Hull didn’t seem to want it in the second half, and we certainly did. For 20 minutes, we controlled the flow of the game, putting pressure on but getting no luck. It was a bit like the three little pigs and the wolf, we huffed and we puffed but the house wasn’t coming down. Then, on 65 minutes, Lewis Montsma did what he was once known for doing. One corner, finally delivered perfectly after weeks of trying, saw him sneak in with a tremendous volley to level proceedings.
I have heard after the match Michael Appleton revealed there is a lot of interest in Lewis and I’m both surprised and not at the same time. Since being out with Covid I don’t think he’s been as good as he was, and sometimes defensively he is a little naïve, but there’s no doubt he is a talent too. He strolls out of defence with ease and when his sixty-yard balls hit the mark, he’s a joy to watch. I get a sense of him getting back on form after a tough winter, and with both Walsh and Jackson struggling, that’s great news.
I have to take my hat off to him and TJ, forced together in a makeshift defence that few thought would be effective, I felt both were strong yesterday. Yes, I thought Lewis could do better for the goal, but on the whole both kept Magennis quiet, and when you consider the other players around that attack, I felt they did remarkably well. Same goes for Tayo and Regan Poole.
I’ll come on to Regan in a second, but after the goal I felt there was only one winner, the team in red and white (not that you could tell who was who on iFollow, what a woeful kit clash that was). The problem was we didn’t create anything clear cut, but neither did Hull. I watched the whole game, and I never noticed Gavin Whyte and Dan Crowley come on for Hull, which tells you how effective they were. Hull’s squad is laden with good players, a Championship squad in the making, and yet even with the chances, I didn’t feel we looked out of our depth. We took Edun and McGrandles off, both MoM candidates, which should have affected our performance. It didn’t.
Look, I know football is about goals and I know we didn’t threatened as much as we should have done, but Michael used the game to bring some faces back as much as he made tactical changes to win it. Grant starting, Bridcutt and Hopper coming on, these were moments that weren’t intended to change the game, but rather the rest of the season. It was still makeshift to a degree, shuffling Tayo from left back to midfield, then taking him off too, just continually having to remodel to get the injured players a few minutes. This, against a full-strength Hull City, and we still looked more likely to win the game.
A word on Tayo: brilliant. That’s the word. I’m so impressed by him, his flexibility, he versatility and his dogged determination and strength. He’s a proper little terrier and that charge on Honeyman was, in my opinion, fair. It demonstrated Tayo’s strength, his raw aggression, but the boy can play a bit too. I know in the past, fans have asked if one of this squad might be Lincoln’s first £1m player, and I don’t think anyone suggested Tayo might be, but if he keeps developing as he is now, he’s going to be hot property in no time at all.
I suppose we then move on to the penalty. I was disappointed to see Poole labelled things such as ‘brainless’, and called a ‘fucking idiot’ on social media. That pains me because I think he had a decent game, marshalling Wilks well and helping us control much of the play. It was a penalty, 100%, and it wasn’t the best of challenges, but Tom Eaves used his body well to make it look much worse than it was. I find it disappointing that a player can be lambasted so openly on social media without any real reason. Footballers give penalties away, it happens, and to see Poole hammered as he was really did disappoint me. I think he’s getting better and better, he’s been with us for just 85 days, played 18 matches and doesn’t look out of place. Give him a pre-season with Michael where we can work on shape, patterns of play and the like without game after game after game to cloud things, and I think he’ll be huge for us.
I even rated out character after the goal, Johnson hitting the post and City pressing hard for a leveller. I didn’t feel Hull would give up a winning position twice, but at least the heads didn’t drop and we kept on pushing and pressing hard. Sure, we got beat, but there is no shame in losing to the Champions when, on the balance of play, a draw might have been a fair result.
The win meant Hull were promoted and got to celebrate that on the pitch at our place, which makes the pandemic a bit of a saving grace, doesn’t it? Their fans don’t get a moment of glory at our ground, which I would have found tough. I know plenty have congratulated Hull and over our three matches, I think they are the best team we have played, but I won’t be lavishing too much praise on them. I am chuffed for the fans of theirs that I know, but I wouldn’t have stayed to clap if we’d been in the ground. I didn’t when Accrington were crowned champions in 2017/18, it’s just me. I’m not bitter, I can acknowledge a decent team and an achievement, but I support Lincoln City and if we’re not the ones celebrating, I’ll give it a miss!
Who knows, maybe this isn’t the same game you watched. Maybe you think we didn’t create enough, or maybe you think another home defeat is a sign of weakness, but the whole ‘home and away’ dynamic has changed this season. I just look at 42 games, or 46 by the end of the season, and judge us on that. If we’re top six at that stage, then we’ve done well, no matter where we won or lost along the way.
As for the play-offs, we’re still looking good for those and I firmly feel we’ll be a big prospect for anyone at all. If Hopps, Bridcutt and Grant keep their rehabilitation going, and hopefully one of Jackson or Walsh get back too, then we’ll be as strong as anyone else. Imagine, 46 games, City are top six and that would be at half-strength at times. Nobody, not Blackpool, not Sunderland, Portsmouth or Charlton would want to face a Lincoln City side at full strength, not a chance.
The Championship dream is still alive. We might have to do it via the top six and Wembley, but don’t rule out getting a chance to see Hull at Sincil Bank next season, and with 10,000 in the ground to enjoy it, what an occasion it will be. Just as long as I don’t have to have another bloody jab that makes me feel like I’m knocking on heaven’s door.
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