Carabao Cup: Bristol City 1-3 Lincoln City - Imps stun Robins to reach fourth round

Ben House scored his fifth goal of the season as Lincoln ended their three-game winless run by beating Bristol City

League One side Lincoln responded to their shock FA Cup exit with a stunning win to knock Championship side Bristol City out of the Carabao Cup.

On-loan Liverpool midfielder Matty Virtue's fine sixth-minute strike gave the Imps a boost after their defeat at non-league Chippenham on Saturday.

Ben House doubled the lead by robbing Joe Low and racing into the area to lob City's debutant keeper Stefan Bajic.

Paudie O'Connor's header sealed the win before Tommy Conway's consolation.

Lincoln were good value for their two-goal lead although the hosts did have chances to get back into the game.

Carl Rushworth thwarted Mark Sykes' header while Antoine Semenyo fired a glorious opportunity wide in front of an unimpressed home crowd who had seen Robins boss Nigel Pearson make eight changes to his starting line-up.

Any momentum Pearson had tried to instil in his side at the break fell by the wayside four minutes after half-time when defender O'Connor capitalised on poor City defending from a free-kick to head in from close range.

Conway gave City a late flicker of hope, poking in at the second attempt to at least put the hosts on the board.

The defeat means City have won just one of their past seven home games, while Lincoln's accomplished display puts them in the fourth round of the competition for only the second time in their history.

Bristol City manager Nigel Pearson told BBC Radio Bristol:

"We had players who basically copped out. We don't really have a competitive squad in the way we hoped we had, and that's a big disappointment.

"We've clearly got players who are not showing enough moral fibre. I take responsibility - it's my team.

"It's not good but we'll have to deal with it. We need a response on Saturday [at home to Watford]."

Lincoln manager Mark Kennedy told BBC Radio Lincolnshire:

"We were excellent out of possession, really tough to break down. It's not backs-to-the-wall - there's a real structure to it.

"We were very good in transitions and in the first 25 minutes we were excellent on the ball. The all-round performance was a big plus.

"Saturday was a bitter blow for everybody so I would hope that everyone's feeling a bit perkier tonight."