New Lincoln City man Carl Rushworth opens up on Imps move and looks ahead to new season

New Lincoln City goalkeeper Carl Rushworth has opened up on how his loan move to Lincolnshire from parent club Brighton materialised whilst looking ahead to the new season.

Despite recently signing a long-term contract at his parent club, Rushworth wasn’t going to be guaranteed first team minutes on the south coast and, having played in League Two last season, the opportunity to play up a level was one the young ‘keeper was always going to take.

“It was always the case to get the game time mainly,” the England U21 shot stopper revealed to the club’s official website after a 1-1 friendly draw with League Two side Hartlepool United.

“Then obviously with Lincoln coming in and getting in touch with Brighton early was the perfect loan for me. We just tried to tick off as many boxes as possible so yeah I’m happy to be here and get the game time hopefully.

“At the end of the day there’s only one position that we can play and it’s very rare you see a ‘keeper come on for the last five minutes or something.

“It’s tough to get to that spot but it’s just about doing what’s right to keep the shirt really and obviously I’ll learn that. I learnt that last season and obviously I’ll learn it this season so once I get enough experience I can start knocking on the door at Brighton.”

The 21-year-old played the full 90 minutes against Hartlepool and shared his delight with getting an entire game under his belt for his new club.

“Yeah 100 percent [good to get 90 minutes],” Rushworth said. “It’s not as physically challenging as it is for the outfield players, especially in heat like this but it’s always nice to get the 90 minutes.

“Obviously building on from last week with 60 minutes under my belt. In pre-season, especially at a new club,