Giant killers the FA Cup story of the century
LINCOLN City became the first non-league side in 103 years to reach the FA Cup quarterfinals with a dramatic last-minute win over Premier League side Burnley at Turf Moor yesterday.
A breathless final few minutes saw the momentum swing both ways before Sean Raggett rose above the Burnley defence and head past Tom Heaton.
For the most part, the game was a scrappy encounter that saw frustrations boil over, with neither side registering a shot on target until Burnley’s Joey Barton blasted a volley straight at goalkeeper Paul Farman in the first half.
The visitors were then forced to defend through five minutes of stoppage time, with Andre Gray’s shot saved by Farman, before backto-back corners were slashed away by the Lincoln defence.
There were jubilant scenes at the final whistle as Lincoln’s 3 210 travelling support celebrated their club reaching the sixth round for the first time in their 133-year history.
Goalscorer Raggett summed up as “mad and crazy” his side’s dramatic and historic victory.
The central defender said he and his teammates had always believed they were capable of adding Burnley to the scalps of second tier duo Ipswich and Brighton on their extraordinary cup run.
“I’m lost for words, it’s mad, I can’t believe it,” the 23-year-old told BT Sport. “The fans were amazing, all through the game.
“They’re a top quality side, drew with Chelsea last week, it’s amazing. Belief? Massively, we didn’t come to draw, we came to win.
“Crazy, a non-league side in the quarterfinals in modern football, it’s unheard of.”
Lincoln manager Danny Cowley — whose brother Nicky is his assistant manager — said the odds had worked in their favour.
“We said it was a one in a 100 chance and thankfully we got that opportunity,” he said.
“The last eight of the FA Cup sounds pretty good.
“We work hard on our corners and our free-kicks and we are mightily proud of the players,” added Cowley, whose side are on course for promotion into the English Football League as they top the National League.
Nicky, who along with Danny quit their full-time jobs in the education system last year to focus on football, said the essential ingredient was to believe beating a top-tier side was possible no matter how modest ones resources were.
“It is a fantastic day,” Nicky said. “You have to believe and dream big, we had fantastic results against Oldham, Ipswich and Brighton but coming to a Premier League ground was a new challenge and it is unbelievable.
“We are a humble down to earth group.”
Barrel-chested striker Matt Rhead, whose physical presence caused the Burnley defence problems throughout the match, said they had matched their opponents in every area.
“It is unbelievable. When we started back in October it was a dream,” said the 32-year-old, who has trawled the non-league arena throughout his career taking in the likes of Norton United and Corby.
“I enjoyed every minute of it. The lads have done unbelievable.
“We’ve got a good squad here and we believe we can beat anyone. We continue to beat teams.
“It is something you dream of as a kid. We went toe-to-toe with a Premier League team.
“We are confident if we set up as we have today [yesterday] we can beat anyone.” —