There is no doubt about it, when a club takes a step up, not every player is positively affected, and Lincoln City will be no different.
Jay Benn is a classic example. When signed, Jay knew he had to reach a certain level to be in with a chance of a first-team spot. He went away, did really well at Solihull Moors, but when he came back, the level at Lincoln City had risen. He had a loan in a better division, but at that point, the club’s development was outpacing his. Now? Jay is 24 and playing regular football in the National League, with a handful of League Two clubs doubtless eyeing him.
Not a bad player, but one who just got a little left behind when the club kicked on.
There are five players, in particular, who may find that promotion to the Championship changes their career path somewhat, without them doing anything wrong. In today’s piece (who am I kidding, it’s not going to be the only one, is it? Your inboxes won’t fill themselves), I look at the five Lincoln City players who might see their immediate futures changing as a result of our success.
JJ McKiernan
JJ McKiernan isn’t a bad person. While at Morecambe, he was well known for being the opposite, an infectious character happy to get involved with supporters. They loved him there, but his Lincoln time just hasn’t worked out. It’s such a shame, I feel he’s a bit like Theo Archibald, a player I’m sure is mid to top-end League One at worst, but for one reason or another, just hasn’t gelled at Lincoln.
His loan to Burton was meant to get him regular football, and then we’d either give him another chance, or sell him on. Now we’ve gone up, I’m fairly sure the latter is the applicable option. We’ve earned promotion to the Championship, and I cannot see us rewarding a player who openly admitted he didn’t want to stay and fight for his place with football at a higher level. I just can’t.
That means his future has been determined not only by his desire to go to Burton this season, but also by our promotion.