COVENTRY CITY 1-0 COLCHESTER UNITED BY KEV MONKS
TEAM
Marshall, McNamee, de Zeeuw, Turner, Hall, Mifsud, Osbourne, Doyle, Gray (Tabb, 92), Kyle (Adebola 59), Best (Simpson 66) SNU Konstantopoulos, Cairo.
Colchester
Davison, Granville (McLeod 55), Connolly, Baldwin, Elokobi (Virgo 86), Duguid, Jackson, Izzet, Yeates, Platt (Sheringham 60), Lisbie. SNU Gerken, Watson
HT CCFC 0-0 CUFC FT CCFC 1-0 CUFC
ATT 23,431
Goal Michael Mifsud (81)
Referee R.Lee
Booked Kyle, Baldwin,Osbourne
Sent Off Sheringham 93
Man Of The Match - Michael Mifsud took the votes from Andy Marshall,Dele Adebola and Marcus Hall
________________________________________
STARTING FORMATION
Iain Dowie had lost Gary Borrowdale and Stephen Hughes to injury and brought back Marcus Hall who had not even trained and Arjan De Zeeuw and Leon Best. Michael Mifsud dropped to right midfield.
Colchester included former Sky Blue Jonnie Jackson and had Adam Virgo on the bench.
Kyle Best
Gray Doyle Osbourne Mifsud
Hall Turner De Zeeuw McNamee
Marshall
_______________________________________
CITY SUPPORT
The best home game of the season which was brought about by tickets only being priced at £10 for adults and £5 concessions.
Again there were ticket checks by stewards to deter those adults trying to get away with using children's tickets.
The support was pretty muted until late on when City scored.
________________________________________
Coventry City got one over on former boss Micky Adams with a late Michael Mifsud goal.
It had been a depressing week but with news that a take-over may be in the offing (although not as advanced as the article in the CT makes out,according to Joe Elliott who was in the Hen Lane club at lunch-time meeting supporters.
Plus manager Iain Dowie,a target for Leicester, stopping if rumours of a phone call promising to pay his court case compensation fees to Simon Jordan are to be believed, then there is hope that the good ship Sky Blue may make it through the currently choppy waters.
In what was a dour opening period, City attacked the Jewson Stand end which had eight hundred plus Colchester fans in the corner.
Kevin Kyle did not have a good afternoon and wasted a good chance in the tenth minute when he headed over.
With Micky Adams sat on the Colchester bench keeping quiet and letting manager Geraint Williams doing the shouting out of tactics, Andy Marshall took a good catch from a Platt header and pushed away a Granville cross cum shot.
A fight in the CT Stand diverted some attention from the pitch where a 41st minute Issac Osbourne corner which went straight in to the side netting summed up a poor first half which saw the teams booed off.
Kevin Kyle was cautioned, two minutes into the second half and was probably lucky not to get another for dissent as he tried to protest his innocence at a decision by Mr Lee which did not go his way.
There had been chants for a while for Dele Adebola to be introduced and when he was in the 59th minute,a huge cheer went up as Kyle made way for the Nigerian who went up front.
Teddy Sheringham was wheeled out a minute later and Robbie Simpson came on in the 65th minute for the quiet Leon Best.
The former Cambridge United striker nearly scored with his first touch of the ball when he got his head to a Michael Doyle corner, only for Colchester's number 2 Danny Granville, stood on the near post to clear off the line.
Although a 73rd minute corner which went all the way back to Andy Marshall did not go down well amongst the City support, it was the Sky Blues who always looked the more likelier to score.
With U's keeper Aidan Davision clearly struggling after an earlier clash with Leon Best, City went for the jugular with nine minutes to go.
De Zeeuw's ball from defence found Michael Mifsud. The hero of Malta turned a marker on his way before hitting a left footed shot which hit a defender and went in off the post.
A collective sigh of relief echoed around the stands used by City supporters.
Adebola forced Davison into a save whilst Julian Gray wasted a great chance when he fired over in the 88th minute.
The former Birmingham winger was replaced by Jay Tabb in the second minute of the four allocated for stoppage time.
Tabb had only been on the field for a few seconds when he was fouled. Michael Doyle came over to try and get the ball back in play and was elbowed by Teddy Sheringham just in front of the Main Stand Press Box. A red card was waved in the direction of the former England striker and seconds later, the final whistle blew to confirm City's welcome victory.