Lincoln City Millennium Loan XI

1. Paul Farman (David Holdsworth)

First up in my team is Paul Farman. This was a tough one. We had a lot of good keepers over the years, but Farman ended up being something of a legend for us. The only other loan player we might have picked here was Tom Miller.

2. Nicky Eaden (John Schofield)

John Schofield didn’t have a lot of big loan players – much of his squad was settled and owned. Nicky Eaden came in from Forest, initially on loan, and added some experience to the back line. Sadly, we were his last Football League club.

3. Kevin Ellison (Keith Alexander)

Keith had a lot of loans, but few had the impact of Kevin Ellison. He was a solid presence on the left-hand side of the defense, and his actions after the Huddersfield defeat made him something of a cult hero in my eyes. If we’d signed him permanently, I think we might have gone up the next season.

4. Alex Mitchell (Mark Kennedy)

Kennedy had some good loan players, Carl Rushworth being the main one, but it’s worth remembering that he was the manager who signed Alex Mitchell. Mitchell gets in here to form a solid central defensive partnership with a proper Imps legend—will Alex come back and make himself as revered as the man up next?

5. Sean Raggett (Danny Cowley)

I’ve gone for Raggs, but Danny did sign some great loan players, with Harry Anderson and Mark O’Hara springing to mind immediately. However, bringing Raggs back on loan meant he could be included, and he’s the perfect man to play alongside Mitchell. His loan was a rarity in that we’d owned him prior to him coming back, but they all count.

6. Michael O’Connor (Peter Jackson)

People who know me know I’m not a huge fan of Jacko’s reign here, but he did bring a young Michael O’Connor to the club. I’m a huge fan of Mickey, he came back and performed dilligently, but it’s easy to forget how good he looked in his loan spell with us. Also, it’s easy to forget his first game for us was a 5-1 mauling at Grimsby, and he technically earned a Northern Ireland cap on his form with us. Oh, and immediately after this loan, he moved to Scunthorpe and was a regular for them in the Championship.

7. Conor McGrandles (Michael Skubala)

Joe Taylor can feel very hard done by here, and the only reason he hasn’t got in is because we had a couple of really good striker loans. Some players I’ve picked on the strength of their loan spell, others on what they did before or after. Conor didn’t quite get to impress in his second stint, although in the four games he did play, he was outstanding. I think him and O’Connor in the midfield would have real industry.

8. Brennan Johnson (Michael Appleton)

It wasn’t really much of a choice, was it? Who else would I have picked? Given what he did for us and what he has gone on to do, it’s fair to say Brennan Johnson is one of our most successful loan players ever.

9. Ashley Grimes (Steve Tilson)

Ashley Grimes threatened to do much with his career, but he flattered to deceive apart from his spell with us. I surprised myself by picking a Steve Tilson loan in this squad, but there you go. Alongside big Delroy, Grimes looked like a goal machine and had we stayed up, we might have signed him. Sadly, after us, his career fizzled out a bit, but 17 goals in 30 games was impressive. Tailed off towards the end of the season, but he wasn’t the only one.

10. Davide Somma (Chris Sutton)

One thing you can say for Sutton – he brought good loan players to the club. Eric Lichaj and Chris Herd stood out, whilst Matty Saunders is often forgotten despite being a real talent. Still, like Grimes, it was hard not to pick Somma. He kept us up for one season, and Grimes almost repeated the feat a year later. Two great loans.

11. Terry Hawkridge (Chris Moyses)

Picking players from the National LEague seasons is tough, but Terry is duly included. We didn’t do exceptionally well with loans during the six years we spent out of the Football League, but signing this young man from Scunthorpe, initially on loan, was a great move. He made the deal permanent and wrote his name in the Imps’ history books against Macclesfield.

SUB: Guy Branston (Phil Stant)

Picking subs is tough; picking a decent loan player from Phil Stant’s reign is even harder. I’ve gone for Guy Branston, purely because he had a solid career and was a decent defender.

SUB: Robert Betts (Alan Buckley)

If you think picking loan players from Stant’s season is tough, try getting one from Buckley’s time at the club. You won’t remember Robert Betts, but I dare say he was the best loan player Buckley brought in.

SUB: Delano Sam-Yorke (Gary Simpson)

Finally, a striker. When you think of the quality strikers not on this list (Joe Taylor, Marcus Richardson, Luke Plange) it’s probably a surprise to get Delano on. However, he was a big loan signing at the time, did well during his temporary stay, and was perhaps the best brought in during Simpson’s reign as boss.