Archived News from March 2004
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STAGSNET`S STATISTICAL PREVIEW
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Lincoln and Mansfield are not geographically far apart, yet the Stags have faced the Imps in only 23 league seasons up to the current campaign. This was due to Lincoln playing most part of the fifties in the old 2nd division and their slide coincided then with the Stags first-ever promotion in 1962-63. Therefore, between 1952-53 and 1971-72 they only played once in the league! And when the Stags were promoted again in 1985-86, Lincoln were relegated to the old fourth, then became the first side to be relegated from the league and to bounce straight back!
Yet a number of Stags v Imps derbies in the past league history have been crowd-pullers, the stats dating back to 1934-35 when the Imps won both derbies early on. And in three of the Imps' promotion seasons, 1951-52 with their club record scoring haul of 121 goals, 1980-81 with only 25 goals conceded and the latest in 1997-98, they failed to beat the Stags at home as well as away. The most recent games for both sides (Stags in play-off position, Imps just outside) have two things in common. * Both losing away at Cheltenham, the Stags 4-2 on February 28, and the Imps last Saturday 3-2 in the 90th minute despite leading 2-1 with three minutes to go – but Lincoln played the whole second half with ten men after Liburd's two bookable offences (had this happened in Sweden, Liburd had been ineligible for the Stags game). * Both taming the tigers from Hull at home without conceding a goal. Lincoln did a clear-cut 2-0 on the same day as the Stags lost at Cheltenham while the Stags' new signing Laurent D'Jaffo crowned his home debut by heading home the only goal of the game a few days ago. Earlier this season, Lincoln won 2-1 at Field Mill thanks to two screamers of goals (Butcher and Gain early on in both halves) while Liam Lawrence equalized through a penalty just after the half-hour mark. Here are my picks of the cream concerning Stags v Imps fixtures: * In 1951-52 the Stags did the double over Lincoln by winning 2-1 away on October 27, 1951 thanks to goals from Coole and Steele in front of 16364 fans, an attendance figure that was to be bettered in the return fixture at Field Mill on March 15, 1952, when 19043 witnesses saw Reeve secure the Stags winner. * In March 1963, Tommy Cummings had just been appointed Stags player-manager. On March 27, 1963, the Stags won the first of three consecutive away victories by mauling the Imps 6-2 thanks to an own-goal and one goal apiece from Morris, Hollett, Roy Chapman, Wagstaff and Coates. And one of the Lincoln scorers, Albert Scanlon (Linnecor was the other Imp to score without stopping the rout), was later to play for the Stags. Two Stags players, ever-present goalie Colin Treharne as well as Roy Chapman, goal-poacher along with Ken Wagstaff, were later to represent Lincoln, Treharne ending his league career for the Imps in 1966-67. Even the one Imp with most league appearances, Tony Emery with 402 league appearances – finished his league career in Stagsland, his last league game being a 0-1 reverse at Stockport on December 31, 1960. * On Easter Saturday, April 18, 1981, the Stags had faded out of the promotion picture while Lincoln was already promoted. But that didn't stop the Stags from winning 2-0 due to goals from Caldwell and Thomson. * A 6-2 has also been secured at home. This happened on March 11, 1995, when Iffy Onoura scored a hat-trick within only a few minutes * The teams also met in the Stags last promotion season with the double achieved. At home, Corden scored a late winner to seal the 2-1 victory, and at Sincil Bank, the Stags stuffed the Imps 4-1 in a game that might be billed as the Lee Williamson show as he netted twice, Corden and Pemberton once in a derby that was like a home game with 1729 Stags fans out of 4072. On three occasions, all in the 2nd round at Field Mill, the clubs have faced each other in the FA Cup with the Stags going through on two occasions and Lincoln on one. As one might expect, loads of players have appeared in Stags amber as well as for the Red Imps. The writer of these lines has found over 30 who have appeared for both sides. And some of them have also figured in the Lincoln hot-seat as well – with the current Lincoln one, Keith Alexander, as assistant manager/coach for the Stags in 1995-96. Played for both sides: Keith Alexander, Nicholas Andersen, Geoffrey Anderson, Ian Baraclough, William Bell (for Stags pre-league), John Bryan (for Stags pre-league), Roy Chapman, Sam Ellis, Tony Emery (the one with Lincoln's most league appearances), Scott Eustace, Arthur Fitzsimons, Bernard Foster (for Stags pre-league), Alfred Freeman (for Stags pre-league), Martin Garratt, Arthur Green (for Stags pre-league), John Gregson, Ray Harford, James Heathcote (for Stags pre-league), Amos Hill (one Stags league game, 0-0 at Halifax on February 13, 1937), Maxwell Holmes, Alfred Horne, John Hunt (for Stags pre-league), Walter Hunt, Robert Littledyke, William Paterson, Chris Perkins, John Riley (one pre-league FA-Cup game preliminary round, one goal against Mapperley on September 13, 1913!), Albert Scanlon, Jon Schofield, Ben Sedgemore, Phil Stant, Colin Treharne. Played for Stags, later managers for Lincoln: Keith Alexander, Roy Chapman, Sam Ellis, Phil Stant. Home stats: P 24, W 12, D 6, L 6, GF 49, GA 35 Away stats: P 23, W 8, D 6, L 9, GF 29, GA 32 Season Home Date Away Date 1934-35 3-4 1934-08-29 0-4 1934-09-03 Div 3 (N) 1935-36 2-2 1936-07-03 2-1 1935-11-02 Div 3 (N) 1936-37 2-2 1936-10-31 0-2 1937-03-06 Div 3 (N) 1947-48 0-2 1948-03-27 0-0 1947-11-08 Div 3 (N) 1949-50 2-1 1949-09-10 0-1 1950-01-14 Div 3 (N) 1950-51 1-1 1950-09-02 0-3 1950-12-30 Div 3 (N) 1951-52 1-0 1952-03-15 2-1 1951-10-27 Div 3 (N) 1962-63 2-0 1962-10-13 6-2 1963-03-27 Div 4 (old) 1972-73 0-2 1973-03-31 1-1 1972-11-25 Div 4 (old) 1973-74 4-3 1973-12-26 1-1 1974-03-03 Div 4 (old) 1974-75 3-1 1975-04-14 0-0 1975-02-25 Div 4 (old) 1976-77 3-1 1976-11-06 2-3 1977-02-15 Div 3 (old) 1978-79 2-0 1979-05-11 1-0 1978-11-04 Div 3 (old) 1980-81 2-0 1981-04-18 1-1 1980-12-27 Div 3 (old) 1991-92 0-0 1992-03-24 0-2 1992-03-07 Div 4 (old) 1993-94 1-0 1993-09-11 2-1 1994-03-05 Div 3 1994-95 6-2 1995-03-11 2-3 1994-09-10 Div 3 1995-96 1-2 1995-11-01 1-2 1996-04-13 Div 3 1996-97 2-2 1997-02-15 0-0 1996-11-23 Div 3 1997-98 2-2 1997-12-28 2-0 1997-09-02 Div 3 1999-2000 5-2 1999-11-06 0-3 2000-03-07 Div 3 2000-01 2-3 2001-03-03 2-0 2000-09-30 Div 3 2001-02 2-1 2001-09-08 4-1 2002-02-12 Div 3 2003-04 1-2 2003-12-13 (at Field Mill) Div 3 FA Cup 1937-38 2-1 1937-12-15 2nd round at Field Mill 1975-76 1-2 1975-12-13 2nd round at Field Mill 1987-88 4-3 1987-12-05 2nd round at Field Mill Details courtesy of the Stags centenary book and various editions of Rothmans Football Yearbook. And some details – concerning some players in the 1962-63 games – are courtesy of Lincoln's – in my opinion – excellent official site when it comes to player stats! Svante Bernhard aka Sweden Stag (pictured, above right) |
Latest | March 2004