The last time Lincoln City met today’s opponents Fleetwood Town was at Highbury Stadium on Friday 13th April 2012 in front of 4,511. This match finished 2-2 and resulted in their promotion party being put on hold. The Imps were 2-0 ahead after 20 minutes, with goals from Jamie Taylor (8′) and Jefferson Louis (20′). Jamie Vardy scored both of the Fleetwood Town goals that night (45′ & 49′).
The last time the two sides met at Sincil Bank was earlier in the 2011/12 season, on Friday 14th October. The Fishermen won 3-1 that night in front of a crowd of 2,332. Josh O’Keefe put The Imps ahead in the 42nd minute, but 3 goals in the second half from Ryan Jackson (53′ & 72′) and Andy Mangan (65′) secured all three points for the visitors.
Time for the Q&As. Thank you to Fleetwood Town supporters Ellie, Rick and Ben for answering our questions. The answers have been published on three pages. To get to the answers provided by Rick and Ben, simply click their names, or press “click here for the next set of answers!” at the bottom of the page!
First up, the answers provided by Ellie:
How long have you supported Fleetwood Town?
I’ve supported Fleetwood for around 12 years now, I have been attending games with my dad ever since I was 6.
Where did you finish last season?
We finished 11th, a good start to Barton’s managerial role.
What do you think of your Manager?
At first, like many other fans, I wasn’t too keen on the appointment, but I trusted the chairman and I like the way it’s panned out. There were certain moves that Joey made that the fans (including I) weren’t a lot sure on but it was for the best in the long run!
In my opinion, he’s a great manager and he knows the club’s ambitions, you’ll see this side to him if you watch our documentary that’s coming out soon.
Who Are The League One Managers? No.10: Joey Barton (Fleetwood Town)
What are your hopes and expectations for the 2019/20 season?
I attended the fans forum and from what I heard; I’m hoping for a top 6 finish. We have a strong squad and have the potential to reach the playoffs, maybe even automatics!
One(s) to watch?
Jordan Rossiter. A fantastic addition to the squad, in my opinion, on loan from Rangers. He’s a young lad who has got a good career ahead of him, he’s quick on the ball and makes great passes. I’ve heard him be called the ‘next Steven Gerrard’, so he’s one to watch!
Keep an eye out for Madden, as well as Hunter too!
Which teams you think will finish in the top six?
Ipswich Town, Blackpool, Lincoln City, Sunderland, Fleetwood Town and Doncaster Rovers.
Which teams do you think will finish in the bottom three?
Oxford United, Accrington Stanley, Southend United/Bolton Wanderers.
What are your thoughts on Lincoln City?
Being promoted from League Two, there doesn’t tend to be any high expectations from recently promoted clubs. In all honesty, I wasn’t expecting a jaw-dropping start from Lincoln, but I’ve happily been proved wrong! Lincoln are ones to watch this season and will be the underdogs.
What do you think the score will be?
I reckon it will be a tight game, so I’ll go with a 2-2 draw.
Random fact about your Club?
We are the only club in the Football League without a train station, but that’s another story to tell!
If you could steal one Lincoln City player for your own team, who would it be and why?
Cian Bolger! He might not have been the favourite of everyone else at Fleetwood, but he certainly was mine! The lad has a bullet header and scored his first goal for Fleetwood against one of our rivals, Southport! He was in our 16/17 playoff squad. That was a very special season pushing towards promotion and I will cherish that season forever!
What are your proudest and most embarrassing moments as a Fleetwood Town Supporter?
My proudest moment would be being promoted to the Football League back in the 2011/12 season. Although it did end up with Vardy going to Leicester, watching my hometown club being promoted to league two was an amazing feeling.
My most embarrassing moment would be the latest game we played against local rivals, Blackpool. Just the thought of that Delfouneso 94-minute goal makes me cringe!
Who would you say is your most underrated player?
I’d like to say the academy players that have recently been playing in the first team, the likes of Barry Baggley, Ryan Rydel and James Hill. It’s nice to watch up and coming players and it’s good to watch them develop. They’re only around 17/18 and they have a long way to go in their footballing careers but these lads do have potential!
Do you have a Supporters Trust and what role do they play at the Club?
We have a supporters club but not an awful lot of us are involved as the club is like a family and community itself.
Which was your favourite match involving Fleetwood Town?
A bit of a weird one but playing Hereford away in the FA Cup! It was a new ground for me and both legs were broadcasted, the winner would play Leicester. The pundits were so set on a ‘cupset’ due to our disappointing prior form, but we managed to pull it out the bag and got through to the next round!
Which was your least favourite match involving Fleetwood Town?
Barnsley away last season. I bet you can’t guess why!
Do you have a Former Players Association at Fleetwood Town?
Yes, we do! They meet every so often at our training ground, Poolfoot Farm.
What’s the best thing about Fleetwood?
Being a Fleetwood girl born and raised at a time where the fishing industry has been and gone, it’s a bit of a difficult question to answer. I’d say the time people have for you to chat about Fleetwood’s heritage. I know for a fact the people of Fleetwood will happily chat about how it was growing up working on trawlers, having that real community feel and watching their loved ones come back home on the trawlers from their period at sea. Don’t forget to try the fish and chips whilst you’re here, although it isn’t ‘Fleetwood fish’ like it should be!
Will this match be all about Joey Barton?
Every game is about him in the eyes of the opposition.
Are the fans, in general, happy that Ched Evans is at the club?
Extremely happy! It’s great to see him back in the number 9 shirt, it was vacant until he signed for a reason. He put the icing on the cake when he made his first appearance this season for the club by scoring!
Are the club overachieving? Is the current level sustainable?
We’ve ‘overachieved’ for the past 14 years. If somebody told my dad 14 years ago that Fleetwood Town would be in the Football League in the future, he would have laughed. We’ve had the great help of our chairman these past years and the people of Fleetwood couldn’t be more grateful for what he’s done for us! This current level is sustainable.
This season’s attendances haven’t got near 3,000 and look down on last year. Any truth that Blackpool fans were showing up at Highbury during Oyston’s reign?
Of course, they were! Some people have even changed to supporting Fleetwood, which is a bit wrong in my opinion but it’s more attendance for us! During Oyston’s reign, Blackpool fans did disperse into the local teams of the Fylde such as; AFC Fylde, AFC Blackpool and other non-league sides.
Are you related to Fleetwood Mac?
Unfortunately, no, but they do have some good songs!
Page Two: The answers provided by Rick!
Page Three: The answers provided by Ben!
"At first, like many other fans, I wasn't too keen on the appointment.":https://t.co/hLbON2dawz#ImpsAsOne #ProudToBeImps #FTFC
— Vital Lincoln City (@VitalLincoln) August 31, 2019
https://www.facebook.com/VitalLincolnCity/posts/2379268215442743
