MATCH 10 : City fans pay for not turning up

The game continued to be slow but Crewe made their first decent attack 7 minutes later after the goal when Keates cleared a cross for the corner. Thankfully the chance was wasted as Richard Walker headed over.

Birch was the next to have an attempt but his close range shot was easily saved by Williams. Crewe almost gained an equaliser soon afterwards when Lunt floated a free-kick into the box. Steve Jones tried to head goalwards but it was straight at Marriott. If Jones hadn't tried to head the cross in then it would have been a goal due to the ball being on target.

Nat Brown was the next Imps' player to have an attempt at goal but his long range effort was heading well wide before it hit Asamoah but the ball trickled slowly towards the goalkeeper who had no trouble in saving the shot. Beevers almost doubled his tally on the 30th minute when Keates sent a free-kick deep into the box and Beevers headed it powerfully towards the goal, but the keeper made an excellent save to deny what would have the "typical" Lincoln goal.

City were now starting to control the game and made it 2-0 in the 35th minute. A scramble on the edge of the box before the ball was flicked into the air and Meheta Molango belted the ball on the volley into the net to give the Imps a bit of breathing space.

The game slowed down tremendously, however, Crewe did pull a goal back just before half time after Molango fouled future Imps target, Anthony Tonkin. Vaughn sent in a cross to the near post where Richard Walker was waiting and he headed comfortably past Marriott and it was game on.

Crewe emerged for the second half with a different goalkeeper as Gradi tried to get on level terms as Turnball replaced Williams. Crewe should have drawn level 4 minutes into the 2nd half when Walker had time and space from a Lunt corner, but the striker could only hurry his header wide.

It didn't stay close for long though as soon as Nat Brown sent in a deep shot towards the back post, however, Lunt cleared it off the line but the ball fell straight to Gary Birch, who smashed the ball into the net from close range. 3 minutes later and Birch was a bit lucky as he added to his tally. His 20 yard shot went very slowly past Turnball hit the post at an angle that caused it to proceed into the goal and all of a sudden, it was 4-1 and barring a minor miracle City were through to the next round of the cup.

City were streaming forward in numbers now and it appeared that Crewe players had accepted the inevitable as City looked like scoring. Asamoah, Mologno and Brown all almost added to the tally. Asamoah and Molango made way for Bacon and Robinson and the latter immediatly repaid his manager's faith. Kerr sent a deep cross into the box and Robinson, with only his second touch, headed it powerfully past Turnball to make it 5-1 with only a few minutes remaining.

Crewe were relegated at the end of the season and they could have played the Imps in League One the next year, had it not been for City collapsing in the Playoffs yet again.