Ashby Ivanhoe 1 Lincoln United 2

Ashby Ivanhoe fell to defeat for the first time this season as visitors Lincoln used their two-man advantage to come from behind.

In what was another slow Ivanhoe first half, life was made more challenging for the hosts as Will Mansfield was sent off for a reckless challenge on Kallum Smith.

They responded well to going down to 10 men however, and matched Lincoln for the remaining minutes of the half.

Prior to this they had been under the cosh, as Sam Taylor was forced into multiple fine saves when both teams had 11 on the pitch.

Ashby's best chance of the first half came when Liam Storer, covering at left back, picked out Sam Grouse who shifted onto his left foot and fired narrowly over the bar.

A recurring theme of Ashby's season so far has been their blistering second half performances.

Despite being a man down they shot out the blocks and took the lead in the opening minutes of the half.

Joe Neal was first to react as the ball bobbled from a corner, he saw his strike crash off the woodwork and fall to Danny Quinn's feet, the forward making no mistake and firing under Jack Steggles in the Lincoln goal.

Their celebrations would be short lived as the visitors responded quickly, scrambling in a cross from the right which Ivanhoe failed to clear, Jack McMenemy getting the final touch.

Things went from bad to worse for Ivanhoe as Liam Storer was sent off for a verbal interaction with a supporter.

After the match, Andy Gray described the incident as 'unacceptable' and reiterated that it is not something that is condoned by the football club.

With two men less, the final 20 minutes would be a back to the walls job for Gray's team, but they were able to surpress Lincoln's attacks for the most part and looked organised with a makeshift defence.

Setpieces were the most notable deficiency for Ashby without both of their full backs, and Lincoln capitalised as the free man Sean Wright's looping header deceived Taylor and dropped into the net with eight minutes to play.

Lincoln saw out the game well in the remaining minutes, using their advantage to play the ball around well and tire out the nine men.

Ivanhoe have no time to dwell on the defeat as they travel to Belper United on Wednesday night.

The Greens have made a strong start to the season and will provide another stern test for Gray's team.