Birmingham City: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

With Birmingham City on the horizon, it is time for another Good, Bad and Ugly, looking at three players who represented both clubs. As ever, we are judging them through red and white eyes, with their time at Sincil Bank deciding where they land.

There is room for interpretation, particularly in the final category, where a complicated or frustrating story can earn a place. These are three very different Lincoln careers, taking us from the mid-eighties through to one of the most successful periods in our history.

The Good: Neal Eardley

There are few easier choices for the good section than Neal Eardley, a player whose quality was apparent almost as soon as he arrived. His three years at Birmingham had been badly disrupted by injury, restricting him to 21 appearances, and spells at Hibernian and Northampton followed. By the summer of 2017, a former Premier League right-back and Wales international was looking for the opportunity to get his career moving again.

We initially offered a short-term deal, but it quickly became clear we had secured somebody capable of making a significant difference. Eardley brought composure, intelligent distribution and excellent delivery from the right, giving our newly promoted side a level of polish that helped us compete immediately. He defended properly as well, which can get overlooked when remembering just how good his crossing was.

Across three seasons, he made 140 appearances and scored three times, helping us win the EFL Trophy in 2018 and the League Two title a year later. His place in the 2018/19 PFA Team of the Year reflected the standards he maintained as we climbed towards League One. We gave him the chance to rebuild his career, and he repaid us with three excellent seasons.