Ton-up, Sunderland fallout and Coventry City star on first return to Pompey

Ton-up for Robins

Mark Robins will go full circle when he chalks up his 100th league game in charge of Coventry City on Friday.

The Sky Blues boss kicked off his second spell in charge at the Ricoh Arena against Bradford City in March 2017 when the Bantams won 2-0, courtesy of goals from Alex Jones and one Jordy Hiwula .

Just over two years on and Hiwula will be doing his level best to score against his former loan club and extend his lead at the top of the City scoring charts.

As well as overseeing 43 league victories, 20 draws and 36 defeats Robins has, of course, guided the Sky Blues to two wonderful Wembley wins in the Checkatrade Trophy and play-off final, and a sensational play-off semi-final triumph over Notts County.

Mark Robins on his first game back for the Sky Blues against Bradford City in March 2017

Last weekend’s superb 5-4 thriller at Sunderland is up there among the best games he’s taken charge of – a truly memorable modern day classic.

But asked if the away day high at the Stadium of Light makes Good Friday’s low key affair against rock bottom Bradford all the more harder given City’s knack of struggling against the poorer sides in the division, particularly at the Ricoh Arena, he said: “Absolutely, and because we’re playing against a side that have been struggling for results but aren’t a bad team.

“Gary Bowyer has gone in there as manager and I like Gary. He’s a great fella’ and good manager and coach and he will want to try to pick up wins and finish the season on a high and see if he can get close to see what happens.

“But from my point of view I have given my players a breather, a real decent break and then we’ll go into the game really working towards a win and a big spell with games on the Friday and Monday.”

He added: “I think they’ve needed a breather from Saturday because I think it will have taken quite a lot out of them, but I also think it will have taken a lot out of Sunderland as well.”

Astonishing attack on Sky Blues

Coventry City have been made the target of an astonishing attack from a North East newspaper which has branded the Sky Blues as an insipid little club.

Mark Robins ’s men pulled off a sensational 5-4 win at the Stadium of Light on Saturday to keep alive their slim play-off hopes and put a dent in their hosts’ prospects of clinching one of the two automatic promotion berths.

It was widely hailed as one of the best matches of the League One season and City picked up plenty of neutral plaudits for becoming the first team this season to beat the Black Cats on their home turf in the division.

But some of the gloss was taken off that achievement by the behaviour of a small contingent of the 2,683 fans who made the trip to Wearside.

And now the Sunderland Echo’s Tony Gillan has taken a pop at City’s status and sneered at their current off-field problems.

He wrote: “Everyone loses at home eventually and it had been almost a year since Sunderland were beaten at the Stadium of Light. It was four months since they had lost at all.

“We knew that the little club would be more enthused than normal by their trip to the big club. This happens regularly.

“Saturday was truly a one off. You may never attend another game like it. It was an aberration. An exception. A lottery of a match.”

He added: “If Sunderland fail to achieve promotion this season, there will be more significant reasons for this than one silly afternoon, when the front line of mediocre-at-best opposition was allowed to do virtually whatever they pleased.

“So let’s put the freak show to one side and concentrate on the next match: Doncaster Rovers on Good Friday. It’s all you can do.”

He concluded: “The fans were pretty quiet last Saturday. This was due to a combination of Sunderland never taking the lead and an insipid visiting club who, let’s be honest, don’t arouse much interest in their own city, never mind anyone else’s (in fact they may soon be cancelled due to lack of interest).”

Our message to Sunderland press man

My enemy’s enemy is my friend, they say, and Sunderland and Coventry City have an ideal opportunity to reinforce that aphorism by doing each other a huge Easter favour this weekend.

Sunderland, still smarting from Saturday’s 5-4 reverse at the Stadium Of Light, can undermine the two current impediments to City’s slender play-off prospects by overcoming Doncaster and Peterborough – and the Sky Blues can repay said service on Monday when they travel to Portsmouth, one of the Black Cats’ chief rivals for automatic promotion.

In the latter eventuality one wonders if Sunderland supporters would finally scale down their lingering resentment of how Jimmy Hill supposedly wronged them 40-odd years ago.

