A relegation battle isn't what everyone wanted prior to the big kick off, although to be fair to some it was predicted. However we now find oursleves in the thick of a real humdinger of a basement battle alongside our long time foes Grimsby Town.
However as worrying as a relegation battle is, it could also be the catalyst for so much more. The Boxing Day win over Cheaterfield could be the springboard needed to fire the Imps back into the promised land, or at least give the success starved fans something to hope for.
'How so' I hear you ask? Well the 87th minute penalty miss by Jack Lester sparked scenes of jubilation across the City as we managed to hang on for a vital win. Port Vale's victory over the Codheads just days later meant we sat five points clear of the fishy ones with a game in hand - a wonderful position to be in considering how badly it could have gone the day after Christmas.
So what now? A cup tie for us to focus on whilst one eye will be cast towards the Grimsby and Bury clash. The honest Imps fan would probably thank you more for a Bury win than an Imps win in Bolton - however I want both!
In seriousness though much has been made of the Codheads 'revival', but that so called revival hasn't really happened. They've scored just four goals in two months, and one of those was a last minute penalty. In all competitions our own shot shy Imps have managed eleven goals in the same period, although six came in FA Cup competition.
So are we really as badly off as Grimsby? Both of us appointed inexperienced managers, but at least we got a name with contacts rather than the dreaded 'internal promotion', which usually means 'we are skint'. Mike Newell wouldn't have come cheap, and with a contract to pay off the rumour is there is very little money in the pot for Neil Woods in January. Contrast Chris Sutton with an FA Cup pot to spend, albeit wisely.
So how do the squads shape up for the battle? Well Grimsby have a decent squad of players not currently performing, whilst City is very much a work in progress. Much may rest on the two sides transfer policies in January, certainly Lincoln will be extremely busy. The quality of those coming in could well define whether May will see us clinging on desperately, or sitting pretty in fifteenth with nothing to play for.
Just three short years ago these two sides were battling for a play off final space, and now they are battling to avoid a drop to the most competitive Blue Square Premier for years. Cambridge, Oxford, Luton, and Wrexham are living testimony to the difficulty in the league below. In 1988 we dropped out and came straight back up, but now that task would be much, much harder. The reward for the team that stays up this time around is not just league football, but also the distinct possibility that it could be curtains for their county rivals.
If City finish 22nd and Grimsby finish 23rd then LCM will see that as a succesful season. We don't hide our passionate hatred of the Codheads, and we won't display any false sympathy for them either. If they go down: Good.
However if we go down we expect the same from them, no sympathy or condolences. They'll love it as much in their run down council homes as we will in our picturesque roman City.
So who has the bottle for the fight? We have the head start at the moment, and performances like Boxing Day will ensure that we don't even get drawn into the battle. However a return to the performance at Rochdale will see us dragged back down with the strugglers.
Key dates for the battle - January 2nd when we could be five points clear and two games in hand (as long as a decent Bury side can do us a favour), and Saturday February 20th when we travel to Blunder Park.