Luke Waterfall
We do love our skipper and his fabled magic hat, whether it is rising highest in the Checkatrade Trophy semi-final or nodding a late winner against Colchester, he’s the man you just can’t knock down. It’s hard to believe that he spent part of the season on the bench, kept out of the side by Rob Dickie and then almost lost his place after the water bottle incident at Mansfield.
Whatever comes Luke’s way he deals with, both on and off the field. He’s a straightforward character, friendly and approachable like most of the players but very down to earth. He’s no nonsense, especially when he’s at the heart of the defence.
Luke is also the most decorated Lincoln City captain of all time, no single club captain has lifted a trophy on two occasions, not bad for a player who has spent time in the stands as well as on the bench. In 2015/16 he watched on with the fans towards the end of the season, but a year later he lifted the National League trophy. In 2017/18 he warmed the bench as the bright young things of Dickie and Raggett marshalled the defence, but by April he was back in the royal box at Wembley with another trophy in his hand.
Luke is uncomplicated in the nicest possible way. As a defender he tackles, heads and gets rid of the ball whenever he can. He’s much like Steve Thompson in that respect, an old school centre back without the frills, bells and whistles. There’s certainly nothing wrong with that at all and whether he’s alongside Bozzie, Scott Wharton or James Wilson, he does exactly the same.
The Mansfield water bottle incident was unfortunate and I wouldn’t want to sour his season by highlighting it too much because it was a rare lapse in judgement from a man usually not phased by emotion or pressure. As he rose to nod in against Chelsea U21s in the Checkatrade semi-final, he did so in just the same manner as any league game, yet this was a high pressure header. One thing you can always say about Luke is, bar the odd celebration, he’s never phased. Later today, as he leads the team out against Exeter with us closer to a play off final as at any time since 2005, he’ll be exactly the same as he was at Wembley, or at Ashby Avenue in pre season.
Luke won’t be getting a move to Norwich or the second-tier, he’s not the sort of defender those clubs want, but he is a good, solid League Two captain and one who will inevitably always be a legend at Sincil Bank. He also personifies the Chumbawumba song ‘Tub Thumping’, because whenever he gets knocked down he just gets back up, puts on his magic hat and writes a fresh chapter in his remarkable story.
James Wilson
We’ve not really seen much of the former Sheffield United man and to sum up his season is tough. He did get a goal with his first touch, as pictured above, but then a broken ankle against Cambridge set him back severely. His recent return to the side has been tentative and with just six starts, and a further three outings from the bench, it is hard to judge him objectively.
My firmly held belief is this; he’ll be a top player for us, in League One or League Two and as he grows into our style of play and gets a pre-season under his belt, he’ll be one of the first names on the team sheet. Former Welsh internationals don’t spend all their life in League One or the Championship, then choose to drop down to League Two out of the kindest of their heart. He’s here because he buys into what we are trying to achieve, which is promotion, for those who haven’t got that.
As yet, James Wilson hasn’t won over a sceptical crowd, just as Tom Pett hadn’t / hasn’t. Both joined permanently and as yet, Danny hasn’t signed a player on a permanent deal who turned out to be a turkey dressed as a golden goose. James Wilson won’t turn out to be the first, of that I’m confident and if I was pushed, I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t have a say in tonight’s game, maybe with his forehead.
Next up – where do you put this man, this beast of a player?