Barnsely 0, Lincoln City 2
Lincoln City reached the knockout stages of the Vertu Trophy as strikes from Frankie Okoronkwo and James Collins sealed victory at Barnsley to top Group D with a 100% record without conceding a single goal.
The victory, following wins over Notts County and Manchester United U21, meant the Imps claimed all nine possible points from the group and secures a home tie in the second round. City will find out who will visit the LNER Stadium in the round of 32 in Thursday afternoon's draw.
It was an eye-catching team selection from head coach Michael Skubala, with Oisin Gallagher and Dom Jefferies named in the starting XI for the first time after lengthy injuries and Jack Moylan returning to the bench for the first time after he was forced out of the Carabao Cup win at Harrogate Town back in August.
Gallagher and Jefferies' return to action was among nine changes made by the Imps, with Adam Jackson and Erik Ring the only two keeping their places from the previous fixture at Rotherham United.
The Imps went ahead as the game reached the half-hour mark with a well-worked move which started with Darikwa down the right - his ball through sent Ring toward goal. The Swede showed real composure as he faced up to Flavell and bypassed the Tykes goalkeeper completely - squaring the ball for Okoronkwo who turned it home.
There was one half-time change for the Imps, with Jefferies' return successfully completed and Justin Obikwu coming on in his place.
Collins (pictured above) found the back of the net in the second half as Jackson's head down found him and City’s No. 9 controlled the ball with his right foot before volleying home with a powerful left-footed effort which found the bottom right corner
There was a significant moment after 64 minutes when Moylan came off the bench - replacing the goalscorer Collins - for his first action since suffering his injury in August.
The experience on City's bench showed as the likes of Tom Bayliss, Sonny Bradley and Rob Street were sent on for short runouts in the closing stages.
Head coach Michael Skubala was pleased with his team’s response to its defeat at Rotherham United on Saturday.
“It was a credit to every man who featured the game - it was a really good performance and I really loved the energy shown by the team, we connected and looked a lot more like ourselves.
“We wanted to come here and make sure we topped the group to help with a home tie in the next round."
Attendance: 1,202 (161 away)
Pictures: Vaughan Photography
