Gary McSheffrey - the life and times of a Sky Blue

It's every Sky Blues' supporter's ambition to play for their home-town side. Not many of them top 250 first-team appearances for the club and lie ninth in the all-time top scorers' list. No-one else has made their debut at Villa Park in the first-ever league win there thus becoming the club's youngest ever player. As well as finishing top scorer for the Sky Blues three seasons running he also took Player of the Year in 2006 and scored in the final game at Highfield Road. Step forward Gary McSheffrey.

Aged just 16 years and 198 days, he replaced Darren Huckerby at Villa in the emphatic 4-1 victory on his debut, there could be no better place and more significant event to make your bow. Following relegation in 2001 'Sheffers' spent time on loan at Luton, aiding their promotion campaign, and began to feature regularly at City in 2002/03. He bagged a treble in the 8-0 League Cup win over Rushden and Diamonds but came to real prominence under Eric Black's brief tenure as he partnered Julian Joachim in a fondly remembered era for City supporters. Top billing in terms of goal scoring came in 03/04, 04/05 and 05/06 before his big move to Birmingham City, a transfer hotly contested by the City faithful as yet another star was sold. The Sky Blues a selling club? Never. You can see his prowess in front of goal in the clip below with 'Mr Blue Sky' for musical accompaniment:

Gary McSheffrey's many goals in a City shirt

After four seasons and a taste of the top flight with the side from St Andrews, Aidy Boothroyd snapped him up in the summer of 2010 for a second spell, a popular move amongst the Ricoh faithful. Since his return, in main due to fan expectation following his first spell, it has been a frustrating time for the City fan himself. We expect so much from him as we know what he can produce, he has spoken himself how it frustrates him but the hope is that he can now build on an injury-free run alongside David McGoldrick and add to his goals tally.


Now level with Dion Dublin on 72 goals, he is also the club's leading scorer in their time at the Ricoh, currently with 25 strikes to his name. Mark Robins believes in his talents, at present he is keeping John Fleck out of the side and finding the back of the net. If McGoldrick does leave the Ricoh in January we will need goals from somewhere and 'Sheffers' contribution will be vital along with Carl Baker who is also finding the net with regularity in recent weeks. The goals have started to flow for the pair but we need them in the zone every week to keep the momentum going on the pitch. They should let Mark Robins sort out the shambles off the pitch also, he speaks more common sense than all the 'board' members put together, they could do no worse than sit down with Robins and listen to someone else's voice apart from their own for a change.

Footnote: this was written prior to kick off on Tuesday.

Dean Emerson & Willie Boland : From Highfield Road to Hartlepool..and the CWR 'Fan of the Week'...

Saturday’s visit to Hartlepool United links two former Sky Blues’ midfielders who graced the top flight and whose curtain call came at the home of Jeff Stelling’s favourite side. One man missed out on our greatest ever day at Wembley through injury while, along with his compatriot, they both failed to register a single goal in sky blue. What they did bring was the ability to keep it simple, retain the ball and break down opposition attacks. They could be relied upon to deliver each time they stepped out onto the pitch - their names were Dean Emerson and Willie Boland.

Dean Emerson’s introduction to the top flight made one of the best ever impressions on the City support. Signed by John Sillett for £40,000 from Rotherham United after starring against City in a Littlewoods Cup tie he made 132 appearances for City between 1986 and the close season of 1991. Just two months prior to Wembley a reckless tackle by Sheffield Wednesday’s Gary Megson on an icy Highfield Road pitch began an agonising sequence of knee operations for the midfield kingpin as he returned time after time to appear in the Sky Blues' engine room. Eventually, the injury caught up with him and he moved to Hartlepool prior to the commencement of the Premier League. Always popular with the supporters it was Emerson’s pass that created the winning goal against Manchester City in August 1989 that took City top of Division One for the first time ever.

 

Willie Boland came through the City youth team and made his debut at the age of 17 during Bobby Gould’s tenure. Between 1993 and1999 he appeared 72 times and displayed an excellent engine dovetailed with the ability to retain possession and break up opposition attacks. Ever reliable, Boland made his full home debut in a 1-0 win against Liverpool and starred in front of the home faithful. After his time at City came to a close he transferred to Cardiff and again thrived under the management of Gould. He was a pivotal member of their successful late 90’s/early millennium promotion chasing sides and made his final appearance for the 'Bluebirds' at the Ricoh in their 3-1 defeat when Dennis Wise bid farewell to City. His final move took him to Hartlepool in 2006 but a knee injury led to his premature retirement in September 2009. Willie Boland never let the City down during his time at Highfield Road and, like Emerson, was an asset to the side he performed in.

 

Last Friday's CWR phone-in was an entertaining and humorous hour as City fan of over 35 years, Matt Partridge, displayed a refreshing honesty talking with Clive Eakin and fellow supporters as the 'Fan of the Week' about the current situation. 'Joy Serpentine' was one of his highlights along with an honest assessment of Carl Baker's recent form. Matt received criticism for this while the programme was running and the following day online - his departure from the CWR studios you can see below.

Criticised for telling it as it is in my view - we can all run round and try hard but, like Gary McSheffrey, we all know they can both do so much better and that is one of the points Matt made. Baker and Sheffers were expected to be shining lights in League One yet they are currently fading stars. Matt's honesty I witnessed first hand in 1986 when, in the style of Geoff Boycott, he ran me out in school inter-house cricket. 'Sorry mate!!!' was shouted after me as I trudged back to the pavilion a year prior to the FA Cup final victory. Fast forward 26 years and we both still await that top six finish last experienced in 1970. A few honest words can do no harm, Mark Robins delivers similar each time he speaks, for too long the cracks have been papered over and it's time to tell it as it really is - SISU take note.

