Lincoln City

Boston 2-1 Lincoln City
Lawrie Dudfield was the injury-time hero as his 94th-minute strike won a full-blooded derby for Boston. The Pilgrims forward ended Lincoln's 12-match unbeaten run after both sides had enjoyed one half of dominance. Julian Joachim stabbed Boston ahead after Dudfield had shot against the underside of the crossbar before Marvin Robinson fired a spectacular equaliser. But Boston staged a late rally and, after Danny Thomas and Joachim had been denied, Dudfield lashed home. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Boston Utd: Kuipers, Canoville, McCann, White, Clarke, Silk, Holland (Thomas 87), Talbot, Till, Dudfield (Hall 90), Joachim. Subs Not Used: Maylett, McSporran, Melton. Booked: Talbot. Goals: Joachim 26, Dudfield 90. Lincoln City: Marriott, Cryan, McCombe, Brown, Mayo, Steve Robinson (Frecklington 46), Kerr, Beevers, Birch (Gritton 85), Yeo (Marvin Robinson 64), Green. Subs Not Used: Stirling, Wilkinson. Goals: Marvin Robinson 66. Att: 4,476. Ref: K Hill (Hertfordshire).

Finnigan signs Cheltenham deal
Cheltenham Town captain John Finnigan has signed a new two-year deal at Whaddon Road. The 29-year-old midfielder will now stay with the John Ward's side until June 2008. Ward told his club's website: "It's important for us that we're doing our best to keep our better players. It augurs well for the future." Finnigan joined Cheltenham from Lincoln City in March 2002 has since started over 150 games for the club.

Forrester joins Lincoln on loan
Lincoln have agreed a one-month loan deal for Bristol Rovers' experienced striker Jamie Forrester. Imps boss Keith Alexander moved for Forrester after striker Simon Yeo suffered a long-term knee injury. "I needed to bring someone in and hopefully Jamie will come here and liven us up a little bit," Alexander told Lincoln's official website. "He's had a difficult time at Bristol Rovers recently, but he is a proven goalscorer at this level."

Carlisle v Lincoln
Paul Simpson will choose from a fully-fit squad. Adam Murray has recovered from illness and will be hoping to figure and Simon Hackney is pushing for a start. Lincoln manager Keith Alexander may add young right-back Phil Watt to his squad after handing him a squad number as a precautionary measure. Paul Morgan (foot) and Jeff Hughes (calf) both remain doubtful while Gareth McAuley (stomach) and Danny Bacon (broken leg) are definitely out.

Bacon close to signing new deal
Lincoln striker Danny Bacon has revealed that he is on the verge of signing a new contract at the club. Bacon has been sidelined for five months after breaking his leg while on loan at Burton Albion but is now edging closer to a first team return. The 26-year-old told the club website: "I've been offered a new contract which I'll sign soon. "I just want to thank Keith for giving me a new contract because some clubs wouldn't give one out." Bacon came through an hour of a friendly match with Mansfield unscathed last week and is confident of returning to first team action soon. He said: "I'm a bit tired but it's nice to be back playing again and kicking a ball about which is the main thing."

Carlisle 1-0 Lincoln
Michael Bridges produced the moment of inspiration to send Carlisle six points clear at the top of League Two. For 75 minutes Lincoln had frustrated Carlisle, but they had no answer when Bridges held off Colin Cryan, rounded Alan Marriott and slotted home. In the first half Bridges had struck the bar and the striker was also denied by a fine save by goalkeeper Marriott. Lincoln went close to taking the lead in the 50th minute when Marvin Robinson curled his shot against the bar. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Carlisle: Westwood, Arnison, Gray, Livesey, Aranalde, Billy, Lumsdon, Murphy, Holmes (Glenn Murray 71), Hawley, Bridges. Subs Not Used: Williams, Adam Murray, Grand, Hackney. Booked: Lumsdon. Goals: Bridges 75. Lincoln City: Marriott, Cryan, McCombe, Brown, Beevers, Frecklington (Birch 78), Foster (Stirling 83), Kerr, Green (Wilkinson 61), Forrester, Marvin Robinson. Subs Not Used: Steve Robinson, Gritton. Booked: Foster, Stirling. Att: 6,723. Ref: A Bates (Staffordshire).

Alexander blames error for defeat
Lincoln manager Keith Alexander was disappointed not to claim a point from the 1-0 defeat at leaders Carlisle. The Imps boss said: "We did okay, but too many times this season we've conceded a sloppy goal. "We had an extra touch when we shouldn't, lost it in a silly area and it was a long ball down the middle which we should have dealt with. "We dominated at times without being at our best but you can still get a draw out of these games."

