It’s been a rather quiet week in terms of transfer news so far, so I thought I’d look back at some crucial matches last season that ensured our survival despite a disappointing season. I’ve got four matches for this article, two away, two home games and some honorable mentions.
When I think about our best moments of the season, Max Melbourne’s late winner together with John Marquis’ first City goal does spring to mind. The performance was generally poor up until the second half, but we came out a different team. Getting an early goal was definitely the turning point for us and we looked in complete control for the rest of the forty five minutes. People may not remember but Sam Long made his League One debut after a shock injury to Josh Griffiths, and put in a confident and mature performance, making some super saves.
I titled the match review article ‘Redemption Continues’ as we made it three wins in four games, with all the wins coming against top 7 sides. The run of games in January felt like a real turning point in the season with all the new signings performing. The game also ended up being Max Melbourne’s last game in a City shirt and in what was a tough two years at City, I don’t think he could have ended it in a much better way.
This one will not be looked back on as a classic but it played a crucial part in our survival. At the time of the match we were only a few points ahead of Morecambe and a loss would have put us in the relegation zone. You could feel the anxiety around the stadium pre-match and in the opening few minutes, but the nerves were soon calmed by an excellent opening fifteen minutes from City with Whittaker and Bramall scoring.
Errors did start to creep in though, which was the story of the season for me. We conceded early in the second half and we looked as if we’d collapse under the pressure but somehow we didn’t. Looking back on it, that night was one of the first times we saw the players playing up to the home crowd and giving it their all with big tackles going in and with other players joining in on Maguire’s antics. Say what you like about Maguire but that night he probably managed to get in the head of the whole Morecambe team, with that rubbing off on our other players with good effect.
This was one of few home games to shout about last season, it’s not everyday that we get the chance to play a club the size of Sheffield Wednesday, let alone beat them in front of an away following of over 2,000. It was another turning point in the season, as we changed system to a three at the back. I have to admit the team news that day confused me and it did look a gamble.
However, that gamble worked and worked well. We smashed three past Sheffield Wednesday, with one of our best performances of the season. Some may also remember it was the match that Lewis Fiorini came back into the side and kick-started the rest of his season. The only real negative was that it ended up being Josh Griffith’s last game for the club after picking up an injury. With the win, we moved seven points clear of Morecambe in the last relegation spot, which was a massive step towards our safety.
Charlton 1-2 Imps
The final one on my list is our win away at Charlton, and personally one of my matches of the season. We took a decent away following and Scully’s goal in front of the away crowd was just one of the best parts of the season without a doubt. In classic 21/22 City fashion, we didn’t make it easy for ourselves with goalscorer Morgan Whittaker getting sent off and conceding late to make it a nervy ending.
Despite all of that it really was, for me, the match that clinched survival. It wasn’t mathematically secure but it felt like the anxiety was lifted within the fanbase, which was a big positive with five games to go.
Honorable Mentions
Wimbledon 0-2 Imps
Sunderland 1-3 Imps
Imps 3-0 Cheltenham