As the teams came out for the second half, it felt like something would have to happen to us if Charlton were to get back into the game. The first fifteen minutes of the half we looked assured, and it’s a period we rarely do well in. We controlled possession and limited them to a single effort from Stockley, which the ever-impressive Jordan Wright saved. It was a Lincoln Cty away day masterclass in hard work, determination and, when called upon, proper quality.
The balance of the game could have changed again when Morgan Whittaker was sent off, and there are no complaints from me. Twenty years ago, his reckless tackle is probably not a booking, but in this day and age, you cannot jump in like that and expect to get away with it. The last time we were in the capital BNC was incorrectly sent off and the card was rescinded, but this time there will be no appeal. It’s frustrating because as I said, I actually like Whittaker and whilst his stay here has not been a ‘success’ in many people’s eyes, he has contributed. His goal tally of three in the league means only three other players have scored more from open play (Fiorini, Marquis and Scully), which isn’t bad; over 46 games, rather than the 20 (ish) he’ll play, he could be pushing ten. I have seen enough to suggest there’s a player worth having in there, a young man who needs a home and a purpose. He’ll have a home for the next couple of games, it’ll be up in the stands with other players not involved. Some will say no loss, I disagree.
Usually, when a man is sent off, the other team press and harass, but I think we did well to contain them. I guess if that had made it 10v11 it would have been different, but I felt we went into efficiency mode, having a bit of the ball, being sensible in our choices and not taking unnecessary risks. We didn’t retreat or go deep, but we didn’t leave ourselves exposed either. In fact, we looked a lot like a side in control, which given the shift in power, we perhaps shouldn’t. It was a glimpse of what I think we should be, rather than what we have been.
Much of it happened without Liam Bridcutt too, taken off as planned not long after the red card. I said at the top of the page there’s no surprise that we play well on his return, and I stand by that. I tweeted last night that he’s one of the best players I’ve ever watched in a Lincoln shirt, and I stand by that as well. There’s a calmness about his football, like a Dad playing with his kids in the garden. In possession he’s never rushed, he never appears flustered and whilst he makes errors, all players do, I always feel calmer when he plays. The issue is how often he plays, but I will always argue for his inclusion on the playing staff, or coaching staff, as he’s a superb character and leader.
However, when he went off, we didn’t collapse, we looked assured and yet it still came as a bit of surprise when we got the second. I felt we might look to close out a 1-0, but Anthony Scully popped up with an Anthony Scully goal of the highest order. He swapped passes with Jamie Robson as if he were Cohen Bramall (which was great to see), before taking his time to curl in a super effort. Whoever rates xG gave this a 0.09 rating, so that means 91 times out of 100, a player misses that. That was the quality of the finish, as good as you’ll see, and at 2-0, it felt like game, set and match. Time to get the phone out and look at other results, just to see how much closer we are to safety.
We should know to never count the point before the whistle blows, and finally being 2-0 down seemed to give the home side a kick in the bottom. Their shot total over 90 minutes was 15, three on target, and one third of those came in the final fifteen minutes. They began to hunt a little harder, perhaps too little, too late, but as soon as they got their backs up, I did momentarily fear for us. We’ve lost a 2-0 lead this season already, and my fears were made even worse when Stockley scored. It was one of the only times the former Aberdeen man got the better of the excellent Adam Jackson, but it left us hanging on. A late flurry of activity might have raised their hopes a little, but to a man (all ten of them) we were excellent in those final few minutes. Last week, I criticised the players for not showing enough fight at 1-0 down, but yesterday, they showed it in abundance to remain 2-1 ahead. The final whistle brought huge relief, because there is a train of thought that 45 points might be enough. Might.
We’re not safe yet, but those drawing comparisons with 2010/11 will not have seen a fight like they did yesterday. They never saw the courage and determination to get the result we saw yesterday. Nobody, ever, has seen Lincoln City win at the Valley, until yesterday. That’s proof enough that we should be a League One side next season.
As for Man of the Match, I think it was a hard call to make. We defended well, and the leader Regan Poole would surely be in with a shout. If Liam Bridcutt had managed 80 minutes he’d be up there, and Conor McGrandles gets more freedom to impress when Bridcutt is on the field too, and he did just that. I thought Lewis Fiorini did really well, and it’s hard to discount the goalscorer Scully. I do want to mention Jamie Robson as well; it’s suggested he’s found League One tough to adjust to, but I think we saw yesterday the first glimpse of his renewal. He’ll be a big player for us in the future and I was delighted for him to get some game time.
I’m not going to pick a Man of the Match. I’ll let you lot do it below, but dare I suggest either Scully or Poole will likely get it.
That leads us into Tuesday, a night where we still can’t assure safety. We are ten points clear of the bottom four, with six games, or 18 points, left to play for. If we beat Fleetwood, we’ll be 11 points clear of them although they’ll have six to play after that. Morecambe play Oxford, and a defeat there would mean they had 15 points left to play for and theoretically would be 13 behind us. Doncaster can catch us (only on goal difference) but won’t and Crewe cannot. Defeat for Wimbledon against Charlton would mean they could only catch us on goal difference, so we can rule out finishing in the bottom three with a win and the right set of results, but we might have to wait until next Saturday to be completely safe.
It is coming. It’s coming by virtue of us performing incredibly well at the Valley, and showing the amazing travelling support what could have been this season. It’s so frustrating, watching a midfield three of Bridcutt, McGrandles and Fiorini in action, and a pairing of Poole and Jackson dominating two aggressive centre forward, knowing if that had been the case all season, we might be counting points and looking up, not having the odd pessimist (me) still looking down.
That’s football though, right?
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