Angry Imps boss cancels days off
Lincoln boss Keith Alexander vowed to work his players harder after they were beaten 4-2 at Darlington. "I've told the players that there will be no days off until they get it right. It's as simple as that," he said. "Darlington were there to be beaten and we just haven't done it. We were not good enough, and I'm not having it. "Before today, we had seven games left, and I said that we needed to win four. But now we've got six left and we've got to win five."

Hornets look at Imps goalkeeper
Teenage Lincoln City goalkeeper Scott Loach has joined Championship side Watford on trial. The 17-year-old will spend a period training with the Hornets, and will also play in Tuesday's reserve game against West Ham United. The Nottingham-born stopper, still awaiting his first-team debut, first joined Lincoln as an Under-15 player. He was previously on the books of Ipswich's academy, and also had trials at Nottingham Forest and Chesterfield.

Bloomer extends loan stay at U's
On-loan Lincoln defender Matt Bloomer is to stay with Cambridge United until the end of the Conference season. Bloomer's loan extension runs to the end of April - making him available for Cambridge's final five games. The 27-year-old has so far started seven games for the U's and only once finished on the losing side. Meanwhile, Cambridge defender Adam Davies is to see a neurosurgeon before he is allowed to resume training after being injured by a ball to the throat.

Lincoln v Mansfield
Lincoln will be without four players, with Simon Yeo out with knee ligament damage and Paul Mayo recovering from chipping a bone in his arm. Paul Morgan (foot) and Gareth McAuley (stomach) also remain sidelined. Mansfield midfielder Simon Brown has been ruled out after being pencilled in for a hernia operation. Centre-half Rhys Day is expected to be included in the squad after recovering from a dead leg, but Allan Russell may not be risked after a toe injury.

Lincoln 1-1 Mansfield
Lincoln's play-off hopes suffered a major blow after they conceded a last minute equaliser to draw. The Imps went ahead in front against the run of play when a 53rd-minute shot from Francis Green went through the legs of Stags keeper Kevin Pressman. Until that moment, Mansfield had looked the most likely team to score with Giles Coke having two early efforts. Mansfield finally levelled when sub Allan Russell curled a shot around the wall from a free-kick. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lincoln City: Marriott, Cryan, Steve Robinson (Stirling 76), McCombe, Hughes, Kerr, Beevers, Brown, Green, Forrester, Marvin Robinson (Birch 70). Subs Not Used: Gritton, Mettam, Bacon. Booked: Steve Robinson. Goals: Green 53. Mansfield: Pressman, D'Laryea, Baptiste, Uhlenbeek (Russell 78), Buxton, Wilson, Rundle (Dawson 73), Coke, Reet (Brown 61), Barker, Hjelde. Subs Not Used: Day, White. Booked: Buxton, Wilson, Coke. Goals: Russell 90. Att: 6,062 Ref: U Rennie (S Yorkshire).

Bacon extends contract at Lincoln
Lincoln City striker Danny Bacon has signed a new deal to extend his stay at the club until June 2007. The former Mansfield Town striker, 26, joined Lincoln from Hucknall Town at the end of last season. But Bacon has played just twice for the Imps after suffering a broken leg while on loan to Burton in October, but has just returned to action. Meanwhile, Imps boss Keith Alexander has recalled utility man Matt Bloomer from his loan spell at Cambridge. After his recent return to action, Bacon told the club website: "I'm a bit tired but it's nice to be back playing again and kicking a ball about which is the main thing."

Lincoln City 1-1 Bury
Lincoln's play-off hopes suffered a blow, despite Lee Frecklington's late equaliser against struggling Bury. The Imps were second best for much of the match and grabbed a point when the young substitute poked the ball home with three minutes left. They could have grabbed all three points when Martin Gritton had a shot cleared off the line. The Shakers went ahead when Marc Pugh cut inside and fired past Alan Marriott from 10 yards. Lincoln City: Marriott, McAuley (Bloomer 79), Morgan, McCombe, Hughes, Kerr (Frecklington 68), Steve Robinson (Gritton 58), Beevers, Green, Forrester, Brown. Subs Not Used: Mayo, Bacon. Goals: Frecklington 86. Bury: Schmeichel, Fitzgerald, Woodthorpe, Challinor, Kennedy (Mattis 69), Pugh (Ross 90), Flitcroft, Brass, Barry-Murphy, Daly, Youngs (Marrison 57). Subs Not Used: Parrish, Speight. Goals: Pugh 37. Att: 4,439 Ref: D Whitestone (Northamptonshire).

Alexander wants Forrester to stay
Lincoln City manager Keith Alexander has said he would like to sign up striker Jamie Forrester until the end of the season. Forrester has scored four goals since arriving at Sincil Bank on a month's loan from Bristol Rovers. That deal ends after the game against Leyton Orient on Saturday and Alexander is poised to hold talks with the Pirates about extending the agreement. "He is a clinical finisher," Alexander said after the 3-0 win over Wycombe.

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