Lincoln City F.C.

Lincoln City

Full name	Lincoln City Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Imps
Founded	1884; 140 years ago (1884)
Ground	Sincil Bank
Capacity	10,669[1]
Chairman	Clive Nates[2]
Head coach	Michael Skubala
League	EFL League One
2023–24	EFL League One, 7th of 24
Website	http://www.weareimps.com
Home colours Away colours Third colours
Current season

Lincoln City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England. The team competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system.

Nicknamed the "Imps" after the legend of the Lincoln Imp, they have played at 10,669-capacity Sincil Bank since their move from John O'Gaunts in 1895. Traditionally they play in red and white striped shirts with black shorts and red and white socks. They hold rivalries with other Lincolnshire clubs, particularly Scunthorpe United and Grimsby Town. Founded in 1884, Lincoln won the Midland League in 1889–90, their first full season playing league football. They moved on from the Football Alliance to become founder members of the Football League Second Division in 1892, remaining there until they failed re-election in 1908. They won immediate re-election after winning the next year's Midland League, and would repeat this feat after failing re-election again in 1911 and 1920. Founder members of the Football League Third Division North in 1921, they won promotion as champions in 1931–32, but were relegated two seasons later. Crowned Third Division North champions again in 1947–48, they were relegated the next year, but would remain in the second tier for nine seasons after again winning the Third Division North title in 1951–52. Two successive relegations left them in the Fourth Division by 1962, where they would remain until Graham Taylor's title winning campaign of 1975–76.

Relegated in 1978–79, they secured promotion again two years later but suffered a double relegation to find themselves in the Conference by 1987. Lincoln made an immediate recovery however, regaining their Football League status with the Conference title in 1987–88. They were promoted again in 1997–98, but were relegated the next season. They reached the play-offs in five consecutive seasons, from 2002 to 2007, losing in the final twice (2002–03 and 2004–05) and the semi-finals three times, which is a competition record. However they exited the division at the other end when they were returned to the Conference after relegation at the end of the 2010–11 campaign. A six-season stay in non-League was ended when Cowley brothers Nicky and Danny led the club to the National League title in 2016–17, as well as a run to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup – this made them the first non-League side to reach that stage in 103 years. They won the EFL Trophy in 2018 and the League Two title in 2018–19.

Football in the city of Lincoln had been prominent since the 1860s although not strictly connected to the modern day club. After the disbanding of Lincoln Rovers (formerly Lincoln Recreation) in 1884, Lincoln City FC was formed as an amateur football association, and the first game Lincoln played was an emphatic 9–1 victory over local rivals Sleaford, on 4 October 1884. Originally they played at the John O'Gaunts ground, provided by wealthy local brewer Robert Dawber.

Lincoln turned professional in the 1891–92 season, and soon helped to form what was then the Second Division in 1892–93 season, as an increasing number of clubs wished to join the Football League. Their first game in the Football League was a 4–2 away defeat to Sheffield United on 3 September 1892.^[3] Their first home game was also against Sheffield United, this time, however, Lincoln won 1–0. Due to Dawber's death in 1895, Lincoln moved from the John O'Gaunts Ground to Sincil Bank. On 2 September 1899, Lincoln became only the third club to be represented by a Black player in an English Football League game when John Walker made his debut for them in a home game against Middlesbrough.^[4]

They failed re-election to the Football League in 1908. They won immediate re-election after winning the next year's Midland League, and would repeat this feat after failing re-election again in 1911 and 1920. Founder members of the Football League Third Division North in 1921, they won promotion as champions in 1931–32, but were relegated two seasons later. Crowned Third Division North champions again in 1947–48, they were relegated the next year, but would remain in the second tier for nine seasons after again winning the Third Division North title in 1951–52. Two successive relegations left them in the Fourth Division by 1962, where they would remain until Graham Taylor's title winning campaign of 1975–76. The next would oscillate between the Third and Fourth division for the next 10 years, missing out on promotion to the Second Division in 1982 and 1983.

Lincoln were relegated to the Fourth Division at the end of the 1985–86 season, and the year after that they became the first team to suffer automatic relegation from the Football League. They regained their Football League place automatically via promotion as champions of the Conference at the first attempt. In the 1997–98 season, Lincoln were promoted from the Third Division (previously the Fourth Division), but were immediately relegated back on the next season. On 3 May 2002 Lincoln entered into administration.^[5] Lincoln City were relegated again from League Two on the last day of the end of the 2010–11 season after a home defeat to Aldershot Town.^[6]

In the 2016–17 season, Lincoln City under Danny Cowley were promoted as champions back to the Football League.^[7] In the 2016–17 FA Cup, Lincoln beat Championship side Ipswich Town, and Championship leaders Brighton and Hove Albion before defeating top flight side Burnley 1–0 to reach the quarter-final, the first time a non-League club had progressed to the last eight since 1913–14.^[8][9] In the quarter-finals, they were defeated 5–0 at eventual Cup champions Arsenal.^[10]

