By Nathan Jackson
May 8 2007

Alan Marriott will become the only player to have played in every single playoff game for the Imps when he dons the gloves at Bristol Rovers' Memorial Stadium on Saturday evening. Only Simon Yeo has played as many games for City in the playoffs as Marriott, but Mr Yeo is no longer here and then means the record will be Marriott's.

Alan Marriott has already broken several club records this season, mainly making the most appearances for a goalkeeper in the club's history and also the most clean sheets, including 5 in his last 7 games. His contract is due to expire next season and if he extends that deal for even just one season, he will more than likely become the club's all time leading record appearance holder, overtaking Grant Brown.

Alan Marriott was one of the many heroes of the classic 2002/3 season when the Imps made the playoffs for the first time. He conceded just 37 league goals that season out of just 46 games, the best in the 4th tier of English football that year by quite some way.

It all turned out to be a huge disappointed for all involved though as Marriott was helpless as Bournemouth stuffed 5 past him in the Playoff Final. Marriott couldn't contain himself and burst out into tears after the final whistle.....and he certainly wasn't the only one to do so. It was still viewed as a highly successful season for the Imps though.

12 months later and the Imps made their way to Huddersfield. The defence hadn't quite been as leak-free as the previous line-up but they still had a good record. City did look like they were heading through to the final after taking a 2-0 lead in a second leg, making it 3-2 on aggregate. Midway through the second half however, Huddersfield won a controversial penalty and eventually went through 4-3 on aggregate.

12 months later and the Imps were up it yet again. Marriott kept a clean sheet in the first leg against Macclesfield Town, before pulling off a fantastic save in the dying seconds in the 2nd leg to send City through to the final.

City were dominant in that final and only bad luck, and the old enemy of crap linesman proved decisive as the Imps lost 2-0 after extra time, a scoreline that definitely flatted Southend as they didn't have a meaningful shot on target until they scored in the 104th minute.

Last season saw the defence have a nightmare of a time and clean sheets were few and far between. The old problem for City came when Gareth McAuley gave the ball away cheaply (not for the first time that season might I add) and the next time a City player touched the ball was Marriott picking it up out of the net. It would eventually finish with a 3-1 aggregate score to Grimsby Town.

If Marriott does keep a clean sheet against Bristol Rovers on Saturday then it will become the first time he's kept four clean sheets in a row since the beginning of the 2003/4 season. He would then just be one game away from his best ever run without conceding a goal....easier said than done.