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Can Imps repeat last year's success at Underhill
By Nathan Jackson March 20 2008
Lincoln City will be hoping for a repeat performance of last year's trip to Barnet as the Imps head to Underhill this Saturday. City won 5-0 at Barnet last season, the second biggest win last year. With Rotherham going into administration and automatically dropping 10 points, a Playoff place is now within striking distance again, although we'll have to go on a Bristol Rovers type run.

It's amazing how things change between visits to a certain ground. City last visited Underhill back October 2006 and were aiming for automatic promotion. A 5-0 win later and City cemented their place in second place and two weeks later we went top of the table. It was a great day to be had by all the Imps fans who made the trip as you can see in last season's video, alternatively to realise how good the day was, read the match report.

Skip forward 18 months and the Imps' form since then has been extremely up and down. We've going from going top, to barely making the Playoffs, starting this season by going 4th after 2 games, being bottom just a few games later, looking doomed and now potentially looking at a very late playoff charge. Rotherham's 10 points deduction now means that Chesterfield occupy the final Playoff place, "just" 11 points off of the Playoffs.

City have 8 games to make up those 11 points, but it's unlikely given that Rochdale have 3 games in hand over Chesterfield and are only a single point behind. Although Iffy Onuora has stated that he believes the Imps can by the Playoffs, it seem increasingly unlikely given that our three opponents are Barnet are Hereford, Peterborough and MK.

City welcome back Ryan Amoo and Gary Croft from long term injuries. Croft could potentially play given City's absense of a fit left back. LJL and Lee Frecklington are both still injured and both are guaranteed not to play.

The Imps will more than likely go into the game with Marriott in goal. Then in front of him will be probably be Beevers, Hone and then any two from Green, Croft and Brown. The midfield will more than likely stay the same with personal as the Stockport game, meaning Kerr, Dodds, N'Guessan and Clarke starting.

The attack is a very strange situation at the minute. Jamie Forrester is the only striker seemingly guaranteed to start, however, neither Ben Wright or Mark Stallard are good form and neither makes an impact on many games. If I had to pick then I'd pick Ben Wright simply for the fact he's scored considerably more goals than Stallard this season.

Barnet's form isn't the best with just 3 wins in 13 games, although two of those wins came in recent home game against Shrewsbury and Chester. Those two teams are hardly in the best form themselves and it's hardly a surprise that Barnet beat either of those.

Their home record this season reads at 6 wins, 5 draws and 7 wins and they are surprisingly one of just 9 sides who have won more home games than away games.

Realistically, Barnet are safe from relegation just as I predicted in the pre-season. To read the pre-season prediction, click here.

 

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