The Imps fixture against Cardiff City has been shifted to a 12:30 kick-off, in perhaps the least surprising news of the day.
The good news is we do still play on the Saturday, meaning those planning a double header down in the South West won’t be too disrupted. However, it is another early kick off, something becoming the norm for City, who haven’t actually had a 3 pm Saturday kick off at home since November 29th.
This game was always going to be picked. At the time of writing, it is first against second, something that could well change, given we have Bolton to play before the big day in Wales. Cardiff have a somewhat easier run with Luton, Rotherham, Wimbledon, Doncaster and Plymouth before the TV cameras roll into town, along with our team bus.
Early kick-offs are a normality now, and we’d have to get used to such inconvenience if we were to be promoted at the end of the season. Even so, it’s still annoying, even if the slightly earlier kick-off time means most people’s hotels will still be valid, should they be staying down in Wales.
It forms part of a critical week for the Imps, and by March 17th, we’ll have a really good idea as to where we’re going to be playing our football next season. By that point, we’ll have faced Stockport, Bolton, Huddersfield and Cardiff. Avoid defeat in three of those games, and maybe pick up a couple of wins, and the Championship might just be beckoning.
Alas, with it comes odd kick-offs, more Thursday matches and more disruption, but it will be a small price to pay for becoming one of the best 44 teams in the country.