Coventry 1-1 Walsall

[JJ1532]

People wanted a 1-1 draw, they got it. Better point for Walsall, but not bad for Coventry either.

 

[JoeJoeJoeJoe]

Shame we couldn't hang on. I'm not angry, just disappointed.

 

[DH84]

Shame we couldn't hang on. I'm not angry, just disappointed.

Similar reaction to when your mother gave birth to you then pal

 

[PUSBCCFC]

Wasn't there tonight, but it sounded like one of the many other games we have thrown away points. It is obviously different as Walsall are a good team, but the amount of late goals we have conceded is continuing to worry to me.

 

[SkyBlueElephant]

We dominated the match but never killed the game off and were hit with the late sucker punch.

Credit to Walsall for hanging in there but they got out of jail tonight with the late goal tonight.

 

[DH84]

Sawyers is a very good player. Everything good from Walsall came through him.

 

[CCFC_Charlie]

Just got back from the game, one word to sum it up would be disappointed. We did enough within 70 minutes to win the game but stepped off Walsall for the last 20 and they punished us. We can't expect to get automatic promotion with the number of points we drop. Pretty much every game we've drawn at home this season we could have easily won. We desperately need to strengthen defensively as neither Haynes or Phillips are good enough to be starting for a team aiming for play-offs, let alone top two. Getting a bit pissed off at all our fans that love O'Brien and whinge when he's not in the team, today showed why Mowbray loves to drop him. Headless chicken who often lets us down defensively. Fleck and Stokes were the men of the match, absolutely exceptional. Joe Cole put in his best performance, that I've seen, in a City shirt. Armstrong again proved why he's the best striker in the league. Very unlucky not to get on the scoresheet.

Walsall were good, and I could see why they are where they are. They looked very well organised, and fit as well. Despite the fact they played on Saturday while we didn't they still looked to have more in their legs last 10 than we did. Rico Henry is a class act and so is Romaine Sawyers. That O'Connor is a proper prick though, could have been sent off in the away game and should have gone tonight. Ridiculous amount of cynical challenges to break down our attacks. I worry for them though if they lose Bradshaw as they didn't seem to have much upfront without him. If they can keep their squad together then I can see them easily earning automatics.

 

[DH84]

Oh and I hope Fortune suffers terribly for the rest of his life. Joe would be more of a goal threat than him and he's a 2 stone overweight ginger man.

 

[PUSBCCFC]

Why the fuck does he keep putting Fortune on. He had Tudgay and Lamerias on the bench ffs.

 

[skyblue76]

I wouldn't begrudge Walsall their point. We were in control for the most part and Walsall didn't create much but they looked a decent side (and they clearly are from their league position) and kept the ball well. We seemed to tire badly at the end and if anything were hanging on. Again we pay the price for not killing the game off when we were in control.

1 point from 6 against Walsall this season could be telling. I still maintain the only game we deserved to lose this season was at Walsall, so hats of to them as over the two games we have played they've looked about the best team we've come up against. Still, frustrating night tonight. Should have seen it out.

 

[ccfctommy]

Love the way Fortune is the new scapegoat. Was on for a third of the time and did just as much/little as Maddison.

When he actually plays upfront he does well. See Colchester away.

Phillips, Haynes and Jim O Brien were poor. Walsall deserved their win and their keeper made some fantastic saves especially from Armstrong.

 

[SaddlerJonny]

Felt we were a little lucky to get a draw from that. Cov set up to do a number on us and they did they very well. They sat back with two banks of 4, let us overplay it or make a mistake, and then counter attacked us from our mistakes. We looked very leggy, tired and slow first half and you can tell the Saturday game took a lot out of us. Whitney must of worked some physio magic as we came out second half looking a little more energetic and managed to get a goal from our first decent move of the match where we actually stretched Cov, and bang Tom gets the half chance he needs to score.

This team just doesn't give up. When we were 1 nil down with 20 to go, and whilst playing better than the first half, not really playing well in general - I still, the fans still and most importantly the player believed they could still get a point, or even win it, and they did.

