There was no surprise when McGrandles didn’t come out for the second half. We did seem to want to bully Blackpool a little bit, and the Scot was walking a fine line, so for the second game running, a player on a yellow card came off at half time, replaced by Tom Bayliss. It did seem to change the balance of the game a little as well, because we began to hold our own a bit more. We weren’t drowning in the first half, but we were visibly the poorer of the two sides. After the break, that wasn’t as evident, and we looked capable, perhaps, of pinching something.
In fact, for the first 25 minutes of the second half, we had the better chances. They had just one as we began to defend resolutely, but we perhaps could have snatched the lead on 64 minutes with a corner which O’Connor didn’t quite connect with. Then, moments later, a Tendayi cross found Jeffries in the area, who had a snapshot over the bar. It felt like we might be edging our way into it. Sadly, that run was halted by an Adam Jackson rush of blood, or rather, two rushes of blood.
I don’t know if someone had got under his skin, but he leapt into Kyle Joseph on 55 minutes and was rightly booked. After that, you just need to stay calm, and on 70 minutes, he didn’t. He just came and smashed Joseph again, from behind, and was rightly given a second yellow. It’s not even a tackle that needs making, Jospeh is back to goal, in his own half. I can only wonder if there’s something there hanging over from a previous season, because it was uncharacteristic for him. I love Jacko, he’s a warrior, a stalwart and a man who was, up until one point last night, my candidate for outfield Man of the Match, but it did feel personal. Look at it this way – he got two yellow cards inside 15 minutes for a foul on the same player last night, but he’s only had two all season before this, three all last season, and two the season before that.
However, every cloud has a silver lining, and Tom Hamer stripped down and came on, eager to take his chance. He’s going to get this weekend’s fixture against Orient as well, and it could be a real blessing in disguise. It certainly was last night, and along with the McGrandles incident, it shows the depth we now have in the squad.
Of course, Blackpool took advantage of their numerical superiority just four minutes later when Ashley Fletcher sent a cross to Joseph, who turned the ball home from close range to give the hosts a 1-0 lead. What is really frustrating is there was what looked to be a clear offside in the build up. I’ve watched it back, paused it and drawn lines on the screen like the proper VAR clowns do, and it’s 100% offside. I don’t mind losing to a better team, but if we do, at least let that goal be fair. That’s how I felt at that moment, anyway.
That prompted Michael Skubala to make further changes, bringing on JJ McKiernan and Erik Ring to add energy and endeavour. With 15 minutes left, it felt futile, but it was the injection of life we needed. Their introduction reminded me of the scene in Pulp Fiction where Uma Thurman’s character is dying, and they smash adrenalin into her chest, and she sits bolt upright, awake and ready for whatever the world throws at her. For 45 minutes we’d been second best, for another half hour we’d matched the home side and now, with just 17% (I’ve done the maths) of the game left, we had a JJ and Ring injection, and sat bolt upright.
Ring made an immediate impact, forcing a save from Harry Tyrer with a low drive across goal. He looked lively, hungry, and the way he chastised himself for missing the chance showed a real desire. That’s what having not just a bigger squad gets you, but having a better squad. The best Lincoln squads of my lifetime used to fade a little late on (Ollie Palmer and Elliot Whitehouse were, sadly, never really the answer), but this one has real depth and the quality that comes on eclipses that go off.
We refused to give up, suddenly spurred into life. I genuinely felt a goal coming, and every corner made me tense with anticipation. Those minutes ebbed away, and I began to wonder if the belief was misplaced. I’ve had misplaced belief in Lincoln before, but as we began to swarm forward, watching the home side retreating and trying to protect their goal, we had real momentum. In the second minute of stoppage time, Ring, again, attempted an acrobatic effort, but it went wide. Then another of the super subs, JJ McKiernan had an effort that was deflected for a corner. We were knocking, and remarkably, Blackpool began to teeter. They’d looked solid all game, and now, with seconds remaining, they began to look vulnerable.
Wickens came up, ensuring the numerical advantage was wiped out, and we hoped for a decent delivery – Bayliss had shanked one near post not long before. The former Coventry City man sent in the corner from the left, and Hamer rose at the back post to power in a header, sending the 300-strong travelling support into raptures. From nowhere, some might say, we’d equalised, but on the balance of the final 15 minutes, it was deserved.
This may surprise you, but on the balance of xG, it was also just about the right result. We had xG of 1.1, them 1.6, so both teams did enough to score once, but not twice. There’s no doubt we’d been outplayed at times, and that in certain moments we lacked quality, but when it mattered, we came up with the goods. That’s six unbeaten in the league, 14 unbeaten away since New Year’s Day, and a retention of our place in the top six.
There’s no doubt it wasn’t easy. Blackpool look a good side under Bruce, and losing Coulson cost them dearly, as they didn’t have the same momentum after. They also failed to press home after their goal, and I think that was an error. After they scored they didn’t have a chance of note until it was 101, and by then it was too late. I understand how teams want to protect a lead, but can you really do that against a side who are strong at set pieces, like we are? How many times have we seen it against us when we try to keep it tight with a 1-0 lead and concede? Hell, I even think we may have done so against a Burton side containing Tom Hamer (Jan 29th, 2022, just checked, Sam Hughes scoring from an 80th-minute corner). Now, we’re not the ones cowering behind the door as the opponents knock and knock.
We’re the ones who knock.
Of course, we wouldn’t be in that position if it wasn’t for Wickens, but also the ten men who were on the field after Jacko’s red card. Last season, I recall Danny Mandroiu’s reds, where we lost games from drawing positions with ten men. There was Bolton and Ipswich in 2023, where we led with ten men and ended up drawing. We’re not usually good at holding out with ten, so yet again, we have added something to our repertoire, something different we usually struggle with. We don’t usually learn a lot in a single week, but over the last two games we’ve put several preconceptions to bed. We are good at set pieces, we can beat the bottom sides and we can grind out a result with ten.
I look forward to seeing what we learn this weekend.
Up the Imps