City took the initiative in the weekend’s early game, grabbing a vital 2-1 victory against a stubborn Burton Albion.
It wasn’t always pretty, at times City looked a little at sea with passes going astray, but resilience and application eventually won over, leaving us temporarily six points clear of Bradford City in second in the League One table.
City lined up as expected, 4-2-3-1 with Ivan Varfolomeev shaking off his withdrawal at half time against Luton to keep his place in midfielder. The only City change was new signing Alfie Lloyd, coming into the side for Jamie Pardington.
Our opponents lacked some big names. Charlie Webster missed out with an injury, a class act in their midfield. Tyrese Shade, who looked lively in the fixture at the Pirelli, also missed out, while JJ McKiernan didn’t feature as part of his loan conditions.
City started brightly enough, Burton’s early corner coming from Kwadwo Adom’s pace forcing uncertainty from Tom Hamer before George Wickens punched clear. The Imps responded with a chance of their own when a long throw was not dealt with properly and the ball dropped to Reeco Hackett at the back post, but from a tight angle he could only find the side netting.
The opening exchanges were open, if untidy. Wickens’ clearance on six minutes fell straight to a Burton attacker, allowing a dangerous centre towards Adom that Hamer did superbly well to clear with a last-ditch tackle. Moments later Freddie Draper helped a ball into the path of Conor McGrandles, who carried it forward before firing over from distance.
With rain slicking the surface, both sides struggled for control and passes regularly went astray. Burton appealed for a penalty midway through the half when Adom went down, but referee Matt Corlett waved it away,with it looking like Sonny Bradley had been fouled first. Hackett continued to be a threat from set pieces, his corner on 20 minutes causing panic in the six-yard box before Collins punched into the turf and the whistle went for a foul.
City were guilty of surrendering possession too easily at times, with both Darikwa and Wickens gifting the ball back to the visitors. Hackett tried his luck from range on 25 minutes, the initial effort blocked before Darikwa skewed the rebound wide. Out of possession, Burton often dropped into a compact bank of six in front of Collins, making space hard to find.
Burton threatened again on the half-hour when Julian Larsson’s effort from distance was blocked and looped into Wickens’ hands. However, the Brewers failed to deal with a bouncing ball over Godwin-Malife on long after, allowing Hackett’s delivery to be met by Rob Street, whose header was parried away by Collins. It was the clearest chance of the half to that point.
The breakthrough arrived two minutes later. McGrandles picked out Jack Moylan 25 yards from goal and the midfielder unleashed a superb strike that flew past Collins to put City 1-0 up. It was a moment of real quality in an otherwise fractured contest.
The lead did not last long. Burton levelled a minute later when Jake Beesley poked home from close range inside the six-yard box, a poor goal from a City defensive perspective, with Bradley appearing to hesitate as the ball came in.
Burton finished the half the stronger. Dylan Williams whipped a free kick across the face of goal on 42 minutes that Beesley headed over, and in the closing moments City were forced to block two quickfire efforts before conceding a corner. Having gone in front, the Imps found themselves under sustained pressure as the half drew to a close, heading into the break at 1-1 against a well-organised Burton side.
City made a sluggish start to the second half, loose passing and cheap turnovers inviting early Burton pressure. A couple of free kicks were conceded in quick succession, one level with the edge of the box on 53 minutes that Julian Larsson whipped into a dangerous area, but Ivan Varfolomeev was well placed to clear.
Against the run of play, City struck. On 55 minutes, some clever work down the left flank opened Burton up, Freddie Draper’s low shot was spilled by Bradley Collins, and Jack Moylan reacted quickest to sweep the ball home from close range. It was City’s first meaningful attacking moment of the half and put the Imps 2-1 ahead, Moylan now firmly in the spotlight.
Burton were not done. Wickens was forced into action two minutes later, parrying a deep ball before the resulting corner saw Larsson have a shot blocked inside the area. The visitors continued to probe, while the referee’s whistle became an increasing source of frustration in the stands. A foul given against Adam Reach on 59 minutes drew a strong reaction from the home crowd, particularly when a similar challenge by Burton moments later went unpunished. Corlett was not winning popularity, even if his overall performance was solid enough.
The referee did at least spot Larsson fouling Tom Hamer on 61 minutes, prompting ironic cheers from the Bank. City tried to regain control and nearly fashioned another opening on 67 minutes when Moylan released Reach, whose whipped cross found Rob Street, but the forward could only glance his header straight up into the air for Collins to gather.
Burton began to change things on 70 minutes, Seb Revan replacing Larsson, and City soon had a golden opportunity to extend their lead. Draper was fouled on the edge of the area on 75 minutes, the decision greeted with heavy irony given what had been allowed earlier. Moylan stepped up, chasing a hat trick, but smashed his effort wide of Collins’ right-hand post.
Michael Skubala turned to his bench on 78 minutes, withdrawing Moylan and Hackett for Dom Jefferies and Ryley Towler. Burton responded almost immediately, Fabio Tavares replacing Kain Adom after a Hamer long throw was cleared and Street lifted a cross over the bar. Adom had looked bright early on but had faded as the game wore on.
Rob Street’s evening ended on 83 minutes as Alfie Lloyd came on, the striker having worked tirelessly without much reward. Draper then produced a superb run down the flank on 84 minutes, battling through constant pressure to win a corner. It caused chaos in the box, but as Burton eventually cleared, Hamer conceded an obvious foul on Lofthouse and went into the book.
The closing stages were frantic. Sibbick powered a header wide on 87 minutes before being withdrawn for Tomas Kalinauskas. Lloyd then collected a yellow on 89 minutes for hauling back Godwin-Malife after possession was lost, before going in late on Dylan Williams shortly after and riding his luck. Darikwa was not so fortunate, taking out Armer on 90 minutes and receiving a booking as tensions boiled over, with Burton boss Gary Bowyer also shown a yellow on the touchline.
The four minutes of injury time passed without any serious Burton chances, and City held on for a vital three points. Over to our rivals on Saturday.
The game was watched by 9,514 supporters, with 302 away fans, and the sponsor’s man of the match was Jack Moylan.