My sporting hopes for 2013

 Five Things I want to see happen in 2013

Seeing how i am not at the Lincolnshire derby and public transport is nonexistent on New Year’s Day I thought I would write about some things I would like to see happen in 2013 in the sporting world. Knowing my luck none of them will come to fruition but I can dream can’t me.

Lincoln City to continue their steady improvement.

Over the past couple of months there has been a steady improvement from the team on the pitch, the financial side off the field (due to the cup run) and the mood amongst the fans. After a shaky start to the season the Imps steadied and have spent much of the last couple of the months in mid table. Now although being mid table in the 5^th tier of English Football may not sound very impressive at least  the club feels as stable as it did before Peter Jackson left. We must however be on our guard. This season the league is much closer than last time around; last year you had Fleetwood and Wrexham who broke away at the top of the table, and at the other end Bath, Kettering, and Darlington who were cut adrift. No such breakaways have happened yet this season which means that a bad run could easily put a mid table side back into the relegation scrap. On the other hand it means that a side can go into any game and feel it has got a good chance of getting the three points. Lincoln have recorded a couple of great away wins at top six sides like Dartford and Wrexham but have dropped points at home to sides like Ebbsfleet. As a developing young side I would expect this kind of pattern of results to continue. At the halfway point in the season we have collected 30 points. Should we match that in the second half we should be comfortably mid table.

On the topic of the Imps It has been refreshing to see the fans get off the managers back. David Holdsworth is never going to be everybody’s cup of tea as a manager, however I do feel he deserves some credit for this season.  Going back to pre season he was vilified for re-signing Jake Sheridan and Nicky Nicolau. Fast forward and Sheridan has had a much better season than last and many fans are asking why Nicolau isn’t in the side. Funny how football can change isn’t it? I am not saying the guy hasn’t made mistakes, he has, but the “tinkering” that he was famous for last season hasn’t been half as bad as it was last time out. Credit must also go to Grant Brown and Chris Moyes who have been instrumental in the Imps improvement. I do however think that we can’t go down the “If we win its Grant’s hard work and if we lose its DH’s fault”. Win as a team and lose as a team and all that. Attendances have also slowly risen recently so let’s hope that this also continues into the New Year.

Lincoln Ladies compete for a Champion’s League place.

European football was the aim for the club in 2012 and for the reasons I wrote about in their season review they didn’t make it. Since the season ended the club have really rolled their sleeves up and shown their intent. Keith Bonas a hugely respected manager in the women’s game has been brought in to manage the side on a three year contract, a move that has certainly raised a few eyebrows amongst followers of the women’s game. Many see him as a future England manager and has a great record in women’s football, with his time in charge at Charlton being one of the rare times that Arsenal’s dominance at the top of the English game was challenged.

As if that wasn’t enough the club really put a cat amongst the pigeons by signing England’s first choice goalkeeper Karen Bardsley. They have also added back up in the goalkeeping area by signing England U23 keeper Ashley Baker. This brings the number of Lady Imp players in the latest England squad to five. There are still areas of that side that need work. The left hand side being the main one, but with all of last season’s key players signed up again (bar one) the club is in a good place at the moment, and with Birmingham at this point in time looking weaker than last time out it could be Lincoln’s time. With the club really making an effort I hope than the Lincolnshire public really get behind the club and a few more fans flock through the gate.  This is the club’s 3^rd FA WSL season and its third manager. So with that in mind I hope we see some continuity in the manager’s chair.

Internazionale return to the Champion’s League.

2011/12 was a nightmare for Inter. Due to Italian sides’ poor shows in the Champions League over recent years Italy now only receives three Champions league spots. Last season Inter failed to get in the top three and so missed out; condemning them to the Europa League. Like so many clubs Inter don’t have the finances that they once had with the big time spending of the late 90’s long gone. This has hailed a new outlook from the club putting youth at its centre. Inter’s youth system is one of the top ones in Europe and the clubs victory in the 2011/12 Next Generation series backs this point up. Inter have had some great victories this season under visionary young coach Andrea Stramaccioni. Earlier in the season Inter triumphed over Milan in the derby and smashed Juventus’ 49 unbeaten run by beating them 3-1 in their own stadium. However the side has been inconsistent as results like a 2-2 home draw with Genoa has shown. At the winter break stage Inter sit in 4^th place in the Championship level on points with Fiorentina in 3^rd. The table is incredibly tight with four points separating 2^nd to 6^th. Although I don’t expect Inter to win the championship, entrance to the Champions League is essential for both financial reasons and the clubs standing in Europe. It is getting harder and harder for clubs not in the Champions League to attract players. You only have to look at Liverpool to see that. 

  

England retains the Ashes.

In 2012 Cricket really took a back seat in the sporting world as the Olympics and the European football championships took centre stage. This year Cricket once again provides the sporting highlight of the summer as the Aussies are in town for the biggest series in world cricket. Although both sides are in transition I feel England are still stronger and have enough to retain their crown. It won’t be as one sided as the last series though so expect some fireworks and I will go for a 2-1 England win. The series begins in Nottingham on 10^th of July. This is a huge honour for Nottingham and firmly places Trent Bridge as the second best and respected cricket ground in the country after Lords.

Panthers Smash the 1956 "Jinx"

At the time of writing the Panthers sit top of the league and have been in devastating form. In recent games they have put 6 goals past Belfast, 8 past Dundee, and slammed 8 in away at Coventry without reply. They were however brought down to earth with a 9-4 beating away in Sheffield on the 27^th of December. January will tell us a lot; all the league fixtures are against sides in the Panthers’ conference (by far the stronger of the two conferences). Should they remain top of the standings on the 4^th of February then club has a very real chance of finally bringing home the holy grail of a League Championship.

And five that are tongue in cheek and a little more unlikely to happen.

1)      Lee Houseman attends three consecutive Lincoln City Games.

2)      Barry Oxby to attend a Ladies football match.

3)      Felice to use the phrase “If I remember rightly” and be proved correct.

4)      Lee Houseman to smash the 30 games for the season barrier.

5)      For us all to be healthy wealthy and wise in 2013 (2^nd two very unlikely).