In the 2017–18 season, Lincoln won the EFL Trophy by beating Shrewsbury Town 1–0 in the final in their first visit to Wembley Stadium.^[11][12] After an unsuccessful play-off campaign in their first season back in the EFL,^[13] Lincoln were promoted as champions at the end of the 2018–19 season.^[14]

On 5 April 2019, Lincoln announced that Nettleham Ladies FC would be rebranded as Lincoln City Women from 1 June.^[15]

On 9 September 2019, manager Danny Cowley announced his departure to join Championship side Huddersfield Town, having guided Lincoln to two promotions in his previous three seasons alongside brother and assistant manager Nicky.^[16] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Football League matches were suspended on 13 March 2020 with Lincoln in 15th place. Clubs voted to end the season in June 2020 with final league positions decided on a points per game basis with Lincoln subsequently being placed in 16th.

In the 2020–21 season, Lincoln finished the season in 5th place, qualifying for the play-offs. After defeating Sunderland in the semi-finals, the first match fans could attend since the start of the pandemic, Lincoln lost the play-off final to Blackpool.^[17][18][19]

The club have played at Sincil Bank since 1895. Previously, Lincoln City had played at the nearby John O'Gaunts ground since the club's 1884 inception. Sincil Bank has an overall capacity of 10,669^[20] and is colloquially known to fans as "The Bank". Former Lincoln City chairman John Reames re-purchased the ground from the local council in 2000 at a cost of £175,000; the club had sold it in 1982 for £225,000 to fend off the threat of eviction, arranging a 125-year lease.

Sincil Bank hosted England U16's 2–0 win over the Scotland U16 team in the Victory Shield on 28 November 2008.^[21] Martin Peters paraded the FIFA World Cup Trophy at the ground in March 2010 as part of its global tour.^[22] FA WSL club Lincoln Ladies played home games at Sincil Bank in their 2011 season.^[23] The Ladies' club had previously hosted Arsenal Ladies there in an FA Women's Cup semi-final in March 2008.^[24]

Lincoln City is one of three professional football clubs in Lincolnshire. Lincoln City's main rivals are Grimsby Town and Scunthorpe United, which at various points fans have considered one bigger than the other. Other prominent Lincolnshire rivals of the past include Gainsborough Trinity and Boston United, however, meetings between the clubs are limited nowadays.

Nottinghamshire clubs Mansfield Town and Notts County are also considered rivals, and Peterborough United, Hull City and York City are clubs that have had some sort of rivalry with The Imps in the past. Lincoln United, the other football club based in Lincoln, are further down the footballing pyramid and are not a considered rival.

Lincoln City currently sport a "traditional" Lincoln Imp badge, synonymous with the success of the 1970s and 1980s. The badge was returned in 2014, with general manager John Vickers billing it the start of a "new era".^[25] Between the two spells the club used two badges, the first of which being the city's heraldic shield with the letters "L.C.F.C" inscribed onto it. This badge was used until 2001, when the club used a similar design; however, it featured a yellow imp in the centre, with the nickname of "The Imps" written across.

Traditionally, the colours and design of the Lincoln City strip are a red and white striped shirt along with black shorts and red socks. This varied in the late 1960s and early 70s, the club opted to field a predominantly red strip with white shorts, and also in the 2000–01 season when the shirt was quartered red and white with white shorts. Currently, the home kit is largely red with white pinstriping down the length of the shirt, as well as black and white accents around the collar and cuff of the shirt. The shorts of the kit are also largely black, sporting red accents, and the socks red with black and white accents. Their away kit has never retained any single pattern or design, and areas varied vastly throughout the seasons, but is currently black across the shirt, shorts and socks with red accents on the edges of each piece. In recent years, the club have also released a third kit. Currently, the kit is green in colour, with a chevron pattern across it. This kit features white accents on the shirt, and white shorts with green accents.

The following tables detail the kit suppliers and sponsors of Lincoln City by year:^[26]

As of 18 October 2024 ^[28]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  ENG George Wickens 2 DF  ZIM Tendayi Darikwa 3 DF  ENG Saxon Earley (on loan from Plymouth Argyle) 4 DF  NED Lewis Montsma 5 DF  ENG Adam Jackson 6 MF  SCO Ethan Erhahon 7 FW  LCA Reeco Hackett 8 MF  ENG Tom Bayliss 9 FW  ENG Bailey Cadamarteri (on loan from Sheffield Wednesday) 10 MF  NIR JJ McKiernan 11 MF  SCO Ethan Hamilton 12 FW  SWE Erik Ring 14 MF  SCO Conor McGrandles

