Jack Payne
This remains a personal choice, because I was convinced Jack Payne could be the final piece of our League One promotion jigsaw when he arrived in July 2019. His debut in the 2-0 win against Accrington Stanley did nothing to lower those expectations. We looked excellent, Payne was at the heart of it, and I came away thinking he could be our Player of the Year.
Instead, his influence faded as that unsettled season progressed. We can debate how the change of manager affected him, but the goals and assists needed to get him going never arrived consistently enough. He left for Swindon Town in August 2020 having scored twice in 23 league appearances, with the player I had expected to see only appearing in flashes.
His subsequent career has underlined that there was a good footballer there. Spells at Swindon, Charlton Athletic and MK Dons were followed by a move to Colchester United, where he won the club’s Player of the Year award in 2024/25. That later success makes his Lincoln spell more frustrating: I felt we had signed someone who could make a real difference, but it never happened for him here.
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