City travel to Home Park on Saturday looking to end a run of almost 39 years without a victory there.
The last time we won was October ’82, a game which you can expect an article on over the next few hours (maybe tomorrow), but in the meantime why not have a look at tomorrow’s match officials, with a familiar face from earlier in the season in charge?
Referee: Kevin Johnson
Assistants: Steven Plane and Simon Shaw
Fourth Official: Mark Derrien
The match referee is Kevin Johnson, and he is well known to us after sending off Jon Nolan as we beat Ipswich Town 1-0 earlier in the season. He also awarded us a penalty in that game, prompting Paul Lambert to proclaim his side didn’t lose to Lincoln, they lost to Johnson. In truth, they didn’t, but Johnson didn’t have a great game although he did give us the key decisions, but in fairness to him, his record across our matches is not all that bad.
He was also in charge as we drew 1-1 there in the FA Cup a couple of years ago, awarding us a penalty that Tyler Walker missed. In that game, I said that ‘he seemed intent on letting the game flow, which isn’t a good thing when he’s missing obvious penalties’ after Jake Hesketh was tripped in the area. Still, he did award us the penalty that could have sent us through to a second-round tie with Coventry, so he isn’t averse to pointing to the spot.
Before that, Johnson was in charge of our 2-0 win at MK Dons which all but secured the League Two title, and again three weeks later (curiously) as we lost 1-0 at Newport. He did once show two red cards in a game involving the Imps, sending off Vadaine Oliver and Neill Byrne for an off the ball incident in Gary Simpson’s first win as Imps boss.
As for the assistants, Steven Plane has been on the Football League list for a decade and has run the line in the Championship, whilst Simon Shaw is notable as having been an assistant the day we drew 1-1 with Notts County in League Two, as well as our last trip to Plymouth, the 2-0 defeat in the FA Cup.
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