EVEN Usain Bolt would have been staggered by the speed Lincoln City decisively levelled against Notts County. In fact, the Imps equalised in the blink of an eye longer than it takes the world's fastest man to sprint 200m.

The Magpies have surrendered leads so many times this season, but none more spectacularly swift than at Sincil Bank.

Sam Mullarkey cancelled out Delroy Facey's opener quicker than you could say 'Notts are on their way to back-to-back league wins for only the second time this season', after they took the lead.

Thirty seconds, that was the gap, if that word is even appropriate, between the game's two goals.

And as flawless as the substitute's finish was, that is utterly unforgivable from the Magpies' perspective.

It is often said teams are at their most vulnerable in the minutes immediately after they have scored – how that was proven. Talk about joy turning to despair.

When Facey struck, it looked like Notts could claim a second successive 1-0 away win after beating Bournemouth by that scoreline on the south coast seven days earlier.

Lincoln were hardly posing a major threat.

But the weather was not the only distinct difference between the two games. In glorious sunshine at Dean Court, the Magpies were resolute in the face of some fierce pressure from Bournemouth.

In the wind and rain at Sincil Bank, they could not even hold on to their lead for a minute.

Facey's goal was an outstanding piece of opportunism, as he seized on to a defensive mix-up between keeper Rob Burch and Moses Swaibu and coolly side-footed the ball into the empty net from an acute angle.

Nine goals now, he is the club's outright leading scorer ahead of Jamie Forrester – who was twice memorably denied by Burch – and Richard Butcher, who have both scored eight times.

In fairness, he has played a lot more games than both of them. In fact, Facey has only missed one league game all season, which is incredible given he endured a difficult pre-season at Gillingham before arriving at Meadow Lane.

It also shows his significance in the side that boss Ian McParland has rarely left him out.

But he did not savour his latest strike for long as Mullarkey curled a luscious left-footed effort past Kevin Pilkington and into the top left corner of the net from 25 yards.

Pilkington made a mistake in the game between the two sides at Meadow Lane in December when he tried to claim a cross instead of punching it clear and gifted Adrian Patulea the winning goal.

But there was nothing, absolutely nothing, he could do to stop Mullarkey's strike. It was truly unstoppable.

Any fault was with the defenders in front of him, in allowing the Imps' substitute too much time and space just outside the penalty area.

Not for the first time this season, the Magpies had to settle for a point when they should have claimed all three.

They were easily the better team in the first half – with wingers Myles Weston and Matt Hamshaw both in terrific, terrorising, form.

Hamshaw was sorely missed in the second half, after being forced off at half-time with a dead leg. On-loan Jonathan Forte replaced him but looked entirely uncomfortable on the right wing.

Notts had a string of good chances to break the deadlock in the first half – two were glorious opportunities.

Captain John Thompson went close to scoring his first goal for the club on 38 minutes when Weston got past Lee Beevers on the left and broke into the box.

His cross was only cleared to Thompson, who side-stepped one challenge before firing a shot that hit Janos Kovacs and deflected over the bar.

On his first return to Sincil Bank since leaving the Imps to join Notts last summer, Forrester then forced Burch into a wonderful save in the closing minutes of the half with a spectacular scissors-kick strike.

It looked destined to put the Magpies ahead until the Imps' keeper somehow managed to tip it over his crossbar at full-stretch to his right.

There were other chances. On-loan right-back Phil Picken rifled wide from 20 yards, Hamshaw dragged a shot off target at the end of a sweeping counter-attack and Weston volleyed over the bar.

It was wastefulness that would cost Notts in the end, of course.

Forrester and Facey both enjoyed memorable chances in the second half.

First, Forrester was denied by Burch just before the hour mark. Once again, the striker showed good control to bring Weston's left-wing cross under his command and he did well to hold off a challenge from Swaibu.

But Burch narrowed his angle of opportunity at the near post and parried his effort away.

Facey then rifled narrowly wide from inside the box, after cutting inside his marker.

The Magpies have still only won two league games in a row once this season and that was almost six months ago when they beat Aldershot and Port Vale.

With the quality and experience in the squad, they should be capable of so much better.

Currently 17th in the table with six games of the season left, they will always be languishing in the lower reaches of the basement division without any kind of consistency.

If they want to challenge in the top half of League Two next season, it is a record they desperately need to change.