Skysports.com catches up with Lincoln City skipper Scott Kerr to lift the lid on life at Sincil Bank.
As part of skysports.com's League Two Spotlight, Ben Collins catches up with Lincoln City captain Scott Kerr.
Try telling Lincoln City fans that all good things come to those who wait.
The Imps spent five years pushing for promotion to the third tier of English football from 2003 to 2007.
Five years running they reached the play-offs and twice they got through to the final at the Millennium Stadium.
Yet promotion did not come and not only are the Lincoln faithful still waiting, it looks like they will be doing so for a good while yet.
The Imps failed to maintain the gradual progress they made up to 2007, finishing in the bottom half in each of the last two seasons.
Peter Jackson was axed as manager in September after a poor start to the current campaign so instead of setting their sights on finally making the step up to League One this season, the Imps are battling to drag themselves clear of relegation trouble.
The club made the bold move to hand Chris Sutton his first managerial role as Jackson's successor and the ex-Blackburn, Chelsea and Celtic striker has slowly set about steadying the ship at Sincil Bank.
Sutton took little time to show he is not afraid to make big decisions himself by dropping midfielder Scott Kerr, the club captain and the longest-serving player at the club.
Kerr was on the bench for Sutton's first seven games in charge but was recalled for the 0-0 draw with local rivals Grimsby in November and is now spearheading Sutton's bid to lead Lincoln to safety, earning rave reviews in the Imps' engine room.
"When you've been a regular for so long - and you're club captain as well - then you're very disappointed because you think you should be playing," he told
skysports.com.
"A lot of players might have gone and sulked and ended up leaving the club, but I took it on the chin, I got my head down and kept working hard.
"I knew that once I got my chance I'd be ready to take it and that's what's happened.
"On a personal note, it couldn't be going any better, to be honest. I got back in the side, the gaffer's been really pleased with me and long may it continue."
Kerr, who turned 28 on 11th December, is now in his fifth season with Lincoln after signing from non-League Scarborough in July 2005.
Having racked up 200 games in just over four years, Kerr had been used to being a key man and had to do some soul-searching during his absence from the team.
Confidence
But now he accepts Sutton was right to give him a breather and has praised the new boss for being up front about the situation.
"I had a bit of a slow start to the season because I had a medial knee ligament injury in pre-season," said Kerr.
"I kept on playing under the previous manager because we were struggling but I wasn't fully fit.
"The gaffer came in and made his decision and made some changes, and I was out of the team for maybe longer than I thought I was going to be.
"The gaffer kept pulling me to one side and saying I was the best in training and stuff like that. I did well for the reserves too so I was a bit baffled why I wasn't getting a game.
"It makes you question your ability, in a way, when you're not getting a game. You wonder if you're still good enough, and it can become a confidence thing.
"But I kept getting positive feedback and I always knew that once I got a chance I'd do well. Maybe I did have a point to prove when I got back in because I wanted to show that I deserved my place and make the gaffer believe in me.
"I kept my head down, showed a good attitude and now I'm getting my rewards. I'm glad to be back in the team, and hopefully we can start getting some results and climb up the league."
Kerr had to overcome a much bigger challenge, though, to rebuild his career with Scarborough after it was put in doubt through a serious injury.
Having started out as a trainee at Bradford, the Leeds-born midfielder signed for Hull on a three-year contract in June 2001 but just two weeks in he suffered a back injury and played just once for the Tigers before being released in March 2003.
"Brian Little signed me but was sacked by the time I got fit," he said.
"Jan Molby came in and I was just getting fully fit when he got sacked as well, so it was a tough time.
"Peter Taylor let me go and that's when I dropped out of the league to Scarborough. At the time, because I'd been out for over a year, I just wanted to get some games.
"I was a young lad and I knew if I got fit and got games then I'd have a chance of getting back into the League.
"It was tough when I was injured. When I had the operation there was a time I wondered if I'd play again because there was a chance the operation might not work.
"That was a worrying spell but once my back healed and I started playing regularly, I was always confident in my ability to get back into the League."
Boost
Sure enough, Kerr immediately established himself in the Lincoln side and is now helping a host of new signings settle in at Sincil Bank.
Sutton has brought in no less than six loanees as he bids to stamp his authority on the team and find the right blend to reverse the Imps' fortunes as they remain third-bottom, despite winning his first two games in charge.
They have not won in eight league games since and although the results are yet to come, Kerr believes the Imps are heading in the right direction and pointed to in-form Morecambe for inspiration.
"The performances are better and they've given us a confidence boost - we just need to start sticking our chances away now," he added.
"If we can do that, we'll start flying up the league, I'm sure of that.
"It's going to be a tough ask but if you look at the table, if you string three or four wins together you can fly up there.
"We played Morecambe at the end of October and they were down there with us, but they've gone unbeaten since they beat us. They've won six on the bounce and are right up there now.
"It's just a matter of getting consistency and if you can put a run together, anything's possible."
Kerr knows full well how quickly things can change from his time with Lincoln - and not just from coming back in favour with Sutton.
During the 2006/07 season - Kerr's second at Sincil Bank - new manager John Schofield and director of football John Deehan looked set to steer the club into League One after four years of play-off heartache.
But the wheels fell off the Imps' promotion bandwagon and they have not been the same since.
"We had a good squad in 2005/06, when we lost to Grimsby in the play- offs, then the gaffer, Keith Alexander, left for Peterborough," recalled Kerr.
"John Schofield took over with John Deehan and we weren't expected to do owt because we only had a squad of 15 or 16 players.
"But come Christmas we were absolutely flying. We had a settled team because we were relatively injury and suspension free.
"We then fell away in the second half of the season, though, and ended up finishing in the play-offs, where we lost to Bristol Rovers.
Freefall
"Since then it's been a bit of a freefall. The last two years we've been down in mid-table struggling and it's been a manager merry-go-round. John Schofield was sacked in October 2007 and Peter Jackson came in. He steadied the ship and got us safe.
"We were then expected to push on last season, we made some good signings and had a good squad, but we struggled to do that and Peter Jackson paid the price with his job."
Kerr has sure seen some changes at Lincoln then, although his own future is up in the air with his contract set to expire in the summer.
"I'm the only one left from when I signed," he said.
"Three or four managers have come and gone so I'm beginning to feel part of the furniture!
"It's my fifth year here now and it's not often you get players in this day and age that stay at clubs for that long.
"But it's up to the gaffer if I get offered a new contract. You don't know what he's got in his plans, but I'm not doing myself any harm by playing the way I am right now.
"I've been a good servant to Lincoln, I've played nearly 200 games in just over four seasons, which is a good record.
"Since I've been back in the team my performances are getting better and better. All I can do is keep doing that and then look at my options in January - whether the gaffer wants to keep me or I need to find another club."
In the meantime, Kerr and Lincoln have an FA Cup third round tie to look forward to on 2nd January.
The Imps have been drawn away to Bolton and Sutton's side know an upset against the Premier League outfit could act as a springboard to claiming a top-half finish during the second half of the season.
"We beat two Conference North teams to get to the third round so we've been quite lucky with the draw, but they've both been away and they're potential banana skins," said Kerr.
"Since I've been at Lincoln it's the first time we've got past the first round so we've already had a good cup run and Bolton is a good draw for us.
"It's a winnable tie because if you look at all the Premier League teams who you could maybe cause an upset against, you've got to put Bolton down as one of them because they're struggling themselves.
"We'll have nothing to lose and hopefully we'll get a few wins before then so we can go there full of confidence."
