[QuikSand]

December 2003

This month is our big chance to make moves for next year – trying to get Bosman transfers which don’t require compensation to the club losing the player. Especially if we are fortunate enough to promote, we’ll need to make improvements in the squad – and we have the resources to do it (other than a transfer budget).

I make an optimistic bid to a veteran Norwegian defender/manager Øyvind Lund, offering him a role as player/coach. I expect he’d be a solid contributing player, and would offer some veteran leadership. However, he’s not really interested in coming to a club like ours – so we’ll almost certainly get blown off.

We also approach Ukraininan Volodymyr Fedorov, who at 19 is already a serious talent, on the reserves for Arsenal – far beyond the range of anyone we have aboard right now. I’m offering a pretty handsome deal, but he’s looking for more than my board will allow. Regardless, if we somehow landed this guy, he would certainly become an impact player for us. He can play defender or midfielder, and plays on the right side—we’d likely slot him as a DM and use him in the middle. He looks like a real talent.


Our first match of the month is at Rochdale, who sit a few slots behind us in 6th place on the league table. Rochdale is aggressive, and we eventually yield a goal after 30 minutes – but it is called back on an offsides call. We fend them off again and again, clinging to a scoreless tie through 80 minutes. We end it without a goal, and are glad to hold on for that much. Lincoln 0, Rochdale 0. Defenseman Andy Davies is again our MOM honoree.


I am stunned… flattened… when we get word that Volodymyr Fedrorov intends to join Lincoln for next season. We put up a reasonable signing bonus of £50,000, and he took it. The 19 year old defensive-minded player looks to be a great talent, and we are excited about his future addition. So, from a raft of initial offers, it looks like we may well have landed one big fish. Or, considering the amount we’ll be paying and his origins, perhaps a big caviar. He’ll join us in June, after the transfer ban is lifted.


In the FA Cup, we play host to Port Vale, a solid Third Division club. I’ve got Alan Ryan in goal for the first time in a while, and he is not in a good mood. In the first ten minutes, Alan Jones scores, has it called back, and scores for sure. Port Vale’s Peter Curtis pokes in a great banana shot for the evening measure. Curtis is a demon out there, and he gets them ahead 2-1. Morgan gets us back level with a little nutmeg, and then Richard Lewis crows off another approach with his first goal. 3-2 at the half isn’t our usual style of play, here. We pour it on late, getting an ugly own goal from them and Morgan follows up with his third goal for the hat trick. Lincoln 6, Port Vale 2. Surprising outcome – our offense rarely rolls like that.

We get £30,000 for winning the match – at our level, that kind of money makes a real difference!


We’re hosting Torquay, and look to keep our offense moving along. Lee Harris heads in a goal – his first for Lincoln. We get in two more in the first half, a Lee Williamson sets one up and finishes the other – brilliant work. Williamson tallies again after 40 minutes, and we are really rolling along. At 73, Williamson practically breaks the pole with a hard shot that bounces right out – close to another hat trick for him. Lincoln 4, Torquay 0.


Following Lincoln City’s 4-0 win over Torquay United, Lincoln’s chairman Martin Knowles declared himself extremely pleased with the result.

The Red Imps were reckoned to have little chance of breaking into the top six before the season started, yet QuikSand’s men now find themselves described as potential title challengers by some sections of the media.

With so many games to go, it remains to be seen whether they can do it but the fans are increasingly optimistic after this excellent recent form.


We play at Doncaster, where we face a lot of early attacking pressure, but manage to hold them off – at least until 26 minutes, when they go ahead. Late in the match, Chris Morgan does a lot of work to make his own chance, and he puts it through to level the score. We are downright lucky to get away wit a draw here, as they were flying all about in the attack. Lincoln 1, Doncaster 1.

Home for Exeter, we suffer an early injury to David Francis, and then another to midfielder Jason Wilson. Two tough breaks, and we run through our subs pretty quickly. It’s scoreless at the half, as we look a little flat after seeing two of our mates carted off. The defenses prevail, and after all that, we’re okay with a score draw. Lincoln 0, Exeter 0. Fortunately, both injuries are short-term only.


We land another Bosman transfer – another midfielder, actually. 22 y/o Paul Harper can play the middle or the right side, and has been stashed on Derby’s reserves lately. He’s excited to be lined up for some action with our squad, and accepts a solid rotation contract. My scout didn’t care too much for him, but we’ll give him a look and see what we have here – at the very least a decent reserve, I reckon.


I have a few more irons in the fire, and would like to land perhaps one more player through the free transfer process. I’m already pretty excited about Federov, and Harper should be a good plus as well. If we could just get a midfielder who could play the left side, that would free up Lee Williamson to play more as a forward, where I think he’s just more effective overall, even though he is our best at crossing passes.


We host Tranmere, and get a quick goal from Matthew Jackson to lead early on. Michael Kelly connects on a PK, and we lead 2-0, looking in control. That lead holds, as we wrap up another solid league effort, and remain in the hunt for a top position. Andrew Cross, our semi-forgotten defender, gains MOM honors, reinforcing the extreme depth we seem to have in our central defense. However, he is hurt – tests reveal a slightly broken arm, and he will be sidelined for a while.


21 year old defender Chris Richards, currently with Sunderland’s reserve squad, is our latest sign-up. He looks like a solid reserve or rotation guy, playing either the middle or the right side. He signs up for our decent offer, and will get into our rotation for next year as well.


I visit Southend, who are in financial peril. I make an offer for their versatile midfielder David Pearson, who seems to be pretty effective for them, and can play the left side 9as well as the right). Even based on a partial scouting report, I am convinced that he could be the guy that we really need to help fill that roster slot.

I have offered £8,000 – they counter asking for £14,000, and I agree to that. We should be at the negotiation table during the first days of the new year, and hopefully we can meet his wage demands and bring him aboard quickly. Getting some help immediately would be useful for our late-season drive, where we faltered pretty badly last season.