David Artell says there is a worrying pattern beginning to take shape when it comes to our away form this season. Whilst Crewe Alexandra have produced promotion winning form at home, our away performances have mustered just one point and one goal thus far.

Artell was left frustrated again as Crewe came up short against the league leaders, despite having periods of possession and some openings on the day.

Lincoln substitute Tom Pett scored the only goal of the game just before the hour mark to seal the points for the home side.

Talking after the narrow 1-0 defeat at Sincil Bank, Artell said: “I can stand here and say we deserved something from the game and there was nothing between the two sides, but there is a pattern forming now. We deserved more at Cheltenham, we deserved more at Carlisle, we deserved more at Newport but we cannot keep saying it. It is a pattern now and we have to address it.

“There are too many should ofs, could ofs and buts and maybes and they are just words, they don’t get you points. George Ray has headed two from corners into the hands of their goalkeeper stood on the goalline and we had one or two other chances. We should have scored. We could have been 1-0 up, 2-0 up but we weren’t.

“We have got to go out there and prove it. We need that belief away from home. We got into some great positions, especially in the first half but too often those moves fizzled out. Come on, we have got to be better than that and want to be breaking a neck to score a goal.

“We have been on to the midfielders to get into the box more. How many times did our midfielders get in the box? It wasn’t many. Their substitute comes on, gets in the box and scores the winning goal, there is the difference.

“We have players who have scored goals in their careers, and they just have to rediscover that belief and confidence, away from home because they are good players and they can do it. They have shown it.”