Arsenal dressing room CLEANED UP by Lincoln City players following 5-0 FA Cup quarter-final defeat at the Emirates
National League leaders again prove they are a class act - asking for a vacuum cleaner after 5-0 loss at the Prem giants
FROM the moment they started their fabulous FA Cup run right up to the end at the Emirates, Lincoln have proved they are a class act.
Despite a 5-0 loss and the fact the entire squad were knackered, they insisted on CLEANING the away dressing room.
Imps staff asked stunned Arsenal officials for a Hoover — they were given a brush — so they could get rid of all the mud on the floor.
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They also collected all their bottles into a corner.
Boss Danny Cowley, 38, said: “We always clean the dressing room wherever we go.
“We conceded at Braintree last season — a terrible goal in a pivotal game for us — and ended up drawing 1-1 but we still swept up.
“The All Blacks call it ‘sweep the decks’. If it’s good enough for the All Blacks, it’s good enough for us.
“We always make sure we clean up and leave the changing room as we found it.”
Cowley has proved to be an impressive character as well as a decent coach.
You get the impression that along with younger brother Nicky, 35, this is not the last time he will lead a side out in a big game.
Lincoln have an FA Trophy semi-final, first-leg clash against York tomorrow — the second leg is at Sincil Bank on Saturday — with a Wembley appearance up for grabs.
Cowley added: “We were 90 minutes away from Wembley. It’s about the fourth time we’ve been 90 minutes away and keep coming up short.
“This wonderful football club has never been to Wembley and you saw those supporters.
“I did them a disservice in the week because I said they were Premier League but they’re world class.
“We have to be inspired by the magnitude of this game and make sure we learn from this Cup journey.
“We accept we are very quickly going to become fish and chip paper.
“But if you can’t learn from playing against world-class players, then something’s wrong, isn’t it?
“People say this is a distraction but it has massively fast-tracked our development as a group.”
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Lincoln gave a superb account of themselves in the first half before conceding in injury-time.
Striker Matt Rhead, 32, said: “The goal just before half-time killed us a bit. But they’re a world-class team.
“They showed us respect and played their best players so you can’t complain.”
Rhead also enjoyed his battle with Laurent Koscielny — despite getting an elbow in the face.
He said: “It was beautiful. I loved every minute. It was a good battle.
“I got Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s shirt. Their lads were fine, signed things for us and it was a great touch from them.
“We want medals round our necks at the end of the season as a reminder of what we’ve achieved.
“Hopefully, we’ve got Wembley to come and we can put this behind us and sweep it under the carpet.”