The Imps are improving, slowly but surely. Performances aren't great but results are taking a positive turn. 3 wins in the last 6 league games have seen City move clear of the drop zone, but City will need as many points as possible from the next three games (Forest Green and Grimsby twice) as the Imps face York, Gateshead and Southport in January. It's certainly not a trio of League games to be optimistic about, although City do have an FA Trophy game against Carshalton in between to potentially gain a confidence boost.

City won't have an easy time against Forest Green Rovers though. FGR have an average home record that is identical to City's - 4 wins, 4 draws and 4 defeats from their 12 games so far, they did lose to Newport in the FA Trophy in midweek however. 16 points at home is certainly more than the Imps have gained away from Sincil Bank, with just 7 points being picked up on City's travels.....and four of those were in August. Since then City have lost every single away game with the exception of the 3-1 win at Alfreton.

The Imps can only go as high as 17th with a win, but it would give City a brilliant gap over the bottom clubs due to four of the bottom fiv eplaying each other.

RELEVANT FIXTURES

Hayes and Yeading vs Barrow

Kettering vs Bath City

Newport County vs Fleetwood Town

Stockport County vs Alfreton Town

Joe Anyon is out following a hamstring injury sustained in midweek. It is very much up for debate whether he would have played anyway due to Paul Farman's presence in City's slowly improving form in recent weeks.

Elsewhere it is more than likely probably going to be the same starting line up that easily beat Colwyn Bay in the Trophy last week. This would mean a rare League start for Jamie Taylor, who hit his first goals for the Imps last week.

Expected Starting Line Up

Paul Farman

John Nutter

Josh Gowling

Richard Hinds (right)

Tony Sinclair

Tyrone Thompson

Jean Francois Christophe

Conal Platt

Alan Power

Jamie Taylor

Francis Laurent

Forest Green sit three points outside of the Playoffs thanks to a brilliant away record that has seen them lose just one on the road this season. Five wins and six draws on the road equates to 21 of their 37 points so far this season. The home form has been relatively average.

The League goals have been flying in for Forest Green recently with wins of 3-1 (twice), 4-1 and 5-1 (away at Braintree) in their last six league games.

If you ignore cup competitions you would have to go all the way back to October 15th to find their last league defeat, a 1-0 home to Kettering.

Forest Green are the longest serving team in the Blue Square Premier after being promoted to it in 1998. They finished in the relegation zone in 2009/10 but were saved in the AGM Cup as Salisbury were chucked out of the Blue Square Premier. They were also just one place away from finishing in the bottom four again last season, although they would have again won the AGM Cup as Rushden were chucked out, saving Southport.

Only three of their thirteen seasons in the Blue Square Premier have seen them finish in the top half of the table, with eight of the remaining ten seeing them finish 18th or lower.

The clubs have only met once in recent history and that was the 1-1 draw in September. Forest Green took an early lead before City hit back in the second half through Danny Hone.

City and Forest Green haven't shared many players but both do have players on their books at the moment that have played for the other. Lincoln's on-loan midfielder Conal Platt spent time at Forest Green as recently at 2010. That was the same year when Lincoln also loaned in current Forest Green striker Michael Uwezu from Fulham. The youngster was largely forgetable in his brief spell at Sincil Bank.

The only other players who have played for both in recent years are a collection of players who a lot of City fans will struggle to remember playing for City. Dennis Bailey, who once scored a hatrick against Man United at Old Trafford, goalkeeper Matthew Ghent, midfielders Craig Rocastle and Paul Wanless, and striker Guy Ipoua.

Anthony Tonkin was also on trial at Sincil Bank in 2007 but rejected a deal to move to Forest Green.

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