Lee Frecklington 1 Appearance, 0 Goals

This is a tough one to chat about and usually, I wouldn’t include a player who has made one appearance lasting 58 minutes, but I want to. I respect our manager and his approach, but football is a game of opinion and I firmly believe that Lee Frecklington could still do a job for us. He’s the club captain, a respected individual who can inspire young players and help them develop. Isn’t that where we want to be?

I’ve heard rumours of Freck training alone, I’ve seen those rebuffed by the club, then been told in confidence by people visiting the EPC that they’re true. I don’t know what the truth is, but I would hope he’s very much part of the current squad. Look, I’m not saying Freck would get in ahead of Joe Morrell and Liam Bridcutt, but when we’ve moved Jorge Grant to central midfield and left a player with Championship experience in the stands, I do wonder if we’ve missed a trick.

I’ll be gutted for Lee at the end of the season because he’s almost certain to leave the club for a second time. It’s not quite at Chris Sutton / Richard Butcher levels of upset, but it might not be far off. I’m not saying Freck should be in the starting XI every week, but I am saying he shouldn’t be sat in the stands watching on.

Jorge Grant 38 Appearances, 2 Goals

I feel this has been a tough write this evening, with a collection of players who have struggled for games, form or appearances. Even Neal Eardley, a solid performer, hasn’t quite reached the levels of the pas two years, so it is nice to end on a high with Grant.

When Jorge Grant signed I was pretty excited, I felt he had enough ability and flair to be a big player for us. My questions were around attitude and how he might react when the going got tough and I will never forget that first game without Danny Cowley, when someone said he’d ‘downed tools’ and stormed off back to Forest (despite signing for us permanently). He was an easy target in that period, a player labelled as flaky by bitter Mansfield fans and one who those who revel in misery targeted straight away.

Instead of disappearing, he’s stepped up and shown his class. It wasn’t easy for him, hauled off at half time of the Wimbledon draw and seemingly on a collision course with the subs bench, much like Jack Payne. Surely, as a player who lacked substance, that was that? Nope. He came back with style, winning the game against Peterborough and ensuring he was a key figure during our good run pre-Christmas, and a shining light in the tough post-festive section of the season. He’s swapped from midfield to the flank and back, always looking as assured and competent as the game before. I rarely have to type the words ‘Jorge Grant struggled’ or similar anymore.

He would be a shout for Player of the Season, perhaps his goal count could be one or two higher, but other than that he’s been a strong figure for us. Reflect on this; he has 11 assists for us this season, Neal Eardley got eight in the year we all raved about his contribution and Bruno Andrade got six in his entire Imps’ career. If that doesn’t tell you Jorge Grant is a big player for us, nothing will.