Lincoln City’s Anthony Scully comes to the rescue in battering the hopes of Fleetwood’s travelling Cod Army

Anthony Scully was the hero of the hour for Lincoln City, scoring two goals to clinch all three points against Fleetwood Town in a dramatic afternoon at the LNER Stadium.

The home side, buoyed on by over 8,000 supporters showed the resilience that is becoming part of their DNA under Michael Appleton to come back from behind to record their first win of the season. Scully was highly influential on an afternoon where Lincoln didn’t have it easy.

Simon Grayson felt his side were unlucky not to take anything away from the game. Fleetwood arguably had the better of the proceedings in the first half as the Imps struggled to break through their robust set-up.

Lincoln’s on-loan goalkeeper Josh Griffiths, made a superb save in the 15th minute to deny Shayden Morris’ goal-bound effort as the Cod Army took the game to the hosts with increased confidence.  Amongst that, Lincoln striker, Tom Hopper should have broken the deadlock when he was slipped clean through on goal by Scully but his attempt to chip the on-rushing Alex Cairns was poorly executed and the shot-stopper made a comfortable save.

Fleetwood seized on their good fortune and took the lead on 32 minutes. Danny Andrews, who had already tested Griffiths earlier in the game after a marauding run and shot, opened the scoring for the away side with a magnificently struck free-kick.

From fully 30 yards, Andrews’ left-footed strike had power and accuracy to give the floundering Griffiths little chance in the Imps goal. It was a goal that Fleetwood had been threatening as the home side found it difficult to penetrate through a five-man backline and through their own frustration, conceded possession all too readily to Simon Grayson’s men in the opening half.

Sensing things weren’t working, Michael Appleton was quick to change things at the break swapping Cohen Bramall with new signing Hakeen Adulaken. With Anthony Scully switching flanks to the left-hand side, he provided an immediate threat to become Lincoln’s eventual match-winner.

As the home side’s tempo increased and under the influence of both the outstanding Tayo Edun and skipper Liam Bridcutt, the visitors found it difficult to apply the periods of pressure which they enjoyed in the first half. Edun, in particular, will have caught the eye of a number of scouts watching in the stands with a high energy performance from left-back, that saw him play a crucial part in proceedings.

Scully very nearly got the opportunity to bring the home side level on 52 minutes as Edun’s delightfully chipped pass picked him out at the far post, but as the winger waited for the ball to drop, Gerard Garner recovered well to intervene and smother the danger.

Scully didn’t have to wait too much longer, however, and having survived a scare at the other end as Garner long-range effort fizzed past Josh Griffiths goal, Lincoln immediately heeded the warning to bring themselves level.

Imps chief architect of the afternoon, Edun played Scully in following good play from Adelakun, but with plenty left to do cutting in from the left, the forward showed the composure and technique to guide the ball into the top corner for a well-taken equaliser.

“It’s a long season and we’re going to have moments where we go behind or we don’t start well and we’ve just got to come over things like that. Whether that’s someone to get us going or as a team we need to come together to just try and switch the momentum.

“There was a message going around at halftime that if we stepped up a bit, the fans are definitely behind us if we get the goal. Mostly we appreciate the support. It’s been a tough year for everyone and it’s just good to have them back here.” – Tayo Edun

The introduction of Teddy Bishop proved further pivotal as Lincoln turned the screw on their visitors. The former Ipswich midfielder, making his home debut, was immediately involved with some decisive running with the ball to peg the visitors back and lifted the home crowd.

As Fleetwood attempted to slow the game down with time-wasting tactics, the Imps fans became increasingly irritated and with that frustration, they roared their side on for a late winner.

As Scully linked with Edun once more in the 87th minute, the full-back’s run into the box was abruptly halted by Cods defender, James Hill which gave referee James Oldham little option than pointing straight to the spot. With the decibels increasing even further inside the LNER, Scully lifted the ball high into the top corner to give his side the lead.

As chants of ‘Oh Anthony Scully’ echoed around the stadium, Lincoln had to endure a further six minutes of additional time but showed maturity in seeing the game out and keeping Fleetwood at bay to prevent a nervy finish.

Scully, Lincoln’s joint-top goalscorer from the previous campaign, is a player that arguably goes under the radar outside of the club, but his ability to add energy and provide the goods when most needed makes him a key go-to player for Michael Appleton when the chips are down.

The Imps’ ability to dig in pleased Appleton given their sloppiness and slow start to the game. As the home side imposed themselves on Fleetwood in the second period, Lincoln’s manager was pleased with how his side recovered to take all three points.

“The thing that pleased me is that we were a lot more concentrated, or when we did lose possession in the second half we stopped them (Fleetwood) countering on us. Our concentration levels were better and we just had a little more urgency from us”

‘We are still a new team, a young team and it’s going to take a couple of months to gel together. We’ve got players who are behind fitness as you’ve seen today. So different players are at different levels but once we’re all up and running, I think we’re going to be dangerous”

With their first win of the season on the board, the relentless demands of League One football quickly turn to the next game with Lincoln entertaining Bolton Wanderers on Tuesday evening.

Appleton has assembled a squad that is capable of causing teams a lot of problems but with the transfer window still open and some key players attracting suitors, it still feels a little way off yet to the manager having his set deck of cards to hand.

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