Former Lincoln City striker Lee Angol has joined the PFA’s free-agent camp as he looks for his next move, adding another familiar Imps name to a group that already contained several former City players.
The 32-year-old is best remembered at Sincil Bank for the impact he made during the closing weeks of the 2016/17 National League title-winning season. He arrived on loan from Peterborough United in March 2017 and could hardly have made a better start, scoring a hat-trick on his debut in a 4-0 win at Braintree Town.
That treble made him the first Lincoln player to score a debut hat-trick since Billy Cobb against Luton Town in the 1960s, and he went on to finish the campaign with six goals from 13 appearances in all competitions. His movement and finishing gave Danny Cowley another attacking option during the run-in as City finally ended their six-year stay outside the Football League.
There was strong expectation that Angol might return permanently that summer after leaving Peterborough, particularly after he had been part of the celebrations around the city following promotion. Instead, he joined Mansfield Town, where he scored nine league goals during the 2017/18 season before moving on to Shrewsbury Town.
Lincoln supporters did eventually see him back at Sincil Bank, although his second spell was far less significant. Angol returned on loan from Shrewsbury on deadline day in January 2019, making two substitute league appearances as the Imps went on to win the League Two title.
That return has taken on a life of its own among supporters since, with Angol sometimes jokingly referenced whenever a transfer window appears to be heading towards an underwhelming conclusion. His first spell, though, remains the one that matters most, particularly the immediate impact he made during one of the most important periods in the club’s recent history.
Since leaving Lincoln for the second time, Angol has continued to move around the EFL and non-league game, with spells at Leyton Orient, Bradford City, Sutton United, Woking and Morecambe before later joining Cheltenham Town. He has now joined the PFA programme for out-of-contract players, which gives professionals the chance to train together while they search for new clubs.
There are already several other Lincoln connections involved in the camp. Anthony Scully is among them after his productive spell with the Imps between 2020 and 2022, while Vadaine Oliver, who spent the 2012/13 season at Sincil Bank, is also taking part.
Former City defender Jake Caprice is another familiar name on the list, having played for the Imps during the 2014/15 campaign. Marvin Johnson is there too, and his Lincoln link is far more recent after he appeared as a trialist in the pre-season game against Doncaster Rovers earlier this summer.
Angol’s addition therefore takes the number of recognisable Lincoln connections in the camp to five, but his name will probably prompt the strongest memories for supporters because of that extraordinary first afternoon in a City shirt and the part he played in the final weeks of the 2016/17 promotion campaign.
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