Northampton Town 0, Lincoln City 1
Freddie Draper’s decisive goal as City made it back-to-back league wins with a 1-0 success at Northampton Town.
He struck in the 20th minute after excellent link-up play between Tendayi Darikwa and Rob Street - the former put in a superb cross towards Draper, who applied a finish on the half-volley, which kissed a post before nestling into the net.
After a dominant first half showing, City’s players had to show a different side to their game in the second period as Northampton looked to equalise, but the Imps showed resolve to withstand their attacks and limit their opportunities.
Head coach Michael Skubala (below) praised his side’s defensive resilience, highlighting the way his players managed the closing stages.
He said: "In the end we had to dig deep. I don't think the game was pretty at all from any side. but they're a great group and saw it out.
"For the first 20 minutes we looked good, worked the ball well, had a couple of opportunities and the goal we scored was a brilliant one.
"It was a great finish and Freddie has got that quality. We see it every day in training. I thought the move and everything about the goal was good.
"Then we just stopped playing a little bit and probably played into their hands, and it became a bit of a war of attrition."
Substitutes played their part in that war with a double Imps’ change on 63 minutes as Ben House and Ethan Hamilton came on for Draper and Tom Bayliss.
The Imps make a further alteration in the 83rd minute as Frankie Okoronkwo replaced James Collins to make his Imps debut a day after signing on loan for the season from Everton.
Skubala added: "There were some magnificent performances defensively and I thought Sonny Bradley was a monster. There's nothing better than a clean sheet when you're a defender. George Wickens made some magnificent saves.
"In the end, it's a brilliant three points away from home. A good job well done. There are still things we could have done better, but more than anything the defensive display was solid."
The result at Sixfields Stadium marked a third consecutive win in all competitions for the Imps and an early seventh place in the League One table as they hit the road again this Saturday, heading north to Bolton Wanderers (KO 3pm).
Pictures: Vaughan Photography
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