Position: midfield.

Lincoln City career: 78+(11) appearances and 5 goals between June 2000 to June 2002.

Previous clubs: Nottingham Forest, Scunthorpe, Lincoln City, Exeter City, York City, Cambridge United and Chester City

Present club: Burton Albion.

Justin Walker is a former England youth International who joined the Imps - on a two year contract - in July 2000, under the Bosman ruling.

He was born in Nottingham and signed for Nottingham Forest as a 13-year-old where he progressed to earn a trainee's contract. While at Nottingham Forest, he was a teammate of both John Finnigan and Paul Smith, who would all link up again at Lincoln City.

Competition for Forest's first team was great, so all three decided to leave with Finnigan and Smith electing to join Lincoln while Walker opted for Scunthorpe United. Initially the transfer, which took place In March 1997, was a loan deal before Scunthorpe agreed a £5,000 price tag with Forest.

Walker is an excellent passer of the ball and a strong tackler. Hence he quickly established himself as a regular by making nearly 150 appearances for Scunthorpe before his three year contract expired.

He was one of the few players to gain any credit from Lincoln's poor 2000/01 season. Unfortunately, his second season at Lincoln was a disappointment as he struggled to regain his place following injury. However, during the closing months, he rediscovered his form but it was too late to earn himself a new contract and he was released by Lincoln in June 2002.

Walker, after leaving Lincoln City, could have been forgiven for thinking that his career had been cursed. While at Lincoln City, he spent his time fighting against relegation from the Football League. After leaving Lincoln, he played for three teams who were all relegated in separate seasons. The sequence began with Exeter City, then York City and finally Cambridge United.

A fresh start at Chester City came in June 2005 but his time at Chester was for just one season. He now plans another fresh start, this time at non-league Ilkeston Town.

Position: striker.

Lincoln City career: 211+(18) and 66 goals between August 1997 - May 2002.

Previous clubs: Blackpool, Bangor City, Lincoln City, Leyton Orient, Grimsby, Bristol Rovers, Swansea City and Peterborough United

Present club: Torquay United.

Lee Thorpe was signed by then Imps' manager John Beck in July 1997 on a free transfer following off the field problems at Blackpool. Their loss was Lincoln's gain as Thorpe's first season at Sincil Bank saw him finish as The Imps' leading scorer with 14 goals, thereby overcoming initial supporter criticism.

He also scored the goal that took Lincoln back to Division 2; however, despite his 14 goals, Thorpe spent most of the following (1998/99) season out of position and this was a costly mistake. For as the season drew to a close, he was once again deployed as striker and this saw him hit 6 goals in the final 7 matches.

A row at the start of January 2000 saw Thorpe dropped from the team and his days at Sincil Bank seemed to be ending although the disagreement with then Imps' boss John Reames was resolved. As a result, he was named as Lincoln City FC's Player Of The Season for the 1999/2000 season.

In April 2002, Thorpe was unexpectedly released on a free transfer as Lincoln sought to cut costs - he joined Leyton Orient. The free transfer release was a huge surprise as Thorpe was one of the few players to have commanded a fee. A year before he left, Lincoln had turned down a £150,000 bid from Rochdale.

Thorpe, since leaving Lincoln City, has become a journeyman striker. During his near two years at Leyton Orient, he was loaned to Grimsby Town before joining Bristol Rovers in a permanent deal in March 2004. He was on the move again within a year, this time joining Swansea City, initially on loan, before he turned the loan into a permanent transfer.

During his 15 months at Swansea, he went to play for both Peterborough United and Torquay United on loan. Torquay, who were fighting for their Football League status, decided to sign Thorpe on a free transfer from Swansea in May 2006. This was reward for Thorpe's contribution to Torquay's successful and dramatic escape from relegation.