No. Pos. Nation Player 15 DF  IRL Paudie O'Connor (captain) 16 MF  WAL Dom Jefferies 17 MF  IRL Dylan Duffy 18 FW  SCO Ben House 19 FW  ENG Tyler Walker 21 GK  ENG Jamie Pardington 22 DF  ENG Tom Hamer 23 DF  IRL Sean Roughan 27 FW  ENG Jovon Makama 28 MF  IRL Jack Moylan 29 FW  ENG Rob Street 34 FW  ENG Freddie Draper

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 20 DF  ENG Jay Benn (on loan to Bradford City) 26 MF  IRL Oisin Gallagher (on loan to Peterborough Sports) 31 GK  ENG Zach Jeacock (on loan to Southend United)

No. Pos. Nation Player 35 DF  ENG MJ Kamson-Kamara (on loan to Peterborough Sports) – DF  ENG Zak Bradshaw (on loan to Tranmere Rovers) – MF  ENG Alistair Smith (on loan to AFC Wimbledon)

As of 4 November 2024^[29]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player – GK  ENG Isaac Allan — GK  ENG Nicolae-Mario Vasiloiu — DF  ENG Orin Aldridge — DF  ENG Charlie Carlisle — DF  ENG Kelly Fombad — DF  ENG Resharne McLean 39 DF  ENG Charlie Parks — DF  ENG Noah Simmons

No. Pos. Nation Player — MF  ENG Josh Blant — MF  ENG Carter Ford – MF  ENG Gbolahan Okewoye 38 MF  ENG Denny Oliver 36 FW  USA Zane Okoro — FW  ENG Dakara Wifa — FW  ENG Daniel Vanderpuye

As of 18 October 2024^[30]

As of 04 November 2024^[31]

Role	Name
Head Coach	Michael Skubala
Assistant Head Coach	Chris Cohen
Assistant Head Coach	Tom Shaw
Goalkeeping Coach	Scott Fry
Head of Medical	Kieran Walker
First Team Physiotherapist	Elliott Howell
First Team Physiotherapist	Harry Rossington
Head of sports science	Josh Snowden
Lead Sports Therapist	Tom Hallas
Kit Manager	Terry Bourne
Chief Scout & Loans Manager	Marc Tracy

As of 22 October 2024

Name	Nat.	From	To	Record
				P	W	D	L	Win %
John Strawson		September 1892	February 1896	97	31	11	55	31.96%
Alf Martin		1896	March 1897	35	9	11	24	25.71%
James West		1897	1900	106	34	22	50	32.08%
David Calderhead		1 August 1900	1 August 1907	256	89	53	114	34.77%
John Henry Strawson		1 August 1907	31 May 1914	195	52	40	103	26.67%
George Fraser		1 August 1919	31 May 1921	46	10	10	26	21.74%
David Calderhead Jr.		1 April 1921	31 May 1924	118	37	28	53	31.36%
Horace Henshall		1 August 1924	1 May 1927	132	51	28	53	38.64%
Harry Parkes		1 May 1927	1 May 1936	395	187	78	130	47.34%
Joe McClelland		1 May 1936	1 January 1946	140	61	27	52	43.57%
Bill Anderson		1 January 1946	1 January 1965	855	307	189	359	35.91%
Con Moulson		1 January 1965	1 March 1965	8	0	0	8	00.00%
Roy Chapman		1 March 1965	31 May 1966	65	15	13	37	23.08%
Ron Gray		1 August 1966	1 July 1970	184	60	55	69	32.61%
Bert Loxley		1 July 1970	1 March 1971	32	12	4	16	37.50%
David Herd		1 March 1971	6 December 1972	82	30	30	22	36.59%
Graham Taylor		6 December 1972	20 June 1977	211	97	61	53	45.97%
George Kerr		20 June 1977	1 December 1977	18	5	4	9	27.78%
Willie Bell		21 December 1977	23 October 1978	40	11	13	16	27.50%
Colin Murphy		6 November 1978	1 May 1985	309	121	88	100	39.16%
John Pickering		1 July 1985	20 December 1985	24	4	6	14	16.67%
George Kerr		20 December 1985	7 March 1987	61	17	17	27	27.87%
Peter Daniel		7 March 1987	1 May 1987	12	2	5	5	16.67%
Colin Murphy		26 May 1987	20 May 1990	103	39	26	38	37.86%
Allan Clarke		3 June 1990	30 November 1990	18	3	6	9	16.67%
Steve Thompson		1 November 1990	31 May 1993	128	48	36	44	37.50%
Keith Alexander		1 August 1993	16 May 1994	48	13	13	22	27.08%
Sam Ellis		1 August 1994	4 September 1995	56	21	12	23	37.50%
Steve Wicks		4 September 1995	16 October 1995	7	0	2	5	00.00%
John Beck		16 October 1995	6 March 1998	130	48	42	40	36.92%
Shane Westley		7 March 1998	11 November 1998	30	9	5	16	30.00%
John Reames		11 November 1998	1 June 2000	87	30	21	36	34.48%
Phil Stant		1 June 2000	27 February 2001	38	12	10	16	31.58%
Alan Buckley		28 February 2001	25 April 2002	69	16	24	29	23.19%
Keith Alexander		5 May 2002	24 May 2006	213	81	69	63	38.03%
John Schofield		15 June 2006	15 October 2007	51	21	12	18	41.18%
Peter Jackson		30 October 2007	2 September 2009	92	32	21	39	34.78%
Chris Sutton		28 September 2009	28 September 2010	51	14	14	23	28.00%
Steve Tilson		15 October 2010	10 October 2011	37	11	7	19	29.73%
David Holdsworth		31 October 2011	17 February 2013	71	21	19	31	29.57%
Gary Simpson		27 February 2013	3 November 2014	58	23	15	20	39.65%
Chris Moyses		3 November 2014	12 May 2016	64	22	15	27	34.38%
Danny Cowley		12 May 2016	9 September 2019	176	95	42	39	53.98%
Michael Appleton		23 September 2019	30 April 2022	143	55	33	55	38.5%
Mark Kennedy		12 May 2022	18 October 2023	73	25	27	21	34.2%
Michael Skubala		13 November 2023	current	45	20	12	13	44.44%