And if that’s a stretch (fans do so love clinging to their feuds) perhaps the Sunderland Echo’s Tony Gillan will at least recant on his petulant little tirade against the ‘mediocre-at-best’ players representing ‘a little club.’

Sore losing is never attractive and Gillan added a snide upgrade to his sour grapes by gloating at Coventry ’s much-publicised off-field problems. They are “an insipid visiting club,” he sneered, “who, let’s be honest, don’t arouse much interest in their own city, never mind anyone else’s (in fact they may soon be cancelled due to lack of interest).”

Ouch! So much for the football family, eh?

To read Andy Turner's full comment piece click here:

Cov RFC respond to groundshare reports

Coventry Rugby Club have dismissed reports of a possible groundshare with Coventry City Football Club.

The Sky Blues have declined to comment on reports that emerged on Tuesday (April 16) claiming that the club are set to propose a groundshare with the the city's rugby club, which is based at the 4,000 capacity Butts Park Arena .

The report, which was published in The Times , suggested that Butts Park Arena has emerged as a groundshare option for the club, along with Birmingham City's St Andrew's stadium.

The first option would, importantly, keep the club in the city.

CoventryLive asked Coventry City's Chief Executive Dave Boddy if he was in a position to be able to confirm or deny these reports.

He confirmed that he was aware of the reports, but was not going to make any comment.

Cov RFC chairman Jon Sharp, however, was contacted by CoventryLive and said bluntly: "Two year old story, nothing to say."

BBC Coventry and Warwickshire journalist Alec Blackman Tweeted on Tuesday that Coventry Rugby chairman Jon Sharp told him that "there's no truth in the rumour".

Mr Blackman said in a number of Tweets : "I’ve spoken to Jon Sharp this morning. He told me there’s no truth in the rumour and he’s no idea where the story comes from.

"Given his previous vocal opposition to doing business with SISU and the plans to install an artificial surface in time for next season, I’d suggest it would be a big reversal to agree a deal with the Sky Blues.

"The Butts Park pitch has a lot of use, it can be a mud bath in the depths of winter and from what I’ve been told, isn’t suitable for community use, which is a direction the club want to go for non-match day revenue."

The current state of the pitch at Butts Park Arena

Conor on Fratton return

Conor Chaplin can’t wait to face his home town club Portsmouth and get the chance to score on his first return to Fratton Park.

But, if successful, will the 22-year-old Coventry City striker celebrate against the club where he grew up and still passionately supports?

Chaplin was at Wembley cheering some of his best mates on to Checkatrade Trophy success over Sunderland recently and was able to do his former club a huge favour in the race for automatic promotion when he scored the winner for the Sky Blues at the Stadium of Light on Saturday.

Pompey fans were singing, “He’s one of our own, he’s one of our own, Conor Chaplin , he’s one of our own,” when news of his decisive goal had filtered back to Fratton Park as Kenny Jackett’s men were beating Rochdale 4-1, enabling the club to go level on points with the Black Cats.

Chaplin’s contribution came in only his second substitute appearance back from an ankle injury that had kept him out for seven games, but he looked as fresh and sharp as ever.

“It’s been frustrating but that’s the end of it now and I’m looking to push on,” said the City striker, who has eight goals so far his season.

“I tore a ligament in my ankle and then there were complications with swelling and inflammation in the joint as well.

“It came at a bad time and that was one of the most frustrating things because I wanted to be there for the boys and try to kick on and help get a place in the play-off spots.

“It was horrible when the lads went off on the bus to away games and I had to follow the game on Twitter.

Sky Blues news

“But I have been quite fortunate in my career so far and not had too many injuries, and when I was in the gym every day I looked at people like Jodi Jones and Max Biamou who are out for nine months and considered myself lucky.”

He added: “I feel good and it was a bit of a weird one because I was able to run on it for quite a while before I came back but it was just striking the ball that was a problem, so fitness-wise I feel fine.

“It’s good to be back and I just want to make a difference and hopefully I have put some life and energy back into the game when I have gone on in the last couple of games.”

Asked if he’s been desperate to get back in time for Pompey trip, he admitted: “Yes I have.

“It’s certainly been a motivation for me."

To read Chaplin's full interview and to find out what he plans to do if he scores against his hoe town club, click here: