Sky Blues writer Andy Turner examines what’s happening in and around the club this week in Coventry City news from CoventryLive.
Coventry City returns to Championship action on Tuesday night when they host goal-shy Bristol City at the CBS Arena. The team has had a busy few weeks both on and off the field.
The mid-table Robins, who have only registered 13 league goals away from Ashton Gate, are thought to be playing rather well but are simply having trouble scoring. They currently have the fifth lowest road return in the entire division. Although they have only scored three goals in their past seven league and FA Cup games, they have eliminated Premier League West Ham and forced Nottingham Forest to a replay.
Away from the field, the Sky Blues have, regrettably, been in the national limelight for all the wrong reasons since the Hillsborough alleged racial abuse, which happened around the same time as a virtually comparable event in Italy. On Friday night, when the players were returning to South Yorkshire, they were jeered for bending their knees prior to kickoff, which further infuriated City. Here, we examine events within and surrounding the club as reported in Andy Turner’s weekly Coventry City notebook.
A touching moment from a young Wednesday enthusiast
The moment Kasey Palmer received a letter and chocolates from Cole, a young Sheffield Wednesday supporter who was determined to stand by the Coventry forward after he was singled out in the Championship game the previous weekend, was one of the most touching moments of Friday night’s return to Hillsborough.
After Friday’s game, the schoolboy spoke with Kasey, saying, “I understand what went off and it’s just horrible.”
The player answered, “Thank you very much. “Thank you,” I said, embracing the young man and his pleased mother. A few young Wednesday supporters, meantime, were waving a homemade flag that said, “Racists, get in the trash.”
Bring on the skin of a banana
If City makes it through their FA Cup fourth round replay, which is scheduled for Tuesday, February 6 at the CBS Arena, they will be rewarded with a home match against non-league giant killers Maidstone United. On paper, it looks like a giant potential banana skin for the Sky Blues (or Sheffield Wednesday), who most neutrals throughout the nation will undoubtedly be hoping to defeat the National League South team in order to prolong the “magic” of the cup.
After watching Maidstone’s video response to the draw, some City supporters have taken issue with their expression of dismay at their team being chosen at random to play a different Championship team after they had defeated Ipswich Town at Portman Road the previous weekend. Who can blame them? They had hoped to win a glamorous trip to Manchester City, one of the two Premier League teams still in the running, along with Luton Town. It was more of a sincere disappointment at not being able to enjoy a big day out against the top flight Champions than it was a disrespectful gesture toward Coventry.
