2004/05 – Third Division Play-Offs
I’ve picked the 2005 team, but this is the Keith era. A team born from nothing, a meal made from scraps. Having survived administration, all we wanted was to finish outside the relegation spots and avoid the dreaded drop. Our players came from non-league, and being honest, it felt like the City disliked the team. We marched through the streets with buckets, people wondering what was going on. 2002, Lincoln City were rock bottom.
By 2005, we were at the Millennium Stadium for our second play-off final. Names such as Gary Taylor-Fletcher, Simon Yeo, Jamie McCombe, Peter Gain and Richard Butcher were classed as heroes across Lincoln. The football wasn’t always pretty, but we were rarely let down. If we were thrashed, Keith would give them an earful, and they’d be out the next week, sticking the ball on a big man’s head and skilfully picking up the pieces.
This an era of defying the odds, a time where we always had the lowest budget, where we never spent on players. When we did, it was massive (Franny Green), and yet Keith kept making magic. He’d go to Ireland and come back with a Jeff Huges or a Garth McAuley.
Keith Lincoln City made us proud again; they made us believe. Sadly, they were never promoted, which is probably why we couldn’t say this was the best team ever, but still.
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