiss believes they are moving in the right direction after a difficult pre-season campaign.

He told the club's official website: "It was a good performance, and it was obviously improved, which is important. At the end of the 90 minutes I felt as though we just edged it, and it was a good workout for everybody.

"It (pre-season) can be a little bit misleading, and the lads have gone into previous games tired, because they've worked hard on the mornings of the games.

"We eased off them on the morning of the Lincoln game so they went into it a little bit fresher, and I think that showed.

"Fair play to Lincoln, they moved the ball around quite well, but we kept our shape and really didn't give them anywhere to go."

More Football News from TEAMtalk