Bulls to limp to Imps stalemate
Hereford v Lincoln
Hereford will hope to respond to midweek cup disappointment by beating League Two strugglers Lincoln on Friday night.
The Bulls put in a spirited performance against MK Dons in the area semi-finals of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy on Tuesday evening, but were eventually humbled 4-1 by their higher-division opponents.
With dreams of Wembley vanquished, John Trewick’s men must now refocus their attentions on their league campaign and try to bounce back from two consecutive defeats.
United – nine points above the drop zone and eight away from the play-off places – meekly succumbed 3-1 at Macclesfield last Saturday to follow a 2-0 home loss to Notts County seven days previous.
However, the Whites’ reverse against the headline-making Magpies was only their second league defeat at Edgar Street this term – the other inflicted by Bury back in August – so Chris Sutton’s toiling team will have their work cut out to accrue anything from their trek to West England.
City are hovering perilously close to the third tier’s drop zone and are just three points beyond 23rd-placed county rivals Grimsby.
Saturday’s 3-1 home beating by table toppers Rochdale extended the Imps’ winless streak in League Two to nine and Sutton’s shot-shy side have only netted four goals in that time.
Lincoln’s run to the third round of the FA Cup has boosted the club’s coffers and Sutton is hoping to use a large portion of that money to augment his outfit’s goal-scoring venom in January.
Further funds could be raised by the sale of Everton-linked goalkeeper Rob Burch, as with the ex-Tottenham custodian’s contract running out this summer, the Imps may vend to prevent the 25-year-old walking away for free at the campaign’s culmination.
Right-back Paul Green could strengthen Sutton’s hand this weekend by making his first appearance of the season after overcoming a long-held hip problem, while hosts Hereford may also welcome back a Green of their own, defender Ryan, who has missed the Bulls’ last two matches with a thigh ailment.
The bookies may not fancy Lincoln but with their entertainers having gone off the boil, the Imps can nick a point.
Verdict: Hereford 1-1 Lincoln