There are moments in every fan’s life where you just can’t understand or process the feelings your club, in my case Lincoln City, gives you.
I was lucky (and unlucky) in my early life as a City fan. I saw the tears in 1987 as we dropped out of the league, and the unifying power of success as we returned a year later on the crest of a wave. I lived the Keith years from the inside, helping fight to save the club in my role as Poacher, and then looking on from the side of the pitch at the huge travelling contingent in Cardiff against Bournemouth.
Gateshead. Burnley. Sunderland. Macclesfield. MK Dons. They’re all moments where football reminds you why you love it. It reminds you why you trudge out of your house at 6 pm after a day’s work in November to get wet through and watch a 1-1 draw with Accrington, with both teams in mid-table with nothing to hope for. It’s because one day you know you’re going to get that moment, that high that keeps you hooked until next time.
I’m not alone in saying I got that yesterday. We’re all desperate to liken it to something, MK Dons in 2019 the main pick, but in truth, it stands alone. This time, the huge stadium was packed. This time, the noise was unstoppable. This time, a rather fine capital city felt like it could be Lincoln High Street, packed with familiar faces.
This time, nothing was won.
The last time I cried at football was Sunderland away in the play-offs. Forced to watch at home, going 2-0 down, only to snatch the goal to take us to Wembley consumed me. Yesterday, I didn’t cry, nothing was decided, but watching on as the stadium emptied and 3,000 City fans drank in the moment, I could have cried. Cried because I was the other side of the stadium watching. Cried with pride because I could see it, the whole beautiful scene of 3,000 Imps fans utterly jubilant.
But, I have to write about the game as well, not this incessantly sentimental soliloquy, right? Sure, let’s give it a go.
I could write plenty about the night before, roaming from bar to bar and finding different Imps in each. I won’t, because this isn’t a write-up of a night out, but having so many fans making the journey felt special. It also didn’t feel like a big day out, plenty of people felt confident.
Let’s not forget, we’re toe-to-toe with Cardiff. We’re the top two, out in front, we’re the teams the other 22 look at and have to match. Us, Lincoln City, not promoted from the third tier since 1952, and Cardiff City, who in the same time period have played 52 seasons in the top two divisions, nine in the top flight and two in the Premier League. Equals at this moment in time.
In 2020/21, we were up there, looking for promotion. We’re currently 13 points ahead of where we were back then after 35 games, but we were serious. We lost Liam Bridcutt, an elder statesman with influence in the squad. We lost Jorge Grant, a magician who created from nothing, and we lost Tom Hopper, a robust focal point to hold the ball up. We were like a headless chicken for periods without those three.
This season, we’ve lost James Collins, an elder statesman with influence in the squad, we’ve lost Jack Moylan, a magician who creates from nothing, and we’ve lost Freddie Draper, a robust focal point to hold the ball up. This season, we’re like a Hydra. No headless chickens, because when you chop one head off, another grows. Bradley, Darikwa and Reach bring the experience. Street is channelling his inner Draper. Jefferies has turned magician.
Take them out, someone else will come in. Ring, maybe. Oné? That’s my way of saying we had a major reshuffle, even Dom Jefferies was a doubt for the game, so Ryley Towler comes in at left back, no problem. Adam Reach goes further forward, no issues.
Cardiff City get plaudits. We pay them lip service, call them a good side, but that is standard when we go to a big club. The difference between them and some of the others is that they are good. They play a good brand of football, one that has blown aside teams over the course of the season. Early doors, they got Kpakio and Kellyman on the ball and they looked good. Rubin Colwill was another, confident in possession, and we had to defend. Earlier in the season, we did that well, and it’s never slipped, but in recent weeks, it’s been all about attack. Yesterday, it was a bit different.
We had chances, Ben House firing over early, but the game plan was clearly to soak the pressure, hold tight and wait for our moments. We look for a team’s weakness, and Cardiff’s was twofold, long throws and quick transitions after losing the ball.
It might get overlooked because we didn’t score from one, but our most dangerous moments came from long throws. Nathan Trott is respected as one of the best keepers in the division, but he did not like those long throws. Corners were different, they stuck three up top, which did diminish our threat. We cause confusion, we pack the middle of the box, and they found a way to combat that. It was interesting, without being breathtaking.
Just before half time, the Bluebirds turned the screw. They were always shots from range, a testament to the unreal work we do with the ball in front of us. Still, quality players can hit the target even when a Parma Violet wall stands in their way, and Ollie Tanner did that, drawing the best save of the last month or so from Wickens. Our keeper had a good game, dealing with corners comfortably and stopping shots. Another from Rubin Colwill he appeared to spill, but it’s hit with venom and he ‘spills’ it away from goal. That’s not by accident.
As they got a foothold, we perhaps played the dark arts a little. Ben House got involved a couple of times, once drawing a booking for diving from referee Tom Reeves, and once going face-to-face with Ryan Wintle. Ivan Varfolomeev got a yellow as well, and while it felt like the game got a bit scrappy, it disrupted Cardiff’s forward motion. Was it by design? I don’t know, but with them getting a little aggravated, the force of their momentum died.
I will say, I didn’t like the dive. It looked really blatant from where I was, and having seen another angle today, it’s just poor. I love Ben, he’s a fighter and he was excellent for most of the game, but I do not like to see diving. There are dark arts and outright cheating and the latter is not for me. It’s like that Paudie O’Connor pull back on an Exeter player a couple of seasons ago – it crosses the line for me.
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