Ah, December. What a horrible month it seems to be for Lincoln City these days.
We struggled under Michael Appleton in 2021/22, under Mark Kennedy in 2022/23 and now have the same issues for two years in a row under Michael Skubala. I pray for another winter like 2010 when we don’t have to play at all over the festive period!
We did score six times in December, but goals seem a long while ago. We even won two games against Reading and Morecambe, and I remember real optimism as we entered the festive period. How that seems to have dissipated…
Tu 03Dec 2024 Rotherham 2 – 1 Lincoln
Sa 07Dec 2024 Lincoln 0 – 0 Charlton
Tu 10Dec 2024 Morecambe 0 – 1 Lincoln
Sa 14Dec 2024 Huddersfield 2 – 2 Lincoln
Sa 21Dec 2024 Lincoln 2 – 0 Reading
Th 26Dec 2024 Shrewsbury 1 – 0 Lincoln
Su 29Dec 2024 Bolton 3 – 0 Lincoln
As you know by now, The Stacey West allows the reader to rate each player after a game, coming up with a definite Player of the Month. To qualify, a player must have played in 50% of the games that month, and to get a rating a player must have been on the field of play for 15 minutes or more as a sub.
With that in mind, here is your Player of the Month and the best and worst of the team’s performances.
You can now check out all the winners of our monthly awards by going to our Roll of Honour page
Player of the Month
Sean Roughan (6.96)
I find it unbelievable that this is the first time our young defender has become Player of the Month. He’s been consistent throughout his time with the Imps, and in a month of chaos, he has been relatively steady. He was Man of the Match twice, against Bolton and Shrewsbury, which suggests a maturity to be able to perform even when those around him have not done so.
Individual Performance of the Month
Jovon Makama (Reading H) 8.5
Jovon gets a lot of unjustified stick, as if he is to blame for our current form, but the irony of that is he was voted the best player on the park for our one league win in December. Against Reading he was unplayable, bullying his opposite number and going on plenty of powerful, skilful runs. More of this from the 20-year-old would soon have a few of those doubters changing their mind, I feel.
Best Team Performance of the Month
v Reading (H) 7.53
Okay, so the only league win in a month is sure to win the award, but this was a big win for the Imps. It lifted us to sixth at the Royals expense, and since they’ve been on a fine run, suggesting we actually did much better than we’ve been given credit for. The early goal and Reading red card helped, as did us getting away with a stonewall penalty, but we made hay while the sun shone and picked up a decent three points.
Worst Team Performance of the Month
Bolton Wanderers (A) – 4.89
The average for this game has definitely been dragged down by Ethan Erhahon getting a two, but overall, this was a horror show. I actually thought we were alright until their goal, but after that it was damage management, and the travelling fans certainly weren’t given a late Christmas present. One to forget.
You must be logged in to post a comment.