4: JJ McKiernan
Lincoln City league record: 12 appearances, 0 goals.
JJ McKiernan’s place on the list is also slightly harsh because injury played a role and the financial outlay was not enormous. However, there was genuine excitement behind the scenes when he arrived from Morecambe after an excellent League Two season. Lincoln City believed they had found a young midfielder with clear attacking talent, having scored seven league goals for a struggling side. A late agreement with Morecambe also allowed City to avoid taking the compensation question to a tribunal, creating the impression that they had secured a potentially valuable player on favourable terms.
The plan was to develop McKiernan into someone capable of moving into the Championship for perhaps half a million pounds. Instead, he managed only 12 league appearances without scoring and never established himself at Sincil Bank. Injury disrupted the first six months of his spell, after which he joined Burton Albion and performed more regularly. The critical moment came during the summer of 2025, when he was offered the opportunity to return and fight for his place but appeared to have little interest in doing so. He returned to Burton, did not produce the dominant season some expected and later joined Bromley. There was clearly ability there, but the attitude and circumstances were completely wrong for the move to succeed.
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