Every club has its cult figures. Some are remembered for last-minute winners, some for their leadership, and others for their flair.
Then there’s Justin Walker – a player whose quality rarely came into question, but whose name is forever entwined with one of the most bizarre footnotes in lower league football: the Justin Walker Relegation Curse.
Walker arrived at Sincil Bank in the summer of 2000 as part of Alan Buckley’s rebuild, and for a time, things looked promising. Fresh from a solid Football League career that included a promotion with Scunthorpe United in 1999, the Nottingham-born midfielder brought class, vision and a bit of bite to City’s midfield.
From day one, he looked the part. Walker had played 90+ games at Glumford Park, featuring in a play-off-winning side, and joined the Imps for free at just the right time. He quickly won over supporters, collecting the 2000/01 Player of the Season award. That year, we flirted with danger but ultimately stayed up – a rare moment of defiance against what would soon be recognised as his uncanny record of relegation battles.
Walker made 53 appearances that year, orchestrating play from midfield with poise and drive. But there was always a sense – perhaps superstition, perhaps foresight – that something was amiss.
The 2001/02 campaign began slowly but steadily under Buckley. A thumping strike from Walker helped down Carlisle for what would become our final league win in months. What followed was grim: no wins in our last 13 games, a slide down the table, and a financial crisis engulfing the club. We clung on in 22nd, the final safe spot.
Despite being one of the standout performers across those difficult months, Walker was released in the summer of 2002 as administration bit hard. From there, his career became less about moments of quality and more about the strange hex that followed.
Walker signed for Exeter City in 2002. They finished bottom of the Football League.
Then came a move to Cambridge United. They’d narrowly missed the play-offs the season before. By the time Walker was done, they were on their way out of the league – another relegation.
Even a loan spell at York couldn’t break the cycle. They were play-off contenders when he arrived. Nine games later, they’d managed one win and went on to be relegated. By the time he returned to Cambridge, the rot had well and truly set in.
When Cambridge visited the Bank in February 2005, they’d won just three games all season. Walker played. Cambridge went down.
Still, the Football League had room for one more chapter. Chester City took a punt on him in 2005. In true Walker style, they found themselves bottom of League Two with six weeks to go. This time, though, the curse was (briefly) broken. A final flourish saw Chester survive. Walker, however, was released anyway.
Stints at Ilkeston and FC Halifax followed, but the golden touch was long gone. At Halifax, he played the first seven games of their inaugural campaign, but by November he was out the door again.
Football’s a funny game. Just when you think you’ve written someone off, they pop up on the touchline.
Walker transitioned into coaching and found a natural home at Derby County, rising through the ranks to become part of Phillip Cocu’s first-team setup in 2020. He even took caretaker charge alongside Wayne Rooney in the aftermath of Cocu’s sacking, before stepping back into a development role.
In 2022, he joined Liam Rosenior as assistant at Hull City, and in 2024 followed him to Strasbourg in France. UEFA Pro Licence in hand, the former Imps midfielder is now rewriting his story – from relegation magnet to rising coach on the continent.
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