A ten-man Lincoln United were thrashed by Kidsgrove Athletic this afternoon in the Bet Victor Northern Premier League South East.
A hat trick from Kingsley Adu-Gyamfi and goals from Kyle Diskin and Anthony Malbon saw the visitors take all three points from Ashby Avenue in convincing fashion.
Coming off an avenging victory against Loughborough Dynamo, having lost to them the week before, Lincoln United had looked to their fixture against Kidsgrove Athletic with the optimism of a team bouncing back from three defeats in a row. Unfortunately for the Whites, this optimism was misplaced as Kidsgrove controlled the game from early on.
The game’s physicality became evident as a harsh challenge from Matty Wilson was launched on Kidsgroves’ Kyle Diskin. Fortunately for the Whites, Kidsgrove struggled to dominate in the air, rendering their free-kick and crossing play irrelevant.
Danny North, United’s player of the month for September, managed to break through within the first ten minutes, but his effort to slot home into the bottom right was denied by an alert Kieran Harrison. Kidsgrove returned the favour, with a shot flashing across the face of Lincoln United’s goal.
Athletic held most of the possession despite both team’s heated attempts to secure the ball. The heated atmosphere resulted in the referee issuing a yellow card to the Kidsgrove captain Anthony Malbon.
Diskin replied to this with a sublime run into the box from his own half before a direct pass to Lee Williamson, who launched it into the air and over the net.
Then, in the 27th minute, United lost possession from a goal kick, forcing an error from Mark Gray as he poorly timed a tackle on Kingsley Adu-Gyamfi. The referee was left with no choice but to send him for an early shower, reducing the Whites to ten men.
After the match, United’s manager Steve Housham said the dismissal “changed the game.”
Kidsgrove began to make the extra man count, with Kyle Diskin slotting a volley into an open net after a Tom Nicholson save to make it 1-0 in the 44th minute.
Kingsley Adu-Gyamfi kicked off the second half for Kidsgrove, before scoring a header amongst a cluttered box following a corner to double the lead in the 47th minute. This was the start of a barrage of attacks toward Tom Nicholson’s goal, as Kyle Diskin missed a close-range volley.
Ady-Gyamfi found success again, adding to Kidsgrove’s lead thanks to a precise shot into the bottom left which snuck beneath Nicholson in the 53rd minute.
Adu-Gyamfi continued a prolific second half through an assist with half an hour remaining by cutting inside from the left before passing to allow Malbon to calmly place the ball past a hopeless Nicholson.
Kidsgrove’s fifth came from their star number 9, as he took home the match ball by capitalising on a parried Nicholson save, placing the ball into another open net and securing his hat trick.
Lincoln began to mount more of an attack toward the Kidsgrove third with 20 minutes left, allowing talisman Danny North to graze a shot across the face of the visitors’ net. Anthony Malbon did one better, hitting the Lincoln United crossbar with a delicate curling shot from the edge of the box.
Lincoln United searched desperately for a consolation goal but failed to send the fans home happy. Danny North had another failed effort parried into the feet of Jamie Goddard, whose attempt beat the keeper but not the line as Kidsgrove were forced into a goalline clearance.
The referee soon called a close to the dismal fixture, allowing Kidsgrove to celebrate on their way back to Staffordshire with three points secured on the road.
Lincoln United will now search for solutions to the poor performance prior to their visit to Sheffield FC next Saturday.