The Ugly: John Beck
John Beck wasn’t ugly, but some thought his football was. Basic, sure, but he was a pioneer, and Lincoln City 2025/26, low possession, set-piece specialists, owe a lot to the likes of Beck, who weathered the snobbery of the 90s. Still, there are some City fans who, even now, would have preferred he never crossed paths with our club.
Before us, he arrived at Preston North End in December 1992, introducing the direct football and unorthodox methods that had brought him success with Cambridge United. Although he could not prevent relegation during his first season, he rebuilt the side and took them to the 1994 play-off final, where they lost 4-2 to Wycombe Wanderers. He left Deepdale later that year, but several of his Preston players would subsequently follow him to Lincoln City, Ainsworth included.
Beck took charge at Sincil Bank in October 1995 with the Imps bottom of the Football League. He kept City up after recruiting trusted figures such as Terry Fleming, Steve Holmes and Barry Richardson, building a powerful and committed side that would eventually win promotion in 1998. There were memorable cup victories over Manchester City and a genuine connection with (most) supporters through his Team Lincoln approach, but the football was relentlessly direct and governed by rigid instructions to hit the channels and play into ‘danger alley’.
His uglier methods extended beyond the pitch. Opposition dressing rooms were allegedly flooded, toilets blocked, sugar replaced with salt and hot water withheld, while his treatment of his own players could be equally abrasive. Beck was dismissed in March 1998 following an unauthorised holiday and an increasingly bitter relationship with chairman John Reames, leaving Shane Westley to complete the promotion push with the team he had built.
His contribution cannot be ignored, but neither can the football, behaviour and controversy that made his reign one of the most divisive in Lincoln City history.
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