Lincoln level on points with St Joseph after win

Lincoln Red Imps 5-0 Hound Dogs

Hound Dogs looked to exploit Lincoln Red Imps’ biggest vulnerability in the first half – the fact that the Imps were due to play a Conference League fixture on Thursday\.

With the Lincoln players’ minds potentially on their forthcoming European encounter, and squad rotation ensuring that competition for places remained very much open, Hound Dogs adopted a physical approach aimed at preventing the Imps from breaking the deadlock\.

It was a scrappy encounter, with some tackles leaving much to be desired, as Hound Dogs managed to keep a clean sheet in the opening 45 minutes\. Lincoln had been expected to cruise through the match, but that was far from evident\. The door remained wide open for a potential upset at half\-time\.

Lincoln did manage to put the ball in the back of the net, only for the effort to be ruled out for offside\. It was a tight call by the assistant referee, one which was disputed by the Imps players\.

The second half began much as the first had ended, with Lincoln Red Imps dominating possession from the outset and Hound Dogs packing their defence to keep them at bay\.

The Imps’ play remained slow and laboured\. They controlled possession but lacked a clinical finish\. Faced with opponents seemingly more intent on chasing, closing down and disrupting play than offering any attacking threat, the match was far from entertaining\.

Despite enjoying the bulk of possession, Lincoln created just two opportunities in the opening 15 minutes of the second half\. Hound Dogs, meanwhile, struggled to retain possession, often losing the ball almost immediately\. Their game plan appeared to offer little beyond chasing and defending\.

As expected, Lincoln made three changes just after the hour mark\. The substitutions had an immediate impact\. Lopes, who had only just entered the field, met a floated ball into the area with a header, directing it into the top corner to break the deadlock\.

With the pressure lifted and the lead secured, Lincoln showed little inclination to change their rhythm\. Instead, with Hound Dogs now having to find a way forward, more space began to open up for the Imps to exploit\.

The ball flashed across the goalmouth just minutes later, before Hound Dogs had a rare opportunity to break forward\. A clearance allowed them to catch Lincoln on the counter, forcing the Imps’ goalkeeper to race to the edge of his area and block the attack in a one\-on\-one situation, conceding a corner\.

A floated ball from Nano into the six\-yard box was then met by Toledano, who headed home to make it 2\-0 on 70 minutes\.

Lincoln were now in control, pinning Hound Dogs back into their own half\. Lopes added a second to his tally, this time with a first\-time volley from close range into the roof of the net\.

Further pressure from the Imps resulted in a penalty, with Idrissi, another of the substitutes, making no mistake from the spot\.

Once again, Lincoln demonstrated their willingness to play the waiting game, raising the tempo at the right moment to secure the points\.

The Imps eventually cruised to a 5\-0 victory, with Kike scoring the final goal with virtually the last kick of the match\. Hound Dogs, increasingly desperate, conceded a free\-kick after a blatant two\-handed shove on Idrissi\. The resulting delivery was played low into Kike’s path, allowing him to drive the ball home\.

With St Joseph having dropped points, Lincoln’s victory brought them level with the Saints at the top of the table, with goal difference the only thing keeping St Joseph in first place\.