Lincoln City head coach Chris Cohen confirmed there was ‘absolutely nothing’ serious for fans to worry about after some notable absences against Boston United.
The Imps used 22 players in the 1-0 win against the National League outfit, with Tom Bayliss getting the only goal of the game early. However, there were several absences, including Ryley Towler, Ben House, Josh Honohan, Freddie Draper and new signing, Callum Elder.
When asked pre-match if there was anything serious to worry about, Chris was quite clear that there was not.
“Absolutely nothing, no,” he said. “At this moment in time, we hope to have a full bill of health come the first day of the season.
“Obviously, people pick up really small, minor things that we need to make sure are right, and we need them to be able to compete in enough minutes throughout the course of pre-season. But that does not mean they have to play today.
“Apart from James Collins, who is obviously coming back from a long-term injury, we hope to have everyone fit within pre-season.”
The absences did mean some minutes for younger players, with Charlie Parks putting in a solid 45 in the second period, on the back of an impressive first half from Donald Inyama. The one-time Cambridge United trainee looked robust in the middle of the park, with his application being reflected across the whole squad.
“I thought the application was really admirable from the lads throughout, and I saw loads of stuff that we were really pleased with,” said Chris.
“It was nice to be able to supplement the first-team players with a few of the younger players as well. I thought they handled it really, really well.
“I thought Donald in the first half did brilliantly well. He won about 15 balls back for us in the middle of midfield. No matter who played, what shape we played or what the relationship was with the people around them, whether they knew them that well or not, I thought everyone really joined in and had a part to play in a decent performance.”
Pre-season games are notorious for their slow paces, especially the first one of the summer, in heat, with two completely different XIs for both sides. However, this one had a little bit of a zip to it, and a couple of meaty challenges as well. That application is exactly what Chris, and fellow head coach Tom Shaw, expected.
“I did an interview yesterday and said we knew exactly how the lads would apply themselves,” Chris said.
“We have obviously had a long break and we were desperate to get back in. I think the players were desperate to get back in, so it has been a perfect two weeks.
“We completely understand that it is only pre-season. The real stuff starts in a few weeks’ time, but it could not have gone much better.”
Next up for the Imps is Leyton Orient in Spain, with the squad set to fly tomorrow for their training camp.
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