PLYMOUTH ARGYLE 0-1 COVENTRY CITY BY KEV MONKS
Coventry
Westwood, Cranie, McPake (Ward 72),van Aanholt,Barnett, Gunnarsson, Cork, McIndoe,Bell, Best (Madine 90), Eastwood (Morrison. 83) SNU Hussey, Turner, Ireland, Jeffers
Plymouth
Larrieu, Diguid, Fletcher, Clark (Noone 65), Mackie, Arnason, Fellon, Johnson, Judge (Gow 84), Lowry, Gray SNU Sawyer, Lethleven, Barnes, Folly,Mason
HT PAFC 0-0 CCFC
FT PAFC 0-1 CCFC
ATT 8,347
Goal Freddy Eastwood (71)
Referee K.Stroud
Man Of The Match Freddy Eastwood took the votes in our car.
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Coventry City provided some festive cheer with their first league victory at Plymouth Argyle since the 1960's.
Coming at the end of a week where the national media had Steve Coppell lined up as the next City manager, we made the trek to Home Park in Plymouth.
Like Coventry, Plymouth had avoided the snow until we got there and with the pitch being covered overnight, the game went ahead to the delight of the 404 travelling City supporters which comprised of one official coach (not surprising at the price they charged) and various car loads of supporters from Kent, Cambridgeshire, South Wales and the Midlands.
The City fans who were in fine voice, deriding Plymouth's bid to possibly stage World Cup 2018 matches at a new 46,000 capacity ground, saw a Sky Blues side that had James McPake back in defence with Ben Turner added to the bench to make up the numbers.
City took on a Plymouth side whose lowly Championship standing is the result of a lack of finance for fellow Parkinson's sufferer and now ex manager Paul Sturrock, according to a disgruntled fan we spoke to after the game.
This assumption of the Pilgrim's plight looked spot on as the home side were awful in the first half.
They should have conceded a penalty after 100 seconds when Leon Best was sent crashing but nothing was given.
City, through wide men McIndoe and Bell, plus the lively Cork were able to carve their way through, time after time early on. But the efforts were either blocked by the defence or shots by McIndoe and Best before the half hour mark led to corners.
Freddy Eastwood, who wore a short sleeved shirt and black gloves, always looked a threat.
He drove wide from a McIndoe shot and at the end of a dour first half, last week's hat-trick hero got to a cross whipped in by Bell. He set up the incoming Leon Barnett, via a Larieu flap, who was probably further out than it looked from the other end. But the loanee blasted well over the bar.
The Green Army booed their team off whilst we pondered on how City were not comfortably ahead at the break.
As he had done for the first half, City boss Chris Coleman, wearing a a blue sweatshirt and trousers, sat on the bench, only occasionally getting up to pass on instructions to his team which had let Plymouth have the upper hand.
Argyle's best chance was a 55th minute header which went over and two corners.
But in the 71st minute, it was the City support who were going absolutely yampy, when the Sky Blues took the lead.
David Bell got the ball on the right and delivered a cracking ball into the six yard box. He picked out Freddy Eastwood a treat and the striker's powerful header gave Larieu no chance.
Elliott Ward was sent on for McPake who had done a solid job and in the 83rd minute, a standing ovation from the City support was directed at Eastwood as he was replaced by Clinton Morrison.
An 85th minute Argyle corner was cleared off the line and in the dying seconds, Keiran Westwood made those Plymouth kids to our right who had been slagging him off in the first half look foolish with a fantastic diving save.
But City had done enough and our round trip of close to 500 miles was one that ended with a very rare league victory.