City set to swoop for Woodyard and Fry

New Lincoln City manager Danny Cowley looks poised to make his first signings for the Imps, with the ex-Braintree boss ready to swoop for Alex Woodyard and Matt Fry from his old club in Essex.

Midfielder Woodyard, the National League’s Young Player of the Year is said to be in advanced talks with Lincoln, while centre-back Fry has parted company with the Iron in readiness for a move north.

Woodyard, who played 49 times for Braintree last season after following Cowley to the club from Concord Rangers last summer, has gone on record with his admiration of Danny Cowley and brother Nicky. his assistant, and is set to follow them to Sincil Bank.

‘If you see the work they do in training and behind the scenes, it’s phenomenal,’ said the 23-year-old after collecting his award last month. ‘Not a lot of people in non-league football are as committed as they are. They have helped me massively along the way.’

Woodyard began his career with Southend, but only played 15 games in three years with the Shrimpers, with loan stints at Farnborough and Braintree thrown in along the way. After being released by Southend, he then joined Dartford for a season, before heading to Concord for the 2014-15 campaign and then back to Braintree. He was also the Iron’s Player of the Season and follows in the footsteps of some illustrious winners of the National League’s Young Player of the Year, with Peterborough’s Lee Angol and Burnley frontman Andre Gray the two previous recipients of the award.

Fry, 25, is a former West Ham trainee who also spent a season with Concord, before heading to Braintree, while he has previously enjoyed spells at Bradford, Dartford, Chelmsford City and Eastleigh. He featured in over 30 games under the Cowleys at Braintree last season and after deciding to leave the Iron for pastures new, is likely to hook up once more with his former colleague and boss at City.

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