 

[SkyBlueElephant]

Love the way Fortune is the new scapegoat. Was on for a third of the time and did just as much/little as Maddison.

When he actually plays upfront he does well. See Colchester away.

Phillips, Haynes and Jim O Brien were poor. Walsall deserved their win and their keeper made some fantastic saves especially from Armstrong.

He's shite, anyone who says otherwise doesn't like facing facts. Does it occur to you that Maddison and other players get more slack when they under perform because usually they play well. Fortune gets rightly slated because its the norm for him, 90% of the time he plays he's a waste of time, a waste of sub and waste of a player.

And Walsall didn't win.

 

[DH84]

Fortune is stealing a wage, even more than Kevin Kyle was.

 

[Saddlerrad]

That's a point I will definetely take.

I thought the game was well contested but generally very poor as a spectacle. Our performance replicated that of the fans on the terraces, quite flat after a big day on Saturday. Defensively we played okay and limited Coventry to a goal, a few pop shots and then 1 big chance from Armstrong. Coventry looked fitter and brighter for 70 minutes and as Jonny said, did a number on us. Sat back and let us overplay our way into mistakes, then pressed hard in banks of 4 as we broke into the midfield area - this resulted in us passing sidewards or having to go backwards.

We looked tired and sluggish, didn't win more than 25% of the second balls. That being said, for all Coventry had the ball for 70 minutes, I was surprised at their lack of cutting edge or overall threat, we didn't really look in trouble bar that save in the second half. I thought SOD had lost the plot trying to play Sawyers wide for the opening segment of the second half, but he quickly sorted that by taking the woeful Lalkovic off on the night and bringing Forde on. This gave us more balance I felt and we spent the last 20 or so minutes as the more threatening side.

I have to admit I was shocked how Coventry just seemed to fall away after that...be it fitness, confidence or pressure - but they got deeper and let Sawyers have all of the ball around the area. Didn't think we would score at all, but a lovely finish after good work down the left from Rico. Lovely little volley finish from Bradshaw. Thereafter, had we actually played a couple of good clinical balls in 3 vs 3 situations, we could have perhaps snook it late on.

I thought Coventry were best described as 'efficient and energetic', lots of good ball players, some physicality in central midfield and in Armstrong, the most impressive player I've seen this season, whilst, I was very dissapointed with our attacking and possession play. Perhaps I've become used to us being dynamic, or totally bossing games on the ball, I thought tonight we lacked fluency and looked leggy against fresher opposition. We did however, defend well and grew back into the game - ending as the better side in the last segment of the game and POSSIBLY overall, deserved our point. There's just something very steely about this side. Never give up.

Not sure SOD is the right man yet, but I like the way he changes a game quickly enough to rectify things.

A must not lose game and a point I'd have taken hugely before the game.

 

[ccfctommy]

Walsall deserved their win! Whoops.....

I would rather see Tudgay come on for MAF but I do get why Mowbray sticks him out wide. What on earth does he expect him to do?

 

[PUSBCCFC]

Mowbray needs to bring in defensive reinforcements.

 

[GFC4EVA]

Draw please

Thank you

 

[saddler_andy]

Armstrong again proved why he's the best striker in the league. Very unlucky not to get on the scoresheet.

Walsall were good, and I could see why they are where they are. They looked very well organised, and fit as well. Despite the fact they played on Saturday while we didn't they still looked to have more in their legs last 10 than we did. Rico Henry is a class act and so is Romaine Sawyers. That O'Connor is a proper prick though, could have been sent off in the away game and should have gone tonight.

Purely playing devil's advocate I would argue that last night was a reason why Armstrong isn't the best striker in the league. He had one clear cut chance and another couple of good chances and put none away. Bradshaw took his one and only clear cut chance - though I don't believe that TB is the best in the league either.

I thought we were so lethargic - Rico and Sawyers looked the only players up for it.

