Look at the details from the distance of 20 years and it can easily be mistaken for a routine afternoon: Lincoln City 0 Carlisle United 1 (Molloy 66pen).

It wasn’t, though, quite like that - as many fans will recall. It was, in fact, the polar opposite - and the best evidence that, back in 2002 with Carlisle, even 1-0 victories could quite easily turn out to be things of enormous melodrama, controversy...even violence.

United ended what became known as the Battle Of Sincil Bank  - two decades ago today - with eight men on the pitch, three points in the bag, and a cluster of off-field arguments which confirmed beyond doubt that, in those first few post-Knighton months, the Blues had - to say the least - entered newly eventful times.

**CHECK OUT A PHOTO GALLERY AT THE TOP OF THIS ARTICLE**

The context for the Lincoln trip was a dramatic but chaotic sense of renewal at Brunton Park. Michael Knighton had finally gone, the owner’s ten-year grip on the Blues finally loosened by the instantly popular John Courtenay, and the first match of the fresh era had brought 10,684 fans to the ground.

That ended in a 3-1 defeat to Hartlepool as Roddy Collins - the reinstated manager who had previously talked his way out of the job during the takeover wrangling - assembled a new squad.

Many additions followed Collins and Courtenay from Ireland and one, midfielder Will McDonagh, grabbed a winner at Southend in their second league game. United went on to Lincoln with hope of further progress and the second Saturday of the season turned into an unlikely epic.

Trevor Molloy, the former Bohemians striker, was passed fit for the game despite fears of a broken foot, and was joined by winger Brendan McGill, the former loan winger who had just signed permanently from Sunderland.

Ex-Middlesbrough midfielder Mark Summerbell was waiting in the wings and the £100,000 defender Darren Kelly was also on his way from Derry City. Ryan Hevicon, one of Collins’s summer influx, was quickly on his way out - yet in spite of this immediate upheaval, United somehow conjured victory at Lincoln.

For seven minutes, all was calm. Then: chaos. As Lincoln prepared to aim the ball into Carlisle’s box, their defender Simon Weaver flicked an elbow at Richie Foran. The Blues striker responded with a retaliatory kick but both men appeared to have kissed and made up by the time referee Paul Robinson arrived, raising his red card to both players.

At ten-a-side, United tried to make the best use of the extra space. Ryan Baldacchino made a number of probing runs until his hamstring went and he hobbled off inside half-an-hour. When Lincoln turned things up, meanwhile, Stuart Whitehead was resolute in Carlisle’s defence.

After the break, McGill went close while United’s keeper Peter Keen excelled to keep out Lincoln’s Paul Mayo. On 65 minutes, Carlisle then scored: Peter Gain handling a header from sub McDonagh, and Molloy making no mistake from the penalty spot as he sent keeper Alan Marriott the wrong way for his first Carlisle goal.

Even then, though, the fun was only just starting. Ten minutes later, Brian Shelley was kicked by the hosts’ Simon Yeo, but the right-back's retaliation earned him a straight red from Mr Robinson.

United were as incensed as the ref was card-happy, and towards the end Molloy was also banished, for dissent.

Yet Carlisle, despite being three men down, somehow held on for victory. To add to the drama, Yeo hit the post with a late Lincoln penalty after Lee Maddison had been penalised - and the siege mentality on the pitch was reflected in the contretemps off it, given that Courtenay and Foran had also, by then, been embroiled in confrontations with stewards after the former had been asked to leave the directors’ box.

The angry scenes gave rise to a saga which ended in both Courtenay and Foran being convicted for threatening behaviour in Gainsborough Magistrates’ Court. At the time, manager Collins also alleged his players had come in for anti-Irish abuse from sections of the crowd.

All concerned had had their say about the referee by then, with even Lincoln boss Keith Alexander describing Robinson’s display as “diabolical”; Collins opting for “disgraceful”.

As the dust cleared, Carlisle were seventh in the fledgling table. Stability was, though, seldom a watchword in their new world of 2002/3. They won one of their next 15 games in all competitions and while Collins did lead the Blues to the LDV Vans Trophy final against Bristol City at Cardiff, a relegation battle also unfolded which went to the penultimate game, Brian Wake’s hat-trick against Shrewsbury bringing an often crazy struggle to a relieved conclusion.

The day the fur flew at Sincil Bank had just been the start of it.

United: Keen, Shelley, Maddison, Whitehead, Andrews, Galloway (Burns), Murphy (Wake), McGill, Baldacchino (McDonagh), Molloy, Foran. Not used: Birch, Jack.

Lincoln: Marriott, Morgan, Logan (Futcher), Weaver, Bailey (Mayo), Smith, Willis, Gain, Bimson (Buckley), Cropper, Yeo. Not used: Pettinger, Sedgemore.

Crowd: 3,034.