With Watford away on the horizon, our latest Good, Bad and Ugly looks at three players who have represented both clubs, with rather different outcomes for the Imps.
There is a local lad who gave us memorable moments and a transfer profit, a promising signing who never established himself, and a goalscorer whose departure represented another painful loss from a wonderful Lincoln side.
The Good: Paul Mayo
Paul Mayo was not universally appreciated during his time at Sincil Bank. Some supporters will remember the old internet joke, “I blame Paul Mayo”, which seemed to surface whenever anything went wrong, but his contribution deserves rather more credit than that.
A local lad with a dangerous left foot and a willingness to get forward, Mayo became an important part of Keith Alexander’s side after administration. Those players helped change the mood around a club that had been fighting for its existence, taking us to the play-offs when simply having a team to support had recently felt like an achievement. Mayo played his part in that transformation.
His goal against Scunthorpe United in the 2003 play-off semi-final is the obvious moment to revisit. He put us two up after 18 minutes, then celebrated with a leap and a fist pump that captured exactly what the occasion meant. He went on to play in the final against Bournemouth, having helped take us to an occasion few would have predicted a year earlier.
The following season brought interest from higher up the leagues, and in March 2004 Watford paid £65,000 to take him up two divisions. That was useful money for Lincoln at that stage of our recovery, while Mayo had earned the opportunity to test himself at a higher level. Whatever reservations some supporters had about him, a second-tier club had seen enough to pay for his services.
The really pleasing part, from our perspective, was getting him back on a free transfer in 2005. We had received a fee and then brought back a player who knew the club, knew the manager and could contribute immediately. His goal in the five-nil demolition of Grimsby Town was another enjoyable moment, even if the subsequent play-off meetings with them were rather less pleasant.
Mayo gave us important performances, helped create lasting memories and generated a transfer profit before returning for another two seasons. That is a pretty convincing case for inclusion in the good, whatever the old message boards might have said.
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