City face Northampton Town on Tuesday night under the lights for the final time at the LNER Stadium this season, writes Kyle Fox.
The Cobblers will head up to Lincolnshire in the hope of increasing their gap from the bottom four. The gap is just two points, even though they currently sit in 17th position, along with the fact that Northampton have played more games than their relegation-threatened rivals. They have played one more than Orient, Wigan, Burton and Doncaster; two more than Rotherham; and three more than both Port Vale and Barnsley, who sit above them in 16th with four more points. Kevin Nolan’s side also rank as the second-lowest scorers in the league overall, while currently having the joint second-lowest goal tally away from home.
Lincoln were held to a draw in their last outing against Bolton, which lived up to the pre-match hype. Another superb Jack Moylan goal — a brilliant side-footed half-volley — came in the midst of another fantastic performance by the Imps, who deserved all three points. That almost came to fruition before an 82nd-minute Sam Dalby header brought the game back level. That moment showcased the quality Bolton possess after being limited to very little throughout the rest of the match (just three shots on target, including the goal). They will now be focused on extending their ever-impressive 14-game unbeaten streak.
Northampton have failed to win in their last eight away league matches since beating Plymouth 3–0 at Home Park on 29 November. Meanwhile, the Imps have lost only once at home in the league all season — a 1–0 defeat to Exeter, a match Lincoln dominated before Kevin McDonald rolled in the winner in the 94th minute.
Northampton Town Form
The Cobblers have enjoyed something of a resurgence recently, with two draws and a win in their last three league games. This short but very important run began with a draw away at Oakwell against Barnsley. After that, they beat Stevenage 3–1 at home in a crazy game that was mostly dominated by the visitors and could easily have contained more than four goals. The hosts were clinical, scoring three goals from just six shots on target. Northampton held on to their advantage thanks to heroics from goalkeeper Ross Fitzsimons and some incredible goal-line blocks from their defenders.
That win was followed three days later by another, this time away from home against Wimbledon in the EFL Trophy quarter-final. Goals from Tom Eaves and former Imp Jack Vale sealed the victory and a place in the semi-final. In their latest match, they earned a good point away at Exeter, especially considering they were second best throughout and mustered just three shots — none of which were on target. Prior to this run, Northampton had gone nine league games without a win, including the aforementioned draw against Barnsley. During this spell, they managed to score only five times while conceding seventeen, including a 5–1 defeat on Boxing Day away to fellow relegation candidates Burton Albion.
Northampton rank 20th in the table for away results in the league (3W, 4D, 9L) and are the joint second-lowest scorers away from home, with just 12 goals in 16 games. They have conceded double that amount on their travels.
They place 23rd in the division for goals per match (0.9), xG conceded (48.4 overall), and overall xG difference (-17.0). They also rank 23rd for average possession (42.8%) and shots on target per match (3.0). In addition, they are bottom of the league for accurate passes per match (174.6) and 21st for big chances created (56).
In attacking metrics, they sit 20th for big chances missed (35) but rank 14th for touches in the opposition’s box (635), eighth for accurate crosses per match (4.7), and 11th for possession won in the final third per match (3.5). Interestingly, they are joint second for penalties awarded (6).
Defensively, Northampton are fairly resolute. They sit 11th for goals conceded per match (1.3), sixth for clean sheets (10), and 24th for fouls per match (just 9.8). Tom Eaves is their main attacking threat, with eight goals and two assists in all competitions this campaign.
Lincoln City Form
The Imps backed up their extremely impressive recent form with another fantastic display against Bolton, further justifying their current position as the second-best team in the division. Intriguingly, Lincoln rank bottom of the table — just below Northampton — for average possession, with 42%. They also sit just above Northampton in 22nd for accurate passes per match (214.9) and just below them in 14th for possession won in the final third per match (3.20).
These are only a select few statistics, but they do highlight similarities between the two sides in certain areas.
Team News
Lincoln are likely to remain largely unchanged, with Josh Honohan and Adam Jackson still involved in rehab as they work their way back to full fitness, and a consistent bench having featured over the past few matches. After six consecutive games without a change to the starting XI, Michael Skubala may look to make slight personnel adjustments depending on player fitness and load management.
Northampton, meanwhile, will welcome Tyrese Fornah back into the fold after he missed the Exeter game due to attending the birth of his child. Kyle Edwards and John Guthrie remain sidelined through injury.
Northampton Town Predicted XI
Fitzsimons, Moore, Forbes, Dyche, Campbell, Guinness-Walker, Taylor, Burroughs, McGeehan, Eaves, List.
Previous Meetings
The two sides last met in August 2025 in what turned out to be a very tight affair. Lincoln grabbed the decisive goal through a brilliant first-time volley from the edge of the box, courtesy of Freddie Draper. It was one of only three shots the Imps had in the entire game and their only effort on target — arguably the definition of a smash-and-grab victory.
Prior to that, Lincoln completed the double over the Cobblers last season, with Erik Ring providing the winner in this exact fixture. However, Northampton have won at Sincil Bank as recently as 2023, securing a 2–1 victory.
Prediction
Lincoln 2-0 Northampton.
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