Wednesday 4th May 2005:
With the pressure off now that we had secured our place in the Football League, I eased down on the training before our final match against local rivals Mansfield. Unfortunately it wasn’t toned down enough to stop a couple of injuries occurring. Right-back Matt Bloomer picked up a grain strain in a game of five-a-side and top scorer Gary Taylor-Fletcher injured his right foot when he twisted it in a pot-hole on the training field. With Ben Futcher not quite fit enough to start in defence Gareth McAuley will play instead whilst the promising young striker Oliver Ryan will get a chance to play up front.
After the players took the afternoon off, I went up to the offices to see Lincoln chairman Ron Bradley as he asked me to do. We’d not really discussed my future since our win at Scunthorpe had clinched our Nationwide Two survival last Saturday, but I was sure that was the subject that he had on his mind. Ron was already waiting for me in the boardroom when I wheeled myself in. After a brief greeting and a shake of my hand, he took a seat and got straight down to business as usual.
“Willie, you know I don’t like to waste my time in idle chit-chat, so let’s cut straight to the point. When we first met here ten weeks ago, I told you that if you could save this club from relegation I’d consider your tenure on a long-term basis”.
I nodded in agreement at his recollection of the events surrounding my hiring.
“Well, you’ve certainly kept your part of the bargain, so now I’ll keep mine. I’d like to offer you a contract for the next two years as Lincoln manager with the option of an additional year to be negotiated dependant on the results that we can achieve next season. Why do you say?”
“Ron, nothing would give me more pleasure than signing on here for the next two years and taking this team on to bigger and better things. I really believe that the bulk of the players that we’ve got here are capable of more than they shown this season. So yes, I’d love to take up that offer”.
“Right then, Willie, I’ll get the paperwork underway and you go out and get us a victory against Mansfield on Saturday. After we get that final game out of the way, we’ll discuss what needs to be done with regard to strengthening the team for next season”.
So that was that – another quick handshake and I left the boardroom with the Lincoln managership for another two years.
Saturday 7th May 2005:
Lincoln v Mansfield – Sincil Bank, Lincoln
It seemed like there was a carnival atmosphere around Sincil Bank as our relieved supporters looked forward to a game where there was nothing riding on the result. Mansfield didn’t appear to have too many attacking aspirations as the first half started and we were given free rein of the midfield. Butcher and Gain made themselves right at home as they had done for the previous eleven matches and set about creating some chances for us. Young Ryan was making the most of his start with some intelligent running and thoughtful lay-offs. He was presented with the first serious chance of the match after 14 minutes when Yeo set him up just inside the penalty area, but from 15 yards out he drove his shot straight into the body of Mansfield keeper Pilkington. The next chance didn’t materialise until the 35th minute when Butcher leapt high to meet Gain’s free-kick, but could only head the ball 12 inches over the cross bar. A Gain corner in the 42nd minute was met by the head of Green, but he was similarly wayward in his attempt as Butcher had been a few minutes earlier. As half-time arrived with the score locked at 0-0 I was pleased with the fact that we’d kept Mansfield from having one shot on our goal. All we needed now was to find the net ourselves.
A series of corners around the hour mark was the first serious attacking pressure that we put on Mansfield’s goal in the second half, but our opposition managed to weather the storm. With Butcher tiring I bought on Toner with 20 minutes to go. He was immediately involved in the play as he won a tackle and fed Gain who sprayed a pass down the left wing for Yeo. The forward took a couple of touches before firing over a firm cross which Toner met with a powerful header, only to see Pilkington dive to his right to tip it away for a corner. With 10 minutes remaining I made my last two changes, bringing on Blackwood for Ryan and giving skipper Futcher a chance to finish the season on the pitch by replacing Weaver. As soon as the substitutions had been made Gain picked up a loose ball in the midfield and dribbled to 25 yards out before unleashing a shot that crashed against the cross bar and rebounded to safety. The ball just didn’t seem to want to go in the net for us, but we’d still kept Mansfield shotless to this stage of the match. As injury-time began I started to prepare myself for the send-off lap that we would perform. Time was up on my watch when Pilkington’s long free-kick found the head of Greenacre just inside our penalty area. He managed to divert it across our goalmouth for
Asamoah to lunge in and prod the ball past Marriott to give Mansfield a last-ditch winner. I still hadn’t taken in the fact that we’d be caught cold on the final attack of the match by our opponent’s first goalscoring chance of the whole afternoon when the referee blew an end to the match just a few seconds later.
