Lincoln City Women look ahead to an important rebuild after finishing their Division One Midlands campaign in eighth place.
Manager Lee Mitchell and his side secured safety in the division with a win away to Notts County, just a few weeks ago. Despite struggling at wins at some points of the season, he believes progress has been shown within the young squad.
Speaking to The Linc, he said: ‘‘We’ve had a few youngsters join and make their debut. This, as always, takes time but the future is bright with some exciting talent coming through.’’
Comings and Goings:
Lincoln City confirmed on Thursday, May 16 that six first-team players will be leaving the Imps and will not play a part in the upcoming season.
The players leaving include two-time City golden boot winner Toni McHamilton, Poppy Irvine who will return to her parent club Birmingham City, youngster Lauren Nicholson, Alice Wood and club servant Leah Hardy.
The other name exiting the club is defender Ella Thompson-Moulding, who played a massive part in the past season, winning City’s Players’ Player of the Season award and stepping up to become captain during the second-half of the season.
‘‘Ella is a huge loss as a player, captain and person. Her experience and character extended off the pitch as well as on it. She is moving to Birmingham so it just wouldn’t work as it was too much of a commitment with the commute,” Mitchell said.
With a significant number of players now leaving, attention turns towards preparing for the 2024/25 season with Mitchell keen to add much needed reinforcements to the side.
When asked about where Mitchell wanted to add to the squad, he said: ‘‘We are looking to strengthen throughout, adding quality and depth to the squad, in particular the attack.’’
‘‘We are looking for the right people, who not only offer a lot in terms of playing ability but who are also ambitious, driven and have the right characteristics that we look for in order to be successful,’’ said Mitchell.
A Season of Ups-and-Downs:
Over the course of the season, City have pulled off some huge results despite being a side full of younger players. In particular, the Imps 3-3 draw away to runners-up Loughborough Lightning stands out as a highlight of the season.
The Imps could have even walked away with all three points if it wasn’t for a 95th minute equaliser by Lightning’s Lauren Purchase. However, the result demonstrated the side could go toe-to-toe with the leagues best.
‘‘We have shown that we can compete with anyone in this league, including top of the table teams and that bodes well moving forward,’’ stated the Imps manager.
Despite playing well against the top teams within the division, ultimately it was the teams placed lower than the Imps that prevented them from finishing higher up the table.
Mitchell said: ‘‘Even though we were competitive, we dropped a fair few points where we should have gained something and that’s something we will be working hard to turn around for next season.’’
A Break to Recharge the Batteries:
City now have a well earnt break for the summer after busy scheduling towards the business end of the season.
Mitchell said: ‘‘It’s always important to take a break mentally and physically to refresh, recover and have everyone excited to come back ready to go.”
They will return next season, where a clash with city rivals Lincoln United Women awaits during the league campaign.
Feature Image Credit: Graham Burrell/Lincoln City FC