Town | Lincoln |
Russell Slade has some tough decisions to make before naming his starting eleven. Firstly, he has to decide on the fitness of Mariners skipper John McDermott who has a knee injury. He didn’t train until Thursday, but will be desperate to face the Imps at BP.
Ronnie Bull is suspended as was Ashley Sestanovich, who has been sent back to Sheffield United after his poor behaviour and attitude in recent weeks. This means that Greg Young could start down the left hand side.
Jason Crowe and Justin Whittle remain sidelined, while Stacy Coldicott will hope to retain his place in the midfield after an impressive display last Saturday at Orient.
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The Imps were dealt a blow last week when it was revealed that towering defender Ben Futcher could be out for the season with a fractured cheekbone. The good news is that Futcher’s injury is not as bad as first thought and could be back in March, but he will miss out of the Imps' line-up.
Peter Gain made a return to the Imps bench last week and after a run out in the reserves, Keith Alexander will have to decide whether to start him. If he does play, Ciaron Toner could be the one to make way.
Francis Green is suspended for picking up 5 yellow cards.
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Down the years, there have been many players (and managers) that have had links with both clubs. In the 1980s, there was a long list of players who played for both sides. George Kerr, like Keith Alexander - had two spells in charge of Lincoln. He was sacked after just a year in 1978 before he joined Town and again from 1985-1987, resulting in Lincoln's relegation from the football league in 1987.
Those to appear for Lincoln were the likes of Kevin Kilmore, Bobby Mitchell, Jimmy Gilligan and Gary Lund. Once Lincoln were relegated and Colin Murphy took over he brought in Nigel Batch and Bobby Cumming with instant results - promotion back into the Fourth Division at the very first attempt. Both of these players were of course Town legends, clocking up 783 appearances between them for the Mariners.
Gordon Hobson was highly regarded by both Town and Imps fans. He scored 73 goals in 272 appearances for Lincoln before moving to the Mariners in 1985. He played just 52 times for Town (scoring 18 goals) before he was snapped up by Chris Nicholl at Southampton. He later rejoined the Imps in the late 1980s, continuing to bang in the goals with 22 in 61 games.
Paul Groves had a brief loan spell at Sincil Bank at the start of the 1989/90 season - the last time Town were in the bottom division before their relegation in May.
Current Mariner Terry Fleming was at Lincoln for five years between 1995 and 2000, when he made 188 starts for the Imps. Lee Thorpe was also at Lincoln for a few seasons - he of course had a short loan spell with Town last season.
When legendary Town manager Alan Buckley (above) took over at Sincil Bank in 2001; many ex-Mariners followed. Kingsley Black, who of course scored for Town at Wembley made 30 starts for the Imps before having the remainder of his contract paid up when Lincoln were in administration a few years back.
Adam Buckley (pictured), Alan's son, made 19 starts for Lincoln but last year was found guilty of stealing from his team-mates. Similarly to Black, Ian Hamilton was another to have the remainder of his contract paid up after joining from Notts County in 2001. Hamilton had a six game loan spell for Town in 1999 when the Mariners were in the First Division.
Luke Cornwall formed a good partnership with Livvo for the Mariners under Lennie Lawrence, but had a disappointing loan spell with the Imps in the 2002/03 season. He played for both Bradford and Woking last season.
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The last time the two sides met was little under a month ago in a 0-0 draw at Sincil Bank. Many Town fans felt that they were robbed, however, when Town scored a last minute “goal†that was disallowed for a mysterious handball.
Grimsby Team: Williams, Whittle (Pinault, 86), Ramsden, Jones, McDermott, Crowe, Fleming, Bull, Gritton, Sestanovich, Parkinson (Reddy, 67)
Subs: (not used) Fraser,Hockless,Downey
Lincoln Team: Marriott, McCombe, Morgan, Futcher, Bloomer, Butcher, Toner (Hanlon, 75), Sandwith, Green, Richardson (Carruthers, 72), Yeo
Subs: (not used) Blackwood,Peat,Ryan,
Attendance: 8,056 Report
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