Coventry City 2-4 Lincoln City
City: Burge, Grimmer, Willis, Haynes, McDonald, Bayliss, Doyle, Kelly, Shipley, (Ponticelli 76), McNulty, Clarke-Harris (Biamou 65),. Subs: O'Brien, Stokes, Davies , Barrett, Reid, Biamou
Lincoln; Allsop, Wilson, Waterfall, Eardley, Wharton,
Bostwick, Frecklington (Whitehouse 77), Woodward, Palmer, Rhead (Williams 82), Green.(Anderson 63), Subs: Farman, Long, Pett, Stewart.
Att 13,115
Goals Rhead 1, Tom Bayliss 16, Oliver Palmer 37, 43, Jordan Shipley 38. Lee Frecklington 66
Big game, big performance needed and Coventry City were beaten 4-2 at home by Lincoln City tonight.
Three games to go and Lincoln City were the visitors to the Ricoh Arena in a re-arranged League Two fixture.
Ideally, City went into the game looking for three wins to finish as high up the play-offs places as possible but if Mansfield don't win another game, there will be more matches for City to play this season.
Tom Bayliss was recalled with Jordan Ponticelli dropped to the bench for City who took on a Lincoln City side who had a former City loanee keeper Ryan Allsopp in goal.
A decent crowd, 3,000 away fans and plenty of scouts saw Lincoln hit City straight away with the ball falling for Matt Rhead who smashed a twenty yarder high into the net with only fifty seconds gone on the scoreboard clock.
In this battle of the last two EFL Trophy winners, Coventry City were taking their time to settle against a side making their first visit to the Ricoh Arena and one prepared to use most tricks in the book to out-battle City, which has never been too hard a task.
Rhead missed with a header and when he was down the ground, claiming an injury, City broke and the ball came over for Tom Bayliss to fire into the net and level in the 16th minute.
McNulty ran and sent a shot which was pushed away for a corner as Police went in the scoreboard end. Lincoln won a 22nd minute corner that Bayliss headed away, giving the scouts something to write about.
The Imps had another one on the half hour mark but that was hit high into the North Stand.
City went up the other end with Doyle winning a corner before Shipley worked to help get another cross into the area and keep the pressure on the Imps defence.
Grimmer curled wide. Lincoln attacked and the ball fell for Oliver Palmer to fire from the edge of the area past Lee Burge in the 37th minute.
The Lincoln fans were still celebrating but City came right back when Jordan Shipley got in from a Bayliss pass and fired a powerful drive into the net to make it 2-2.
This game had more goals and the next one came in the 43rd minute when Oliver Palmer was again allowed space and time to get in a shot which beat Burge on his right.
Many City supporters would have made a change in defence at half-time but none was made by Mark Robins.
City had the first corner of the second half as the noise came from the away fans.
Clarke-Harris headed a free kick wide and in thd 51st minute. City had another that was headed away.
A corner followed won by Shipley as did one in the 54th minute and two in the 55th minute. Unfortunately, these corner were not effective enough and Lincoln were able to continue to break up the play.
Bayliss curled a shot over on the hour mark as the time-wasting by the visitors continued with Green booked for feigning before he was replaced in the 63rd minute.
Max Biamou came on for Clarke-Harris in the 65th minute.
The striker should have had a penalty but it was not given. Lincoln broke and Lee Frecklington was on hand on the left to slip the ball past Burge and give Lincoln City a 4-2 lead with 23 minutes left.
The rain was coming down really heavy as Lincoln won a corner which Rhead met and was cleared off the line for another.
Jordan Ponticelli came on for Shipley in the 76th minute.
Allsopp somehow made a one-handed save from Biamou to keep the ball off the line before Kelly won another corner that Ponticelli blasted over.
The City support started to head for home as Ponticelli badly missed before seven minutes were added on.
Allsopp was booked for time-wasting as City went down to a defeat of their own making.