Chambers is the player you are on about - there were a fair few cynical fouls to be fair.

 

[SaddlerJonny]

Purely playing devil's advocate I would argue that last night was a reason why Armstrong isn't the best striker in the league. He had one clear cut chance and another couple of good chances and put none away. Bradshaw took his one and only clear cut chance - though I don't believe that TB is the best in the league either.

I thought we were so lethargic - Rico and Sawyers looked the only players up for it.

Chambers is the player you are on about - there were a fair few cynical fouls to be fair.

There was also a couple of fouls given by the referee against Chambers where we won the ball fair and square by closing one of Cov's midfielders as they received the ball, and they went down like a sack of spuds before he even got close to touching them. Felt the ref was a little too foul friendly, every tackle seemed like it would be a foul.

 

[Saddlerrad]

Bradshaw had 2 sniffs all night, hit the post with one and backheeled a lovely finish in the net for the second. It would be a very close tie between Armstrong/Bradshaw/Washington for the best strikers in the division. Currently, I'd say Armstrong is because of his all around game - trickery, pace, goals. Tom has been very quiet recently in terms of his all round games, but I can't argue with his goals to chances/minutes ratio. If he was a yard quicker, we would have never signed him IMO.

 

[DH84]

I would also add Dominic Samuel and Marc-Antoine Fortune to that list.

 

[THE LAST WALTZ]

I wouldn't have Washington in that list at all.
Over hyped.

 

[Saddlerrad]

I wouldn't have Washington in that list at all.
Over hyped.

He and Armstrong are the only centre forwards I've seen all season given our back line a consistent test. Washington looked fit, strong and good with his back to goal.

 

[Geosaddler]

No idea how we got a point out of that but I'll certainly take it! Although much improved on Rochdale, thats our 2nd poor performance in the league in a row. For about 70 minutes Coventry were full of running, bossed and moved the ball around really well in midfield and won about 90% of the second balls. We just looked leggy and couldn't put a single attacking move together. The only plus for us was that Coventry were only 1 up and struggled to get in behind us and make clear cut chances despite all the dominance.

Really strange but Coventry then sat back and invited us on and when the equaliser went in it really changed things. It was all us after that and with just a fraction of nous we could have nicked it as with the right ball we had a chance to get in behind about 3 times.

Overall mixed emotions. Happy to get a point away at a good side but frustrated we only decided to start playing after about 80 minutes! I thought Coventry looked vulnerable at the back and we are normally excellent away from home picking off teams on the break who play attacking formations. By no means a disaster but we need to improve if we are going to stay in a promotion push.

 

[WFC]

Very happy with the point, said I'd have taken that before a ball was kicked. We didn't look too great all night, very sloppy.

Coventry should have finished the game though to be fair to him our Goalkeeper pulled off some fantastic saves....again.

 

[Saddlerrad]

Very happy with the point, said I'd have taken that before a ball was kicked. We didn't look too great all night, very sloppy.

Coventry should have finished the game though to be fair to him our Goalkeeper pulled off some fantastic saves....again.

Etheridge has never had a problem with his shot stopping, but his catching, his decision making, his coming off his line, trying to overplay in dangerous areas and general 'flapping' made me and numerous other fans very uneasy. In the last couple of games he has ironed that out and looked a very good goalkeeper. If he continues to do that, then we have a very good keeper on our hands.

 

[WFC]

He's progressed well hasn't he, I was very unsure at first due to the weaknesses you pointed out but it seems Cutler is working his magic again

 

[Saddlerrad]

He's progressed well hasn't he, I was very unsure at first due to the weaknesses you pointed out but it seems Cutler is working his magic again

In the last couple of weeks for sure, he was poor vs Port Vale and then iffy vs Posh on numerous occasions. Hopefully Cutler has had a calming influence on him. After all this talk...let's enjoy his Jonny Brain like performance at Bury on Saturday.

 

[SkyBlueElephant]

In both games I have seen Walsall your keeper has pulled off a worldie in each match