SPORT - Misery for Mills as Lincoln beat York 4-1 at Bootham Crescent

York City endured a disappointing evening at Bootham Crescent as they were defeated 1-4 by Lincoln City.

Goals from Elliot Whitehouse, Nathan Arnold, Luke Waterfall and Bradley Wood ensured the 1,068 away fans loud celebrations were in stark contrast to the smattering of boos from the home fans that greeted the final whistle.

Jan Klukowski picked up the only goal for the Minstermen when they were 0-3 down, but it was to be a mere consolation.

Lincoln came into the match second in the National League and, despite an even first twenty minutes, the difference in quality showed with York, who dropped into the relegation zone on Saturday, particularly ineffective in attack.

Prior to the first goal, both sides had looked fairly even, the pace of Robbie McDaid and Aidan Connolly troubling the away team's defence defence. But with 24 minutes played, the York defence failed to attack a low Nathan Arnold corner, and Whitehouse poked home at the near post.

The Imps’ second came just six minutes later, Klukowski underhit a pass on the edge of his penalty area, dove to win it back, and Arnold drove home the resulting free kick under the wall to Scott Flinders’ left.

York’s best chance of the half fell to Matt Fry, the defender meeting debutant Simon Lappin's free kick at the far post, but his header was not powerful enough to trouble Lincoln keeper Paul Farman, who gathered it with ease.

Gary Mills changed tactic for the second half, sending his team out in a 4-3-3, but it did not prevent their opponents adding a third in the 60th minute. Flinders was only able to parry Callum Howe’s close range shot into the path of Waterfall who scrambled the ball into the back of the net.

With the mood in Bootham Crescent turning sour, City needed a quick response and delivered one by way of Klukowski half way through the second period. Sean Newton rose to head a free kick across goal and the centre back bundled home at the second attempt after his initial effort hit Farman in the Lincoln goal.

And the Minstermen should have added a second two minutes later, Newton choosing to square for McDaid rather than shoot when put through on goal. Instead, the three goal margin was restored in the 74th minute, the Imps' right back Wood was allowed to maraud inside and poked an effort inside Flinders’ left post from 15 yards.

To add to York's problems, Daniel Nti received a straight red card in the last minute of the match for a rash challenge on Alan Power. The Minstermen have now had a player dismissed in their last three matches.

York City manager Gary Mills:

We’ve got to stay positive. When you’re losing games, and losing it how we’ve lost it tonight, to put a team out there on Saturday and be as positive as anything gets tougher. But we’ve got to be, and I’ve got to be, positive and I’ve got to work tomorrow, Thursday, Friday and go over that white line to get a result down at Bromley.

We can’t give in, we can’t do anything about the games that have gone. If I try to analyse and go on about everything that happened in that game tonight then I think I’d be up all night, but it only creates more problems. It’s about going forward, it’s about me putting the players on that bus Saturday to go and get a result for this football club.

I don’t have to tell you what this club means to me, I’ve come back in here because I want to be the one that gets it going again and gets us up that league and takes us forward, that’s what I’m here for and I’m here for the right reasons for that to happen.

I thought we had a step forward Saturday with the performance but then its two back tonight and that can’t happen. It’s got to be week in week out – we know between now and the end of the season we’re not going to be winning every game but we’ve got to go and get enough points between now and the end of the season to keep us out of that bottom four.

The one thing you can’t put into players is workrate and the desire to go and win a football match. No matter how good you are as a player ability-wise I cannot put in hard work and the desire to go and win a game, that’s got to come from players, and I need players at this moment in time that are here to give this football club that.

By Peter Rogers, York City Reporter

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