Two years later, things were a little different. without wanting to spoil the 2003 story for those who don’t know it (!), we were still in League Two as it was now known, but we were one of the favourites for promotion. It didn’t seem that way with just one league win before October 9th, but we were. Oh, if only we’d started that season better, if only we’d taken wins at home to Boston (2-0 up before Gazza came on), Chester (Ellison scoring), Scunthorpe (lost 3-2 after drawing level in the last minute) and Notts County (Anthony Scully’s Dad hitting a double). Those dropped points would have totalled eight more, enough to give us automatic promotion.
Still, the lads turned it around and after beating Scunthorpe 2-0 on Sky on March 28th, we were three points outside the top three with a decent goal difference. It was there, in our own hands. It wasn’t to be and three winless games at the end of the season saw us finish below Macclesfield Town and, once again, have a home game first in the play-offs.
That was the last time I genuinely felt we could make a play-off final, the last time a Lincoln City side that had been moulded and shaped over time had made the top seven with genuine hope of success. Even in 2018, I felt there were teams better than us, but I expected us to beat Scunthorpe and I didn’t feel Southend or Northampton would be a problem. This was our year.
Like most of our play-off appearances, the first leg took place at Sincil Bank. It was perhaps the last ‘great’ match of the Keith era, a time of Yeo and Taylor-Fletcher, Gain and Butcher, McAuley and Marriott.
There were just over 7,000 fans in the Bank, a huge crowd at the time, and the team had a very exciting feel to it. Alan Marriott was in goal, with McCombe, Morgan, Futcher, McAuley, Butcher, Gain, Sandwith, Asamoah, Taylor-Fletcher and Simon Yeo completing the squad. The subs, none of which were used, were Beevers, Bloomer, Hanlon, Frecklington and young Ollie Ryan. In the Silkmen’s line-up was former Imp Mark Bailey, and popular podcast host Jon Parkin.
In a scrappy and subdued first half, neither side impressed, but we did get the all-important goal. It was Gareth McAuley’s first in six months which gave us the advantage, Kevin Sandwith whipped a free kick in from the right, left-footed swinging in towards the onrushing players. McAuley, unmarked, headed the ball in beyond keeper Alan Fettis.
It wasn’t a classic encounter, Matt Tipton almost equalised but his effort clipped the bar at the South Park End of the ground. At half time City did up the ante though, Derek Asamoah nearly extended City’s lead. His powerful shot just went wide and for a player who had very little end product, it was perhaps the best we saw of him throughout the three games. Simon Yeo, ever-dangerous in a season that brought 21 league goals, also went close with a volley.
In the end, the Imps took a 1-0 lead to Moss Rose, the second leg due to take place one week later. I quite liked the idea of games on successive Saturdays as it gave the players chance to recover and made for a much better day out. I hunted down tickets alongside my mate (and boss at the time) Stimmo and my Dad. After all, this was the year, right?
