Grimsby fined £20,000 for ineligible player in Cup win over United

Grimsby Town have been fined 20,000 pounds after fielding an ineligible player in their shock Carabao Cup second round victory over Manchester United, the English Football League said on Tuesday, confirming the League Two club will not be expelled from the competition. The fine follows Grimsby’s 12-11 penalty shootout win after a 2-2 draw at Blundell Park on 27 August, a result that eliminated United and, by reports, marked the first time the club had been knocked out of a cup by a fourth-tier side.

The EFL said the breach related to the registration of Clarke Oduor, who joined Grimsby on loan from Bradford City and came on as a 73rd-minute substitute. The club submitted his registration at 12:01pm on the day before the fixture, one minute after the 12:00pm deadline set by the competition rules, the league said. Grimsby self-reported the error the following day and the EFL board, after reviewing the evidence and prior precedent, determined a fine was appropriate. Ten thousand pounds of the penalty is suspended until the end of the 2025-26 season and would be triggered if the club fields an ineligible player again in any EFL competition.

In a club statement, Grimsby said a...