Even before the 2002/2003 season began, Lincoln City FC fans were unsure whether they were still going to have a club. Having finished the previous season only just escaping relegation finishing in 22nd place and then going into administration, they were called to a court hearing on 5th August 2002. Fortunately on the eve of the hearing a rescue package was put together and Lincoln continued to have a club in the Football League.
Nearly all of the previous season's players left, as did manager Alan Buckley in a cost cutting exercise. Buckley's assistant manager, Keith Alexander, who very sadly passed away this year, was made new manager and was given the unenviable task of putting together a team capable of surviving the following season in League 2 with practically no money in the bank. The Imps, in most bookmakers eyes were favourites for relegation. Being an Imps fan, I was just happy we still had a team, coming out of administration 2 days before the season began.
The first game of the season was an away game at Kidderminster Harriers. Richard Logan gave the Imps a first half lead but Bo Henriksen equalised on the hour for Ian Britton's team. At this very early stage we had no idea we'd even be battling for a play-off place at the end of the season.
A place in the play-offs was secured on the last day of the season when Simon Yeo came off the bench to score a cracker to snatch a 1-1 draw with Torquay United, who should have been 2-0 up but missed a penalty. It was Yeo's first strike since September 21st 2002, having scored in the 2-1 win against Southend United. It was goals like this that mean Yeo will always have a place in Imp's fans hearts.
Having now made the end of season play-offs on the last day of the league season by finishing 6th, Lincoln City knew that their opponents in the play-offs would be Scunthorpe United in the semi-finals.
There was huge interest in this game, not just because it was against one of Lincoln local footballing rivals but if you'd have said to any Lincoln fan at the start of the season that we'd be in the play-offs, we'd have probably just laughed. Keith Alexander had managed to gel a team of non-league virtually unheard of players into a team that was well capable of holding it's own in League 2 of the Football League.
The first leg of Lincoln City v Scunthorpe United turned out to be a highly eventful and entertaining match that finished 5-3 in Lincoln's favour. Super sub of the day Simon Yeo scored 2 late goals after coming off the bench after Scunthorpe had come back from 3-1 down to make the score 3-3.
Lincoln started the match brightly and scored after just five minutes - Simon Weaver heading in from Stuart Bimson's freekick. On 18 minutes Paul Mayo made it 2-0 when he turned to volley home left footed. 8 minutes later Alex Calvo-Garcia had pulled a goal back for The Iron. There were to be no further goals in the first half.
Lincoln took until 10 minutes after halftime to extend their lead when great work from Dene Cropper found Paul Smith to knock home from close range. At 3-1 up City seemed to go to sleep though and Scunthorpe made a double substitution bringing on Paul Dalglish and Steve Torpey, the latter was later to have an ineffective spell with the Imps. 2 goals in 2 minutes brought the Iron back on level terms, with Calvo-Garcia grabbing his second of the game and then Nathan Stanton dragging them back onto level terms.
Sincil Bank was witnessing a cracker. Simon Yeo was introduced 2 minutes after Scunthorpe had equalised, and 8 minutes from time Yeo allowed a long ball into the box to bounce before cracking a great shot past Tommy Evans in the Scunthorpe goal. And better was to come as Yeo grabbed his second of the game in the last minute as Yeo smashed in a half volley from about 12 yards out.
City hadn't conceded more than 2 league goals in a game all season and excluding an LDV Vans Trophy win against York (4-3) it was the first time Lincoln had scored more than 3 at home that season.
City now had to travel to Scunthorpe United to secure a result that would send them to their first ever playoffs final. City won 1-0 with Simon Yeo scoring again!