Lincoln City's honours include:^[32]

League

• Third Division North (level 3)
  • Champions: 1931–32, 1947–48, 1951–52
  • Runners up: 1927–28, 1930–31, 1936–37
• Fourth Division / Third Division / League Two (level 4)
  • Champions: 1975–76, 2018–19
  • Runners-up: 1980–81
  • Promoted: 1997–98
• Football Conference / National League (level 5)
  • Champions: 1987–88, 2016–17
• Midland League / Central League
  • Champions: 1889–90, 1908–09, 1911–12⁵, 1920–21
  • Runners-up: 1932–33

Cup

• Football League Trophy / EFL Trophy
  • Winners: 2017–18
  • Runners-up: 1982–83
• Conference Championship Shield
  • Winners: 1988

Minor

• Lincolnshire Senior Cup
  • Winners (38): 1886–87, 1890–91, 1891–92, 1893–94, 1907–08, 1909–10, 1911–12, 1913–14, 1914–15, 1919–20, 1921–22, 1923–24, 1925–26, 1926–27, 1930–31, 1931–32, 1933–34, 1934–35, 1945–46, 1947–48, 1948–49, 1950–51, 1955–56⁶, 1961–62, 1963–64⁶, 1965–66⁶, 1966–67, 1968–69, 1969–70, 1974–75, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1984–85, 1990–91, 1997–98, 2004–05, 2006–07, 2009–10, 2013–14
  • Runners-up (32): 1892–93, 1894–95, 1896–97, 1900–01, 1902–03, 1903–04, 1908–09, 1912–13, 1920–21, 1922–23, 1925–26, 1927–28, 1928–29, 1929–30, 1932–33, 1935–36, 1936–37, 1937–38, 1946–47, 1949–50, 1951–52, 1954–55, 1958–59, 1959–60, 1976–77, 1978–79, 1985–86, 2007–08, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2014–15
• Pontin's Reserve League Cup
  • Winners: 2006–07
• Fred Green Memorial Trophy³
  • Winners: 2006–07
• John Reames Memorial Trophy
  • Winners: 2013–14

• Highest league finish: 5th in Second Division (level 2), 1901–02^[33]
• Best FA Cup performance: Quarter-finals, 2016–17^[33]
• Best League Cup performance: Fourth round, 1967–68, 2022–23^[33]
• Record league attendance: 23,146 vs. Grimsby Town, 5 March 1949
• Record cup attendance: 23,196 vs. Derby County, 15 November 1967
• Record transfer fee paid: Dean Walling – £75,000 to Carlisle United, 1997, Tony Battersby – £75,000 to Bury, 1998. John Akinde is believed to have cost more, but the fee was never disclosed.^[34]
• Record transfer fee received: Jack Hobbs – >£750,000² from Liverpool, 2005
• Record league victory: 11–1 v. Crewe Alexandra (Home), Football League, 29 September 1951
• Record appearances: Grant Brown – 469
• Record goal scorer: Andy Graver – 143 (1950–55, 1958–61)
• Record goals in one season: Allan Hall – 45 (1931–32)
• Youngest player: Shane Nicholson – 16 years and 112 days v. Charlton Athletic, 23 September 1986, League Cup
• Oldest player: Albert Iremonger – 42 years and 312 days v. Doncaster Rovers, 23 April 1927, Football League

Source^[35]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lincoln City F.C..

• Official website
• Lincoln City at the Football Club History Database