COMMENT: Sky Blues fans finally have a team they can be proud of - The Coventry Observer

COMMENT: Sky Blues fans finally have a team they can be proud of

Coventry Editorial 5th Nov, 2015 Updated: 28th Oct, 2016   0

Pride, passion and a pure will to win, three characteristics not normally associated with a Sky Blues team in recent years, but now us long-suffering fans finally have a team to be proud of.

I write this piece in the aftermath of possibly one of the greatest City comebacks I have ever witnessed.

Saturday was a tale of two halves. In the first the Sky Blues looked like a team that had never played with each other before.

There seemed to be a lack of communication and defensively it was the worst I have seen this season. Both goals conceded should easily have been avoided.




Conor Washington should not have been allowed to make room for a cross which Jermaine Anderson was able to convert after easily stepping away from his marker, while

Erhun Oztumer was given far too much time and space to pick his spot from long range.


There was a real sense of negativity at the break but the introduction of Jim O’Brien completely changed the game and the atmosphere inside the Ricoh Arena.

One of his first acts was to dive in and win a strong 50/50 battle in the centre of the park and that set the tone for the rest of the second half and he was instrumental again on Tuesday evening by playing a starring role in another Sky Blues win.

O’Brien has been slightly hit and miss this season in terms of his form, but on Saturday he demonstrated why he remains a key cog in Mowbray’s quest for promotion.

We then witnessed a Sky Blues team full of hunger and a determination not just to claim what would have been a fourth consecutive draw, but wanting to claim all three points – and they did just that.

Adam Armstrong will deservedly get the headlines for another two goals and his turn for the winner was simply world class.

But Jacob Murphy deserves a mention for the part he had to play. The Norwich winger can frustrate fans with his final ball but he is still very much learning the trade.

When it comes to the final 20 minutes of matches, he has got the beating of his full-back almost every time and on Saturday he showed again that at times he has quality when it really matters.

The home support also must get credit for the part they played. The scenes when Armstrong fired home the winner were incredible and even I was on my feet celebrating in the press box!

In Saturday’s programme skipper Sam Ricketts paid tribute to the hundreds of fans who stood in the pouring rain at Swindon and witnessed Mowbray’s side throw away a two-goal lead.

I was one of those fans and at the final whistle it felt like a defeat, but hats off to Ricketts for praising another large travelling support.

Saturday’s win has banished that Swindon trip from my memory and Tuesday’s win fills me with more hope that this team can go on and achieve something very special this season. PUSB!

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