Poor Defending Sees City Go Out Of The FA Cup

Last updated : 10 November 2018 By CNS Sport

Walsall 3-2 Coventry City  

City: Burge, Willis, Hyam, Thompson, Mason, Doyle, Shipley, Hiwula,  (Chaplin 80), Ogogo (Bayliss 70), Thomas, (Jones 70), Clarke-Harris . Subs: O'Brien, Grimmer, Brown, Bakayoko. 
 
Walsall: Roberts. Leahy, Dobson, Guthrie, Devlin, Kinsella, Israel, Ginnelly (Morris 91). Gordon. Martin, Cook. Subs: 
Dunn,  Kouhyar, Johnson, Parker, Rohan, Bates.  
 
Att 4,760
 
Goals Andy Cook 12, Josh Ginnelly 28, Jonson Clarke-Harris 32, Nicky Devlin 77
 
Coventry City were the architects of their own downfall as some poor defending saw them go out of the FA Cup with a 3-2 defeat at Walsall.
 
The first of two cup matches this week and it was off up the M6 or into Birmingham New Street and out again for an FA Cup First Round tie at Walsall. 
 
As usual, a run in the cups would be something relished by the City support who were out in force with more City supporters in the ground than home fans. 
 
Being the day before Armistice Day, there was a minute's silence to remember those who has lost this lives and the game kicked off with Mark Robins changing the side, playing one up front 
 
 
Image may contain: one or more people and outdoor
 
 
City in their blue kit, attacked the end visible from the M6 for the first half.
 
It was a half that saw a poor piece of defending, give the ball back to Andy Cook who fired low past Lee Burge with a low drive from seven yards in the 12th minute.
 
Walsall, described as "Pride Of The Midlands" by their announcer, were allowed to win too many despite the efforts of Michael Doyle who was covering every blade of grass in what was a scrappy affair littered with half chances.
 
In the 28th minute, Jordan Thompson tried to head back to Lee Burge. It was too short and Josh Ginnelly nipped in to score.
 
Four minutes later  and Jonson Clarke-Harris was sent clean though and he slipped the ball past the keeper into the net as City supporters started to tether down the front of the stand behind the goal.
 
One vented his spleen at Josh Gordon for play-acting in order to win a free kick. 
 
City did won a couple of corners before the half ended and Mark Robins, against a club he played for, had chances to re-arrange things.
 
No changes were made at the break but City were far better. Two penalty shouts were ignored by the referee inside the first six minutes as some of the City support called for Bakayoko to be brought on.
 
In the 55th minute, there were City supporters on the pitch when Clarke-Harris did well and the ball came over to Luke Thomas, given permission by Derby County to play, and he drove into the net to get City level and raising the noise level in the away end to an even bigger notch.
 
That was met by threats to take the players off the pitch and ignored amongst many of the 2,655 City support who watched a Walsall header hit the bar in the 65th minute.
 
Robins made a double change in the 70th minute with the glove wearing Jodi Jones and Tom Bayliss coming on.
 
Mason got book for a foul with sixteen left. That gave the Saddlers a free kick which Burge saved brilliantly.
 
Then in the 77th minute, Hiwula gave the ball away and Nicky Devlin had space to finish smartly.
 
Conor Chaplin came on for the last ten minutes but did not get much service against a Walsall side which was time wasting to see out the game and book their place in Round Two.