Accrington's Jamie Clarke celebrated his first senior hat-trick to defeat for Grimsby 3-1.
Hat-trick hero plunges Grimsby towards relegation danger
Striker Jamie Clarke celebrated his first senior hat-trick to halt a run of four straight defeats for Accrington and plunge Grimsby deeper into relegation trouble after a 3-1 defeat.
Clarke, on loan from Blackburn, opened the scoring after 11 minutes following a flowing move. John Miles found Chris King on the left wing and his cross was fired home by the frontman for his third goal of the season.
Grimsby were back on level terms three minutes later when a strong back pass from Phil Edwards bounced off the knee of keeper Ian Dunbavin and fell nicely for striker Adam Proudlock, who lofted the ball into the empty net.
Both sides hit the woodwork with Jean Louis Akpro's 20-yard effort crashing against the crossbar for Grimsby and Jimmy Ryan's 30-yard drive hitting the upright before bouncing out to safety at the other end.
There were chances for both until Clarke netted his second in the 59th minute with a superb solo effort. The 20-year-old battled for the ball on the edge of the area, left two defenders for dead, before racing into the area and rifling the ball home beyond the dive of Mariners goalkeeper Phil Barnes.
And he made the game safe six minutes from time, getting the better of defender Ryan Bennett and slotting the ball home from a tight angle.
