Lincoln City boss Michael Skubala has won the League One Manager of the Month award for the second successive month.
The Imps continued their impressive form by navigating through February unbeaten, picking up four wins and drawing once.
Scintillating
It wasn’t just the results that were mightily impressive last month; it was the manner of them. Scoring four times in three separate matches is an achievement in itself, winning 4-1 at Plymouth Argyle before victories in successive home matches against Northampton Town and Blackpool by a four-goal margin. City also came out on top at Mansfield Town, while drawing their promotion clash with Bolton Wanderers in the middle of the month.
It was perhaps even better than the preceding month, when the Imps won four of their six matches. That’s now three full months without defeat for Lincoln, who have started March in the same rich vein of form. Victory at Cardiff City saw the City replace the Bluebirds as League One leaders, before extending their gap against Exeter City on Tuesday evening.
While outsiders may think Lincoln have one foot in the Championship, Skubala knows there is still work to do to get over the line.
“February was a great month for us and has put us into a good position, but we know there’s a lot of football still to be played and we need to work hard and maintain our high standards over the remaining games.
“As with any success this has been a real team effort. Every single person at the Gen 2 Energy Elite Performance Centre is focused on giving the players the best chance to perform to the best of their abilities.”
Imps Close In On History
Tomorrow’s clash with Stockport County was billed as the Imps biggest match of the season a few short weeks ago. The Hatters looked to be the side most likely to chase City down, with the gap standing at just six points at the end of January. However, a run of just one league win in five, including three defeats, leaves Dave Challinor’s side a massive 21 points adrift of the League One leaders.
While County do have two games in hand, they might not prove to be the points haul that would have previously been expected. The one thing that Stockport do have on their side is rest, with the Cheshire outfit raring to go in their first league game in March. Lincoln have faced two trips to the south-west since the Hatters last played, returning with maximum points against Cardiff and Exeter.
Another game without defeat will eclipse the Imps all-time unbeaten record in the EFL, breaking the record Danny Cowley set in the 2018/19 season. That ultimately led to the League Two title, and this latest streak could well land the Imps another divisional accolade.