Welcome to our world

Cold uninspiring and dark. Another week in Impdom. The weather hasn’t been too good either. Two truly awful football matches, a mini demonstration and dumped out of a tin pot cup competition by a team most of us had hardly heard of. There must be other interests we could follow surely?


In between the games we had a rare bit of good news but was it a case of too little too late? Various large shareholders including beleaguered chairman Bob Dorrian have stumped up an additional £500,000 investment to keep the Imps afloat. One can only wonder whether that sort of cash injection when the team was riding high in league two might have propelled Lincoln City to promotion and in doing so steered the Imps away from danger. We have been told that relegation cost the club £1 million. Half a million to save a million sounds a good deal but we shouldn’t be too churlish about the investment that has been made. After all the powers that be at Lincoln City are hardly in the Abramovitch mould and this sort of commitment takes some finding even for the relatively well off.

A final point before we actually discuss some football, the new investment comes hand in hand with a restructuring but, this being Lincoln City, past masters at putting the cart before the horse, we have not had that explained except to say the club will now be governed via a holding company. All of this sounds a bit scary particularly in the week Darlington almost went out of business but it’s no secret that the Imps have struggled to attract investment, Dorrian explaining on BBC Lincolnshire that an investor coming in and paying over the not inconsequential sum of £75000 under the present regime will “not get much bang for his buck”. The inference being and it’s a fair point, a community club is all very well but people cannot be expected to commit large sums to come on the board only to have a very diluted say on the direction the club takes.

Now where were we? Football, that’s right. In a week when City gave new meaning to the expression underperforming, who better to play than fourth in the table Gateshead? Leaving aside the thought that a year ago who amongst us would be quaking at the prospect of playing Newcastle’s near neighbours? Francis Laurent is doubtful as is Jamie Taylor and Tony Sinclair who awaits an operation on an injured ankle. A rare chance to achieve a home and away double, the Imps having defeated Gateshead 1.0 at Sincil Bank back in September.

Goalkeeper Adam Smith has been recalled by Leicester City after sitting on the bench as an unused substitute three times, Joe Anyon having finally forced his way into David Holdsworth’s good books although whether he will continue to be so regarded after Wednesdays howler is something we shall find out in due course.