PETERBOROUGH UNITED 1-0 COVENTRY CITY
SAT DEC 17 At London Road, Peterborough
City: Murphy, Keogh, Wood, Christie, Hussey, Thomas, McSheffrey, Gardner, Bell (Bigirimana 81), Jutkiewicz, Platt.SNU Burge, Jeffers, Cameron, McPake
Peterborough: Lewis, Alcock, Bennett, Rowe, Zakuani, Kearns, Tunnicliffe, Boyd, Sinclair (Newall 84), Tomlin (Kennedy 89), Frecklington (Taylor 48). SNU Thompson, Jones.
HT PUFC 0-0 CCFC FT PUFC 1-0 CCFC ATT 8062
Referee Mark Brown. Assts: David Benton & Darren England.
Booked Keogh, Wood
Goal Emile Sinclair (65)
Man Of The Match - Cyrus Christie took the votes from Richard Keogh with a nominaton for Chris Hussey
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CITY SUPPORT: Not the massive turn out we have last time but a decent following, making the most of terracing and cheaper admission prices. City supporters from Kent, London, Surrey, York joined those from the Midlands
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DIRECTOR WATCH - MD Tim Fisher and Associate Director David Shortland along with Commercial Director Justin Tose.
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CITY TEAM NEWS: Andy Thorn brought back Chris Hussey and David Bell and freshened up the bench with the likes of Shaun Jeffers, Lee Burge and James McPake getting a chance to sit in the cold.
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Coventry City gave it everything they had but lady luck was not smiling on the Sky Blues and they went down to a 1-0 defeat at Peterborough United.
The last time we had visited London Road, the talk was of the play-offs but for City's final away game of 2011, the talk of was Ken Dulieu and relegation. After last week's ill conceived stunt by the Director of Football Operations, which brought more negative publicity for the club at a time when it didn't need it, all eyes were on the bench.
There was no sign of Ken Dulieu on the bench, amid more rumours that he has done the decent thing and resigned, and a good job too considering the mood amongst the City supporters on the South Stand terrace who had been abusing the Director Of Football and calling for SISU to get out of the club well before the City players in their home Sky Blue kit took to the pitch.
For once, Andy Thorn and Steve Harrison had their tactics right and City kept Posh keeper Joe Lewis, who has been finding alternative clubs to train with before he is sold in January, busy.from the start.
The SISU Out protests were in full cry and in the ninth minute, and with Posh on the attack with a free kick from Tunnicliffe going just over, the stewards entered the away end and tried to remove a banner. Around a hundred City fans immediately surrounded the stewards and the couple of police officers who joined them.
Thankfully, rather than doing anything that would have inflamed the situation, common sense was used and the police and stewards beat a diplomatic retreat, leaving the City support to watch the match.
Peterborough put together a fifteen pass move before Gary McSheffrey intervened. Conor Thomas had a shot pushed away either side of Platt and Jutkiewicz heading wide.
When Peterborough did attack and bear down on Joe Murphy, Richard Keogh and Cyrus Christie were there to make the necessary clearances.
Christie was also showing his quality at getting forward along with Hussey on the other side and David Bell.
Peterborough went close through Tomalin whose 34th minute shot skimmed the bar before the half ended with Platt heading a bell cross wide.
The City supporters urged the Sky Blues, who were now attacking the end where the City fans were, on at the start of the second half but it was too easy as a ball out to the left picked out Tomalin who fired just over before he picked up an injury and became the second Posh player to be substituted in the 59th minute.
Straight after that change, City won a corner and David Bell got in a header at the far post and the ball clearly struck the hand of a defender but to the dismay of the City support, nothing was given.
Jutkiewicz had a shot on the turn saved. Hussey went very close, with a pile driver but in the 65th minute, Peterborough broke upfield. Murphy made a save diving to his left and pushed the ball into the path of an incoming forward who squared for Emile Sinclair to lash high into the net.
The City fans turned their attention to those from the board sat in the stand to our right, with chants of "You're Not Fit To Run The Club" whilst on the pitch, the effort and commitment from the City team could not be faulted.
A 72nd minute free kick lead to a corner, which saw a Keogh shot deflected and then another. Richard Wood fired over from close range six minutes later before Thorn decided to replace David Bell with Gael Bigirimana.
As he had done against Hull City, Gael got City going again. The Burundi born youngster turned to fund Gary Gardner for one shot which he hit weakly at Lewis and a minute later, he found Gardner again who struck the foot of Lewis' left hand post with a close range shot.
Four minutes of time were added and saw a Jutkiewicz shot from the left was cleared off the line by Tunnicliffe in the third minute.
The City supporters backed the team to the end but all they got was a defeat and for the sixth time in the club's history, City have only won once away in a calendar year.
Picture copyright of Covsupport News Service. Credit CNS/KM