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| Event | 2016–17 FA Cup | ||||||
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| Date | 18 February 2017 | ||||||
| Venue | Turf Moor,Burnley | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Matt Rhead (Lincoln City) | ||||||
| Referee | Graham Scott | ||||||
| Attendance | 19,185 | ||||||
Burnley vs Lincoln City was anFA Cup fifth round tie, played on 18 February 2017 atTurf Moor,Burnley betweenPremier League sideBurnley andNational League sideLincoln City, who won the game 1–0. This was the first time a top division side lost to a non-League side sinceNorwich City's 1–0 loss to Luton Town in 2013 (for whom Burnley striker Andre Gray was playing at the time, meaning he beat a Premier League team with a non-League side, and lost to a non-League side with a Premier League team).[1] This was also the first time in 103 years that anon-League side reached the last 8 stage of the FA Cup (now the Quarter Finals or sixth round, then the fourth round), sinceQueens Park Rangers of theSouthern Football League in1914, and the first outright since the non-League became part of theEnglish football league system instead of running parallel to theEnglish Football League.[2][3][4] Lincoln City would go on to play Premier League side, and eventual FA Cup champions,Arsenal away at theEmirates Stadium in the quarter-finals,[5] losing 5–0.[6]
| Round | Opposition | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 3rd Replay | Sunderland (a) Sunderland (h) | 0–0 2–0 |
| 4th | Bristol City (h) | 2–0 |
| Key: (h) = Home venue; (a) = Away venue; (n) =Neutral venue. | ||
As aPremier League team, Burnley started in the third round where they were drawn away at fellow Premier League teamSunderland. They drew 0–0 at theStadium of Light but won the replay atTurf Moor 2–0 due to goals fromSam Vokes andAndre Gray.[7] In the fourth round they were drawn at home withFootball League Championship teamBristol City, where they won 2–1 due to goals from Vokes andSteven Defour.[8]
| Round | Opposition | Score |
|---|---|---|
| QR4 Replay | Guiseley (h) Guiseley (a) | 0–0 1–2 |
| 1st | Altrincham (h) | 2–1 |
| 2nd | Oldham Athletic (h) | 3–2 |
| 3rd Replay | Ipswich Town (a) Ipswich Town (h) | 2–2 1–0 |
| 4th | Brighton & Hove Albion (h) | 3–1 |
| Key: (h) = Home venue; (a) = Away venue; (n) =Neutral venue. | ||
As aNational League team, Lincoln City started in the fourth qualifying round, where they were drawn with fellow National League team,Guiseley at home. After a 0–0 draw atSincil Bank, they won the replay 2–1 atNethermoor Park due to goals fromAdam Boyes andTheo Robinson.[9] In the first round proper, they drewNational League North sideAltrincham at home, where they won 2–1 due to goals fromSean Raggett andAlan Power.[10] In the second round they drewFootball League One teamOldham Athletic. At Sincil Bank, Lincoln City progressed after a 3–2 win due to two goals from Robinson and one fromTerry Hawkridge.[11] In the third round, they drew Football League ChampionshipIpswich Town away. After a 2–2 draw atPortman Road they won the replay at Sincil Bank 1–0 due to a goal fromNathan Arnold.[12] In the fourth round they played Football League Championship teamBrighton & Hove Albion at Sincil Bank. Lincoln City won 3–1 due to goals from Power, Robinson and anown goal fromFikayo Tomori to set up the match with Premier League Burnley.[13]
Burnley went into the match with only three home defeats in their last 29 games. Lincoln approached the game using their players in numbers to Burnley's tactics.[2] In the first half, both teams had chances with Lincoln'sJack Muldoon shooting over the crossbar and Burnley'sAndre Gray getting a shot on target but it was saved by Lincoln goalkeeper Paul Farman. The first half finished 0–0.[14] During the second half, there was a contest between Burnley'sJoey Barton and Lincoln'sMatt Rhead which eventually ended up in a brawl inside Lincoln's penalty area when Rhead claimed Barton had stamped on him and then Barton pushedTerry Hawkridge in the face and received ayellow card for it.[2] Lincoln then started putting crosses into Burnley's penalty area. Eventually Lincoln scored on 89 minutes with their only shot on target of the game due to a header fromSean Raggett, which was confirmed viagoal-line technology. Burnley responded with a number of attacks during five minutes ofstoppage time, forcing Lincoln to defend a number of shots andcorner kicks however Lincoln held on for the win becoming the first non-league side in 103 years to reach the FA Cup quarter-finals.[2]
After the match, the Lincoln City managerDanny Cowley called it a "football miracle" and said about the goal "thank God for goal-line technology!". Burnley managerSean Dyche said "I'm only gutted in the sense that could happen...My team were nowhere near the level they can show. You have to work, be diligent and believe you will get another chance. I think they only had one chance, credit to them."[2]
As a result of their victory, Lincoln City were drawn away in the quarter finals at Premier League Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, where they were offered 9,000 away tickets. This was the full 15% away allocation permitted under FA Cup regulations, which Arsenal had only previously offered twice before due to safety concerns.[15]
          Burnley |   Lincoln City |
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