Lincoln United return to the Northern Premier League this Saturday when they travel to Heaton Stannington but with a number of new additions is anything actually certain?
The Whites progressed to the Preliminary qualifying round of the FA Cup last weekend when they beat Northampton O.N. Chenecks at Ashby Avenue. They will now travel to Skegness Town on August 16 but first face a difficult start to their Northern Premier League East Division season.
Scott Hellewell’s biggest priority for the season will be to avoid relegation after the side were relegated two years ago.
With four other newly promoted sides competing against the Whites, they have given themselves a strong chance of avoiding the drop with their summer additions.
Manager Scott Hellewell admitted that he wasn’t expecting to lose as many players as he has following a successful league winning season last term.
However, key players such as top goal-scorer Jack McMenemy and goalkeeper Jack Steggles have departed the club, being replaced by Heath Richardson and Scott Fenwick.
The most notable area of improvement for the Whites has been in the sides backline as they added the experienced Stefan Galinski as well as returning full back Max Baker.
They came in alongside young centre-backs Lewis Smalley, Charlie Carlisle and Sam Swinn who already has two goals for the side.
Other additions include energetic midfielders Ethan Bojang and James Chester the latter of which returned to the club after a brief spell away.
He was also joined by attacker Lewis Smith and midfielder Harvey Cribb who has since departed for League of Ireland First Division side Cobh Ramblers FC.
With 11 new faces competing for a spot in the first team and some of the Northern Premier League’s more established sides seemingly struggling, the Whites could begin to look up the table.
Credit: Ed Mayes Photography.
One of those sides that may be fighting the drop are Bridlington Town, after the Seasiders only survived last term thanks to Brighouse Town’s three-point deduction.
They also started their competitive season with a 0-0 draw against step five side Knaresborough Town in the FA Cup before the Seasiders won 2-1 after extra time in last night’s replay.
The Whites can also take confidence from Huddersfield based Emley AFC who were promoted into the division in 2023/24 and finished in the play-offs in their first season albeit on a slightly larger budget.
To replicate that, the side will need to carry on their momentum from pre-season, in which they’re now four unbeaten having progressed in both the FA Cup and Lincolnshire County Cup.
One thing certain is that it’s going to be a season of uncertainty but full of drama as the Whites compete in the FA Trophy once again while also fighting for every point in the league.