Grimsby's ageing team made a bright start in 1952–53 with five straight wins but eventually slipped and finished in 5th place. In 1953–54, Shankly became disillusioned when the board could not give him money to buy new players. He was reluctant to promote some promising reserves because of loyalty to the older players (a fault that was to resurface at Liverpool years later) and he finally resigned in January 1954, citing the board's lack of ambition as his main reason. Shankly's record in league football at Grimsby was 62 wins and 35 defeats from 118 matches. Shankly went on to win the Football League, FA Cup and UEFA Cup with Liverpool.