Nicky Hayen’s dismissal after Burnley’s 4-1 defeat at Sincil Bank has brought back a familiar question: are Lincoln City manager killers?

Like me, many immediately think of us as the manager killers, but are we? Does Lincoln City have a track record of losing managers their jobs? Or is it a fallacy? Statistically speaking, are we likely to tip a manager over the edge, and if so, what is it about Sincil Bank that acts as such a curse?

The answer is no, we’re not special. It’s widely believed we cost managers their job, and this season we have 100% of sacked managers in the Championship have gone after losing to us. As well as Hayen, Paul Heckingbottom had already lost his job after facing us at Preston six weeks earlier.

No manager likes to see another sacked, and Chris and Tom will take no pleasure at all in Hayen’s dismissal. They are proving to be quite fatal: they’ve now cost two managers their jobs. Danny Cowley was at the helm for three sackings, Michael Appleton for four, Kennedy for two and Skubala for one.

Statistically, we’re no more dangerous than anyone else, but since 2016/17 there have been a number of managers who have been sacked after playing us. Let’s look at the managers who have left their jobs either with Lincoln as their final opponents or within a week of playing the Imps, with one Covid-related exception.

2018

Shaun Derry, Cambridge United – 9 February 2018

Many of you cited Kevin Nolan as the first example, but in actual fact, Shaun Derry lost his job during our first season back in the Football League. It came after a miserable 0-0 draw with Cambridge, one in which James Wilson broke his ankle, if I recall.

Coming into the Imps game, Derry had won two, drawn three and lost five of his ten previous matches, and his side were 15th on 38 points, 11 behind the Imps in ninth. Within hours of the game finishing, he’d been relieved of his duties.

Kevin Nolan, Notts County – 26 August 2018

Next up is Kevin Nolan, a man who went from hero to zero in rapid quick time. He took County to the play-offs the season before, and had overseen them taking four points from us. When we saw them early on our fixture list, it felt like it would be a pivotal game.

Nolan did have a decent result in the cup against Middlesbrough, a draw followed by elimination on penalties, but in the league, it was three defeats and a draw, leaving them bottom. We had three wins and a draw, leaving us top. Lee Frecklington, Bruno Andrade and Harry Anderson all scored to give us the win, and Nolan was sacked the following day.