Flashbacks from an awful year : February

By Nathan Jackson
December 6 2007

In my own personal opinion, our promotion downfall for the 2006/7 season started in February when an Imps side who had just beat Walsall lost at home to Hereford by a shocking 4-1 scoreline. February saw City move within 2 points of top spot again, Steff Wright walk around Lincoln dressed in a sumo wrestler suit and record their final away win of the 2006/7 season.

February started with Steff Wright pledge to dress as a sumo wrestler and fight a football fan to a fight if the Imps raised £50,000 in the annual "Win A Player" otherwise translated as "Buy our drink, spend crap-loads, win sod all." City would eventually win enough to buy a whole office worth of new chairs.

City's first match of the month was the short trip to Notts County and the debut of the less than eye-pleasing green kit. It was ironic that City wore that kit at Notts County as both the kit and the performance made a lot of fans feel sick. It all started when Jay Smith gave the hosts a 2nd minute lead when volleying a corner home. Forrester was then sent off.

Mark Stallard was guilty of wasting several chances before Jason Lee elbowed his way into giving the Imps a 2-0 lead and his fellow ex-Imp Dudfield made it 3-0 from close range in the second half. Spencer Weir-Daley pulled one back for the Imps before Kerr missed a penalty. It was far from a convincing display from City against a team that failed to make an impression during the season.

The following week started with Chris Travers being announced as a new director at the club and Owain Warlow represented the Welsh Under 21's in a 4-0 win over their Northern Ireland counterparts. It was then announced that a Lincoln  had failed to win the Coca-Cola's £250,000 extra bonus for the "Buy a coke----sorry, Player" It yet again went to a club in the Championship, Hull to be specific.

City's game against Torquay was threatened to be called off because of the ran, but the Imps were thankful it wasn't as a Mark Stallard header gave City a win that they didn't really deserve, the alarm bells were certainly starting to ring.

6 days later and the Imps were on Sky, this time facing top of the table Walsall. Paul Morgan had said a defeat would rule out any chance of the title, but a win would see City move within 2 points of the leaders. Things started well for the Imps with Weir-Daley giving the Imps a lead that latest just 50 seconds as Hector Sam quickly equalised for the hosts.

Weir-Daley stumbled on a defensive error to smash the ball past Clayton Ince to make it 2-1 to the Imps. A relatively comfortable second half could have see City increase the lead on a few occasions, but thankfully Walsall didn't take advantage of City's failure to register another goal and the Imps ran out 2-1. City fans were full of optimism and convinced promotion was finally coming, little did we know at that point that we wouldn't win again on the road that season, and we would only win twice more.

An out-of-form Hereford made the Tuesday night journey to Sincil Bank and the Imps were heavy favourites to win. Alan Connell, a young striker who near enough always scores against City, gave the visitors a 2nd minute lead before Steve Guinan, another player who often scores against City, doubled the advantage against an off-colour City.

The teams emerged from half time and it was 3-0 to Hereford within 20 seconds as Guinan volleyed home from just inside the area and he completed his hat-trick soon afterwards. Weir-Daley eventually pulled one back for the Imps but this game knocked all the confidence out of City and we weren't the same after that game. Leon Mettam was also sent off for a typically stupid tackle midway through the second half.

On the morning of the trip to Accrington it was announced that former striker Jack Dodds had died at the age of 91. Lee Beevers, who had been suspended for the Hereford trip, gave the Imps the lead when he volleyed in a corner but Andy Todd pulled Accrington back into the game within minutes.

Scott Kerr appeared to have given City a well deserved win when he lobbed home before Paul Mullin got Accrington an undeserved equaliser and the pack were now starting to catch up.

That month ended with the news that Weir-Daley had been shortlisted for Player of the Month. However, that wasn't consolation for City quickly throwing away promotion....and March wasn't going to be much better.