Lincoln 0
Mansfield 1 Asamoah 90
Marriott – 7, McAuley – 7, Weaver – 7 (Futcher – 6), Morgan – 7, Sandwith – 7, Butcher – 7 (Toner – 7), Thomson – 7, Gain – 7, Green – 7, Ryan – 7 (Blackwood – 7), Yeo – 7.
As the game ended, I had my helpful steward Terry bring me my crutches. Unlike last weekend at Scunthorpe where I had just stood up from my wheelchair and taken a couple of small steps, I planned to walk an entire circuit of the Sincil Bank pitch today. The players were already congratulating themselves in the middle of the park and then they made their way across towards the dugouts where I was waiting. I pulled myself up onto my feet and Terry held the crutches while I slipped my hands through the forearm supports. The crowd were cheering and loudly applauding us now. I set off at a slow pace, feeling somewhat like a drunken crab, but finding that I was managing it without too much difficult. It was one of the best moments of my footballing career. Unlike my playing days where I worked as one of a team of players, I was now responsible for a whole club and the way that it performed on the football field. To have turned around the fortunes of Lincoln City and thus be able to receive the thanks of the grateful supporters was such a great privilege.
Of course the moment would not have been complete without a dash of humour from our resident funny-man Francis Green. As I made my way around Sincil Bank, stopping every now and then to wave to the fans or shake the hand of a happy supporter, Francis pushed himself up beside me in the wheelchair that I had left back at the dugouts.
“I found this jalopy back there, boss. I hope you don’t mind me using it?”
“Not at all, Franny. In fact, why don’t you’ll keep it – I don’t think I’ll be needing it much anymore”.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |Pos | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |1st P | Swansea | 46 | 29 | 4 | 13 | 91 | 56 | +35 | 91 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |2nd P | Northampton | 46 | 24 | 15 | 7 | 71 | 41 | +30 | 87 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |3rd P | Boston Utd | 46 | 23 | 14 | 9 | 75 | 47 | +28 | 83 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |4th P | Bristol Rovers | 46 | 23 | 10 | 13 | 71 | 58 | +13 | 79 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |5th | Cheltenham | 46 | 19 | 19 | 8 | 84 | 61 | +23 | 76 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |6th | Notts Co | 46 | 22 | 8 | 16 | 70 | 54 | +16 | 74 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |7th | Cambridge | 46 | 21 | 10 | 15 | 68 | 50 | +18 | 73 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |8th | Rochdale | 46 | 21 | 10 | 15 | 67 | 59 | +8 | 73 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |9th | Chester | 46 | 20 | 9 | 17 | 58 | 62 | -4 | 69 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |10th | Wycombe | 46 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 67 | 57 | +10 | 67 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |11th | Oxford | 46 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 56 | 51 | +5 | 67 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |12th | Bury | 46 | 15 | 17 | 14 | 63 | 60 | +3 | 62 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |13th | Rushden | 46 | 16 | 14 | 16 | 56 | 53 | +3 | 62 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |14th | Grimsby | 46 | 16 | 10 | 20 | 65 | 72 | -7 | 58 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |15th | Macclesfield | 46 | 15 | 11 | 20 | 60 | 71 | -11 | 56 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |16th | Mansfield | 46 | 15 | 10 | 21 | 53 | 63 | -10 | 55 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |17th | Darlington | 46 | 13 | 13 | 20 | 58 | 68 | -10 | 52 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |18th | LINCOLN | 46 | 14 | 9 | 23 | 52 | 70 | -18 | 51 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |19th | Leyton Orient | 46 | 11 | 17 | 18 | 64 | 84 | -20 | 50 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |20th | Scunthorpe | 46 | 13 | 10 | 23 | 61 | 77 | -16 | 49 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |21st | Yeovil | 46 | 11 | 15 | 20 | 57 | 81 | -24 | 48 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |22nd | Shrewsbury | 46 | 12 | 9 | 25 | 47 | 68 | -21 | 45 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |23rd R| Kidderminster | 46 | 11 | 11 | 24 | 58 | 84 | -26 | 44 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| |24th R| Southend | 46 | 10 | 11 | 25 | 56 | 81 | -25 | 41 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>
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