Danny Cowley believes this weekend’s SkyBet League Two fixture against Crawley Town will be Lincoln’s toughest game of the season.
Despite the Imps going into the game 15 unbeaten in Sky Bet League Two, Danny explained how Crawley’s 6-1 defeat to Crewe last weekend will make them a dangerous threat.
“We expect a wounded animal, they have a good record against the top eight at home and we anticipate this to be the toughest game of our season,” said Danny.
“I watched their game last weekend at Crewe, for 35 minutes they were the better team. Football is a crazy game and there was a crazy period just before half time where they conceded four goals and that is always difficult for a team to come back from.
“They were excellent, they possessed the ball and the boys in midfield can handle the ball really well.
“Ollie Palmer was a real handful, he scored a goal and could have scored another and then got himself a third.
Former Imps striker Palmer has scored 14 league goals for Crawley this season, Cowley went on to praise the 27-year-old saying: “Ollie is a good player, he has some fantastic qualities, he is a handful and he has athleticism. He always carries a goal threat, we enjoyed working with Ollie and we look forward to seeing him on Saturday.”
The Lincoln boss turned his attention to experienced players Jason Shackell and Lee Frecklington stating that the pair will be available for selection as the Imps travel to the Peoples Pension Stadium this weekend.
“Jason [Shackell] is good, we are hoping he will be available for the weekend, Lee has also trained and he will train again tomorrow. The plan is that he will be available for selection on Saturday," he said.
Danny finished by explaining how the senior players in the side have a slightly different training plan to younger squad members: “The boys that are over 30 have slightly different pathways to the youngsters, there is a trend and pattern that after the 35-game period there is a risk of injury.
“We make small adaptions to ensure our players are fit and fresh, ultimately the boys who have played 35 games will not get any fitter so we focus on making them fresh. We make sure we get the right balance for each player."
Over 750 tickets have sold for our trip to Crawley Town, with Imps fans available to pay on the gate. Click HERE for more information.