Lincoln’s ‘family’ spirit behind title triumph – Michael Skubala

Lincoln head coach Michael Skubala hailed a magnificent achievement for his Imps “family” after they clinched the Sky Bet League One title following a 2-0 victory at Doncaster.

Goals in either half from Ben House sparked wild scenes of jubilation among the 3,000 travelling fans after the Imps were crowned champions in securing an incredible 27th game unbeaten.

“The goal was to get promoted, but the way we’ve done it has definitely gone above and beyond everyone’s expectations… and made some dreams come true,” Skubala said.

“Once you get the steamroller moving, these boys are just a machine, they just keep going and going.

“There’s going to be a party on Saturday [against Wycombe at home] as all the fans will love that, so we’re going to just enjoy it. We’ve achieved the big two targets and winning the title was excellent. The lads have absolutely stormed it.”

He added: “It’s definitely a family feel and it’s important we started that in the summer with all the staff connected. Everyone has worked so hard.

“The players give everything and we are relentless and resilient. The work ethic in the team is amazing.”

On the performance at the Eco-Power Stadium, which also saw Rob Street miss a penalty, the Sky Bet League One manager of the season added: “It’s hard to come away and dominate, but we totally dominated them. Second half we were just unbelievable and we could have scored more goals.

“It’s not just we’ve done it, it’s how we’ve done it. What a performance in winning the title, in just being us.

“I thought the performance epitomised our season. From start to finish, we were excellent, we have been all season.”

After Street’s penalty was saved by Thimothee Lo-Tutala, the Imps took the lead in the 43rd minute. Matty Pearson miscued a clearance and the ball found its way to Jack Moylan, who slipped in House and he slammed a low shot past Lo-Tutala as Lincoln scored for the 29th match in succession.

Lincoln secured the win after 72 minutes when Tom Hamer’s cross was flicked on by Street for House to powerfully head home.

Doncaster manager Grant McCann admitted Rovers “never laid a glove” on City as their two-match winning run came to an end.

“We were beaten comprehensively by the best team in the division,” said McCann. “They were a really good team, physical and strong.

“We struggled with their physicality, their pace, their power, their set-plays and it was a benchmark for us to see what it takes to be champions of League One.

“They were really hard to play against and we never laid a glove on them, we had a few spells but not enough to even threaten their goal.

“They fought for every ball and were together, and it was a good eye-opener for us.”