Lincoln City will play their first league match in 39 days on Saturday afternoon when they take on Bradford City at Sincil Bank.
The postponement of five consecutive league games, against Cheltenham, Oxford, Aldershot and Port Vale and Shrewsbury respectively, has seen the Imps lose ground on their rivals in the bottom half of the League Two table.
However a win against the mid-table Bantams could lift City away from the brink of the drop zone and up as high as 19th place.
Kern Miller is the only definite absentee for the Imps as he continues his recovery from a broken jaw after an incident in Blackpool earlier in the month. Meanwhile Paul Green could make his long-awaited return from injury and Delroy Facey returns after fulfilling international duty for Grenada. Captain Scott Kerr will also be fit to play having shrugged off a back injury which was picked up during the Imps’ lengthy lay-off.
The winter chill has been slightly more kind to Lincoln’s opponents in the past month. Bradford City have managed to fulfil two of their fixtures in December—beating rock bottom Hereford at home before being trounced 4-0 by an in-form Cheltenham on Tuesday.
Saturday will see the division’s two lowest scoring clubs go head-to-head. City have managed to find the net just 14 times this season and Bradford haven’t managed much better—scoring just 17 league goals.
Peter Taylor’s side started the season poorly, with just two wins in their first 10 games. October saw the Bantams’ form improve—the standout result being a 5-0 thrashing of Oxford United. However Bradford’s inconsistency has seen them drop down the league to 16th position.
Regardless of their mediocre league position, Bradford still have some talented players on their books. Goalkeeper Lenny Pidgeley began his career at Chelsea but has managed to forge a career in the lower leagues and he will prove hard to beat. Meanwhile midfielder David Syers is Bradford’s top scorer in what is his first season as a professional.
Meanwhile Ashley Grimes looks set to extend his loan deal from Millwall.