Throughout the 2023/24 season, there hasn’t been too much to shout about for Lincoln City fans. The club is safely positioned mid-table in League One. However, they’re a mighty 14 points adrift of the playoff race and eight points clear of the relegation zone. As such, the campaign runs the risk of becoming somewhat of a snoozefest for the last few months of the season.
To make matters worse, the Imps were eliminated from the FA Cup in the very first round. They did have some success in the League Cup, eliminating Premier League Sheffield United in the second round with a penalty shootout victory at Bramall Lane. But apart from that, the current term has been relatively quiet for Lincoln standards.
So with that being said, we decided to rewind the clock back to something that was anything but quiet. The run to the FA Cup quarterfinals. In the annals of sports history, the 2016/17 FA Cup will forever be remembered as the year when Lincoln City, a fifth-tier side, defied the odds to reach the quarterfinals. This feat was the first of its kind in over a century, cementing the Imps’ place in football folklore.
The Early Rounds
When the opening rounds kicked off, Lincoln most certainly wasn’t a contender for glory. Bookmakers these days allow punters to bet on anything from placing a greyhound bet to betting on Esports. However, you’d have been hard-pressed to find a bookie putting a price on the Imps lifting the FA Cup. But once the competition was whittled down to the final eight those same bookies were forced to sit up and take note.
The Imps began their historic journey in November with a home game against Altrincham in the first round at Sincil Bank. Goals from Sean Raggett and Max Power were enough to secure a 2-1 victory, marking the beginning of an extraordinary run.
The second round saw them face Oldham Athletic at home in early December. The Imps’ determination and teamwork paid off with a 3-2 victory, with a Theo Robinson brace and a Terry Hawkrdige strike propelling them into an early three-goal lead. The Latics did pull two goals back, but they were unable to fully overturn the deficit and it was the Imps that made it into the third round.
Third Round Onward
In the third round, Lincoln met Championship side Ipswich Town and earned a spirited draw at Portman Road, meaning that the two sides would have to face off again in a replay. There, the Imps managed to get the victory thanks to a last-gasp winner from Nathan Arnold. But their heroics wouldn’t stop there.
Their victory over the Tractor Boys put City into the fourth round of the FA Cup for the first time in over 40 years and their reward was a meeting with another Championship side in the form of Brighton. But despite the bookies making them huge underdogs, the National League leaders ran out victorious once again, overturning a one-goal half-time deficit to ultimately progress by three goals to one.
One of Lincoln City’s most memorable matches came in the fifth round against Premier League side Burnley. The match took place on February 18, 2017, at Turf Moor. Against all odds, Lincoln City triumphed with a 1-0 win, sending shockwaves through the football world. Towering defender Raggett nodded the only goal of the game, bagging in the 89th minute to spark delirium amongst the travelling supporters.
The climax of Lincoln City’s remarkable run came when they faced Arsenal at the Emirates. Despite their eventual defeat – a resounding 5-0 thumping – the non-league team’s astonishing run in the FA Cup had already made headlines.
Image Source: unsplash.com
