COVENTRY 1-1 SCUNTHORPE UNITED BY KEV MONKS
22/04/11 at the Ricoh Arena
Team
Westwood, Keogh, Clarke, Hussey (Wood 76), Cranie, Clingan, Gunnarsson, Bell, Baker (McIndoe 46), King, Jutkiewicz (Eastwood 59). SNU Quirke, Deegan, Cameron, Platt
Scunthorpe United
Murphy, Nelson, Williams, Togwell, Hughes, Mirfin, Collins (O'Connor 88), Grant, Dagnall (Miller 87), Duffy (Gordon 93), Nunez. SNU White, Lillis, Nolan,Reid
HT CCFC 1-1 SUFC FT CCFC 1-1 SUFC ATT 16,705
GOALS Marlon King (5), Ramon Nunez (37)
Referee Anthony Bates Booked None
Man Of The Match - Sammy Clingan and Marlon King shared the votes with nominations for Jordan Clarke and Richard Keogh.
_____________________________________________________
It might have been Good Friday but Coventry City only took a point from a game that most City supporters thought they would win.
For the first ever league home game that the Sky Blues have played on a Good Friday afternoon (a decision which didn't appear to have affected the crowd, especially with the Kids For A Quid offer being well utilised and even saw some people deciding to take time off work and go after Aidy Boothroyd who had this game put back to the Friday from Easter Saturday had been sacked.), Andy Thorn who is on the Sky Blues managerial short-list and wanted elsewhere according to the news today, had Jordan Clarke back in defence.
On a gorgeous afternoon where t-shirts and shorts were the order of the day and with the likes of Gary Megson, Mervyn Day and Mick Harford in the crowd, Michael Collins sent a ball across the face of the goal at the CT Stand end just missing everyone with two minutes gone.
The diamond formation of City's midfield allowed for greater retention of possession and a friend of very long standing had just remarked that Knill - the surname of the latest Scunthorpe boss, was an unfortunate name for a manager when a peach of a ball from David Bell was cut back to MARLON KING and the striker thumped home his thirteenth goal of the season.
Joe Murphy who is Keiren Westwood's understudy at international level did well to grab the ball under pressure from King before a great move in the 16th minute started by Chris Hussey saw Jordan Clarke firing wide.
Thoughts of an easy victory soon disappeared as the Sky Blues defence started to give their opponents too much space.
Chris Dagnall missed with a header and again shortly after when left all on his own in the box.
City forced two corners and Richard Keogh, who was presented with the Phil Barlow Trophy after the game from the Coventry City London Supporters Club, just missed with one of his trademark long distance screamers but Scunthorpe kept coming back.
Keiren Westwood, who collected his third consecutive South Wales Supporters Club Player Of The Year award, was alert to deal with Bobby Grant being left unmarked in the middle of the area and blocking his shot.
A shot from King launched the City supporters into a chorus of the "Sky Blue Song" but it was the 961 Scunthorpe fans who had benefited from cheap travel who had more to sing about when another cross just missed Dagnall and then in the 37th minute, RAMON NUNEZ was able to run for about twenty yards and hit a shot which took a deflection off Martin Cranie and ended up in the CT Stand net.
Now if Scunthorpe had a decent striker, they would not been in the league position they are and could have gone in at half-time well ahead.
Clingan had a shot on target at the other end but in the 41st minute, only a bad miss from Nunez stopped Scunthorpe from going into the lead following a Dagnall cross.
Carl Baker was having a nightmare and gave the ball to Michael Collins who missed the target and Mark Duffy curled wide.
Aron Gunnarsson forced Murphy, who has been watched by City on previous occasions, in to diving to his left to push the Icelander's shot around for a corner but it was no surprise that the applause for the team at half-time was only tepid at best.
Thorn and Harrison sent on Michael McIndoe for the second half in place of Carl Baker and in the 52nd minute, referee Mr Bates ignored penalty appeals when Lukas Jutkiewciz, who did not have the best of games, was clearly pushed and held down by Marcus Williams.
Westwood was the busier of the two keepers flapping at a Dagnall far post cross and in the 56th minute, catching a Duffy free header.
At the other end, Marlon King wasted a great chance when he fired over from a pass from Clarke who was having lots of freedom to get forward, following a Gunnarsson throw.
Freddy Eastwood became the second substitute used by the Sky Bluesand in the 64th minute, the Welsh international combined with David Bell to have the ball cleared two yards off the line by Andrew Hughes.
In the 76th minute, Chris Hussey was forced off after a tackle had left him needing treatment and Richard Wood came on.
With eight minutes left, Marlon King denied those who had bet on a 2-1 win for City and King first goal which against Millwall had brought odds odds of 56/1, when the striker ballooned over form close range following a wonderful ball from Clingan.
Gunnarsson had a shot blocked by Murphy as the match petered out into the draw that the visitors were looking for.