Subs
Sean Long
Long was a loan signing who started 12 games for the Imps at full back whilst here courtesy of Reading. He joined permanently in the summer, but Neal Eardley’s arrival made life difficult for him, and he played just 17 league matches. Oddly, his two final appearances for the Imps were the EFL Trophy final, and the play-off semi-final against Exeter City, although he played just a minute of both.
He left for Cheltenham and had an injury-hit 2018/19, but returned last season to help them to the play-off semi-finals against Northampton. After missing the first half of this season through injury, he has been a key part of their rise up the table, along with Ellis Chapman. Scott Flinders, the keeper for Macclesfield on April 22nd 2017, is also there.
Billy Knott
The story of Billy Knott is such a sad one. He came on loan from Gillingham and you could see he was insanely talented. he bagged one goal, helping us beat Bromley, and returned to his parent club in the summer. He was back in red and white the following season, arriving permanently in time to score against recently relegated Championship side Rotherham in the EFL Cup. He added another as we beat Carlisle 4-1 and looked to be on a roll. Sadly, a harsh red card in the 4-1 defeat at Notts County, in which Hawkridge scored, set him back and he never recovered. He only started four more league games for City, and didn’t manage a full 90 in League Two at all. He played for us against Rochdale in the EFL Trophy, before a loan swap for Jordan Williams.
After three games for Rochdale, he returned and was released, and his career has spiralled since then. he confesses to suffering depression which drove him to drink, something which has blighted his career. He’s played for Concord, Chelmsford and Billericay, and recently stated he thinks he can still play in the EFL, but at 28, his talent does seem to have been wasted.
Josh Ginnelly
Josh Ginnelly has gone on to have a decent career, and he is still a young man. He played nine times for the Imps during his 2016/17 stint, but didn’t score despite showing plenty of promise. He was back on loan from Burnley the following season, netting on our return to the EFL against Wycombe. He scored twice more for City, but was the subject of criticism during our 3-1 win against Port Vale and was recalled by Burnley.
Since then, he’s been to Tranmere, whom he helped into the Football League in the second part of 2017/18, then Walsall in League One. They signed him on a free from Burnley and he impressed after just 18 starts, grabbing a move to Championship side Preston North End. He hasn’t broken through at Deepdale, instead having a loan spell with Bristol Rovers last season. This year, he is on loan with Scottish side Hearts, for whom he scored in the Scottish FA Cup Final against Celtic.
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