Grimsby Town boss Paul Hurst admits he was 'interested' in signing Kabongo Tshimanga before Chesterfield move

The sixth-placed Mariners come up against Tshimanga and the table-topping Spireites on Saturday.

The striker has scored 17 goals in 17 games in the league since he moved from Boreham Wood and is the division’s top goalscorer.

“I'll be honest, I'm not sure what has happened there in terms of the finances because they were supposedly really struggling and then went to sign a striker,” Hurst told Grimsby Live.

"He (Tshimanga) was someone I was interested in signing in the summer but it became obvious we weren't going to get him. Fair play to them, I'm not criticising them for doing so but that is certainly a difference of set-up or finances available. They have done very well.”

Hurst does not live far from Chesterfield and keeps an eye on what is going on at the club.

"They have had a good start,” he said.

"I look at them, they are local to me, I read a lot of news about them.

"When they went down, they were really, really struggling to the point they could have been relegated from the National League. It shows how things can change very quickly.

"We played them in the last game of pre-season, they beat us 2-1 but it was a good game. They started and finished better, we had the middle part of that game.

"At the same time, they are now perhaps a little bit more direct at times, but they can still play and mix the game up. They've done extremely well, no getting away from it."

Hurst believes Chesterfield’s win against Salford City in the FA Cup will give them even more confidence.

The Marines, meanwhile, have lost six of their last seven.

“Three or four weeks ago, a lot of teams would have said it would be a top-of-the-table clash,” Hurst added. “It's not quite that. However, we are still in the top end of the division but there's no doubt we'd like to have played this game with better results behind us.

"It's a game we're looking forward to. I want the players to embrace the challenges and let's see what we can do."