Danny Cowley proud as 10-man Lincoln grind out draw against Northampton

Posted Sunday, February 10, 2019 by PA

Danny Cowley spoke of his pride after Lincoln’s 1-1 draw with Northampton, which saw the Imps play more than half the game with 10 men.

City took the lead through Bruno Andrade’s well-taken strike after 27 minutes, but the game changed when Harry Anderson was sent off for a rash challenge on David Buchanan three minutes before the break.

The Cobbers then levelled deep into first-half added time through Aaron Pierre, but the second half was an even affair.

In fact the Imps ended the game strongly and were left aggrieved when referee Michael Salisbury failed to point to the spot in added time when Tom Pett’s cross appeared to strike the arm of Charlie Goode.

But on a day which saw several of their promotion rivals beaten, it could still go down as a good point for the Sky Beat League Two leaders.

“I feel pride in the way we battled against adversity,” said Cowley. “When our backs are against the wall, we’re pretty good, aren’t we?

“I don’t think you would have realised it was 10 v 11 in the second half. The fact they were settling for a draw with 15 minutes to go shows you how well we played in the second half.”

Cowley insists a lot went against his side, particularly in the first half.

“We lost our captain [Lee Frecklington] after 25 minutes following a collision which happened in the first minute,” he added.

“Then Harry gets sent off and then we concede just before half-time. When all those things go against you, it gets really tough.

“In that situation, you’re either a victim or a fighter, and, luckily for us, we’re a group of fighters. The players responded brilliantly in the second half.”

Northampton boss Keith Curle admitted he was disappointed not to win the game.

“There are not too many times when you come away to the league leaders and you are a little bit disappointed to be leaving with just a point,” he said.

“I don’t think we used the man advantage as much as we could have done, we weren’t quite smart enough at times and we didn’t work their goalkeeper enough.”

However, Curle is pleased with the way his side have bounced back from last weekend’s 4-0 home defeat to Colchester, with Tuesday’s win at Tranmere followed by a draw at the league leaders.

“The players stood up to the challenge again,” he said. “They were brave enough to go up against the league leaders, to try and upset them, and I thought we did that.

“Last Saturday against Colchester was a kick up the backside for us but the reaction we have had from the players this week has been excellent.

“The energy levels have been fantastic and they have accepted the challenges we’ve set them full on.”