Cowley pride as heroic Imps get replay

LINCOLN CITY boss Danny Cowley hailed his players as ‘absolutely heroic’ at Ipswich after they earned a third-round replay. Backed by 4,838 supporters, the Imps reduced the gap from Conference level to the Championship.

No one, however, could have expected how close they would come to reaching the FA Cup fourth round for the first time since 1976 before victory was snatched away from them.

Lincoln led twice only to concede the advantage. Nathan Arnold’s burst of pace helped him get beyond Jonas Knudsen before cutting across the box for Theo Robinson, who poked the opener past goalkeeper Dean Gerken. As Cowley put it, it was ‘the perfect start’.

But five minutes later pacey Ipswich winger Tom Lawrence controlled the ball in his own half then beat four players before drilling the ball under Paul Farman.

Complacency, perhaps, but Lincoln’s determination and spirit has got them to top of the Vanarama National League for a reason.

Cowley believes it is his team’s attitude that has got fans returning to Sincil Bank in their droves after a period of misery following Football League relegation in 2011.

The Imps’ second half pressure paid off when Robinson gambled on Christophe Berra’s mistake to put his side back in the lead.

But with just four minutes left, Lawrence drilled a 25yard shot past Farman.

‘There’s a tinge of disappointment when you get that close but that quickly subsided and I think they will wake up tomorrow morning mightily proud,’ said Cowley.

‘They should be, because they were heroic today for me, absolutely heroic.’

Ipswich manager Mick McCarthy, who is expected to sign Rotherham striker Danny Wood before the replay at Sincil Bank admitted: ‘Tom [Lawrence] has got us all out of jail.

‘Lincoln were excellent, they played well and were unfortunate not to win it.’