This Boxing Day sees us play Bolton Wanderers, a huge challenge as we try to stay in the hunt for a top-six spot.
I love a Boxing Day game – there are always the puns around late Christmas gifts, but it goes deeper than that for me. It goes back to 1987 and my Dad’s joy at us beating Boston United 2-1. It was back when the radio went to the ground every 15 minutes, and it was during the last of those reports we got the goal that won it through Phil Brown. My memory might be fading, but I’m sure it was the first goal I ever heard us score live on the radio.
A couple of days later, we had my Uncle up from Exeter, and him, Dad and a couple of the other adults went to Kidderminster and City (5-3). I wanted to go but was told I wasn’t allowed; I now realise it was because they were going on the lash. Anyway, for those days in between, all my Dad sang was this; Hark now hear, the angels sing, the Boston ran away. Lincoln something something something, because of Boxing Day’. With it being my Dad, he just made up three random words to fill in the bit he didn’t know.
In 2005, when we drew 0-0 with them at the Bank, he sang the same in the car on the way to the ground – ditto 2006 when we beat them 2-1 as part of a run that also saw us beat Grimsby and Peterborough. Recently, it’s been something like ‘we are top of the league’, even when we’re not, but facts like that don’t bother my Dad one bit. Still, the Boxing Day song stands out for me.
Boxing Day results are often a bit unusual, and I always feel you’re better at home than away (although not Boxing Day 2003, when Boston again were put to the sword). To get you in the mood for the Boxing Day fixture and to correct an aborted video I did earlier in the week, here are four Boxing Day matches to remember from my time as an Imps fan.
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