Lincoln hardly prepared for the playoffs in ideal circumstances having failed to win any of their previous three League One matches, which resulted in a fifth-placed finish. The Imps were thumped 4-0 by Sunderland meeting back in December and will be desperately looking to end their six-game wait for a home victory having finished the season in wretched form at Cincil Bank.

桑德兰的赛季几乎没有结束得更好，在4月份的七场比赛没有赢球之后，他们的前两名的希望破灭了。黑猫队两战两胜，但必须比两条腿表现更好，以避免连续第四年在甲级联赛中取得好成绩。