Parky’s Cats are on a roll
you can take the sting out of the game with the ball, and I thought we did that really well in the first half in particular.
“We’re building. We can still get better, but there is momentum building in the group. It’s been an excellent Christmas period for us.
“Today was pivotal because with getting a point at Fleetwood, we needed to back that up with three today, and we were able to do that.”
Lincoln travelled to the North East on the back of impressive wins over Ipswich and Peterborough, but they failed to record a single effort on goal in the opening hour.
They eventually clawed a goal back midway through the second half. Harry Anderson out-muscled Denver Hume in the area and
SUNDERLAND LINCOLN 6 ........ Shots on Target ......... 2 9 ........ Shots off Target .......... 1 0 .......... Blocked Shots ........... 5 4 ................ Corners ................. 5 14 ................. Fouls .................. 12 0 ............... Offsides ................. 3 77.6.Passing Success % ..... 75 455 ...... Total Passes ........ 432 51.4 ..... Possession % ..... 48.6
LEE MARTIN clambered off the bench to score a dramatic injury-time winner and dump former club Ipswich out of the competition as he maintained Exeter’s hopes of reaching Wembley.
The match looked destined to be decided on penalties after Will Keane’s drilled in a low shot that Tyler Walker turned home from close range. Boss Michael Appleton said: “We’ve shown spirit in the second half, but I’d expect that.
“When you’re 3-0 down, you can end up losing the game by five or six and that didn’t happen.
“We looked the better and stronger side in the second half, but ultimately, the game had gone then.
“I was obviously disappointed with the first half, the manner of the goals is hard to legislate for.
It’s difficult because it’s senior players making those mistakes, it’s not as though they’re young players.
“They’re senior players, very experienced players, so I hope it’s just a one-off and one of those crazy spells.”