The Coventry City Years : 1982/83...and the wind of change since day one at Yeovil...

The opening day of season 1982/83 welcomed England’s World Cup goalkeeper to Highfield Road as Peter Shilton made his Southampton debut. At the other end of the pitch, due to an injury to Les Sealey, 16 year old Perry Suckling kept a clean sheet in the Sky Blues’ 1-0 win and belied his youth with a fine performance. He would go on to make 29 starts for City before joining Manchester City in the swap deal which brought FA Cup winner David Phillips to the club.

 

Mid-September saw Jim Melrose score a hat-trick on his home debut as Everton were defeated 4-2 in the same game which saw Garry and Keith Thompson take to the field – the first brothers for over 60 years to appear for City. Scotsman Melrose scored 10 times in 29 appearances during a brief stay before he moved to Celtic.

 

Spurs’ Garry Brooke scored a six minute hat-trick past Sealey weeks later as City lost 4-0 before Steve Whitton stepped up and smashed home unstoppable strikes from range against Luton and Brighton – on his 21^st birthday in front of just 8,035 supporters . His shooting prowess was some of the best seen at Highfield Road (in my time) and following his summer move to West Ham he would fire an unstoppable effort past Perry Suckling the following September in the Hammers' 5-2 win at Upton Park.

 

Brian Roberts’ first ever goal for the club after 192 games inspired the side to a 3-0 win at West Ham before Peter 'Chukkie' Hormantschuk followed suit with a strike that Manchester United’s Gary Bailey fumbled into his own net as City defeated Big Ron's 'Red Devils' to triumph 3-0 just after Christmas. His own team-mates were in shock as you can see below at his only goal for City and he moved on to Nuneaton Borough, similar to Kevin Malaga, after 29 appearances for his home-town club following the arrival of fellow local lad Kirk Stephens.

 

The goals continued to flow into February as a classic from Mark Hateley was too good for Manchester City and a 4-0 thrashing ensued in front of the TV cameras.

Sky Blues 4 Manchester City 0 February 1983

One win in 15 games ensured safety was not guaranteed until the penultimate game as I came across the word relegation for the first time – like a bad smell it would not go away and still interrupts my sky blue thoughts on a daily (hourly) basis. Birmingham City won at Highfield Road in mid-April with a late winner – so bad was the performance a fan ran onto the pitch and threw down his shirt in front of the dugout. He was only venting what we all knew – we were in trouble and only a 3-0 win at Stoke kept our heads one place above the drop zone as Manchester City plummeted down the table and into the second tier.

The season ended with a Les Sealey horror show at home to West Ham as Dave Sexton stepped aside amongst much discontent inside and outside the club. We would never believe what would happen during the close season of 1983...

Fast forward 29 years and...

From the side who took to the field at Yeovil on the opening day only Joe Murphy, Richard Wood, John Fleck and Callum Ball are holding down a regular role in the team. Jordan Clarke now faces fierce competition from the rehabilatated Cyrus Christie while Reece Brown has joined Adam Barton and Billy Daniels in being quickly removed from the first team picture. Carl Baker has frustrated the City faithful along with Gary McSheffrey - both a huge disappointment when we know they can do so much better. Perhaps the biggest victim of the mass change has been Cody McDonald - I wrote prior to the opening day how I expected him to reach 20 goals this season yet how wrong could I be. I still maintain he is a genuine goal threat but when you play as narrow as we were and have poor service from Clarke and Hussey (in the first ten games) then your goal output will suffer. We have the opportunity to move through the gears during the approach to Christmas, stay unbeaten and we could be in the mix come the new year. The signing of McGoldrick is key, let's hope plans are in place to make the move a permanent one.

Next week....1983/84....

 

The Coventry City years: 1980-1982

I’m breaking with tradition and moving away from individual heroes to remember past seasons from when I began watching the Sky Blues. ITV4’s ‘Big Match Revisited’ currently serves up a Saturday and Sunday dose of classic action in the days when football on TV was the exception and not the rule. The club we follow up and down the country doesn’t even feature on the ‘Sky Text’ index pages any more, we’re a miniature column in The Times’ ‘Game’ supplement every Monday morning and there’s a half hour wait on Sky Sports News for a five second clip of our goal action...but it never used to be like this.

 

It all started so well – for me anyway – 1980/81. Paul Dyson’s header past Ray Clemence in front of 31,000 at Highfield Road took the two points against champions Liverpool.  A crushing 3-1 win over Arsenal in August 1980 with a majestic body swerve past Pat Jennings and finish from Gary Gillespie was followed a few weeks later by Everton winning 5-0 at City. Surely that wasn’t meant to happen, I didn’t think teams lost by that score at home – I was only six at the time.

 

Tommy English scored my first live hat-trick in a 4-1 defeat of Leicester City, I’d see many more until the turn of the millennium until they began to dry up, we must have saved a fortune in match balls. At this point the image of Wembley reared its head with a terrific League Cup run which ended at West Ham in the cruellest of fashions – the last minute winner. A 1-1 draw with Cambridge in round four had seen my first night game sat in the front row of the West Stand. I missed the 5-0 thumping of Watford in the quarter-final and the semi-final epic against the Hammers but, never mind, I thought, we’ll get another opportunity next year.

 

Three points for a win arrived in 1981/82 along with our all-seater stadium as City beat Manchester United on the opening day. Two weeks later and Leeds ripped out the Sky Blue Stand seats as a once great force in English football struggled to cope with their decline – we’ve never ripped out the seats although we’ve felt like it many times. We knocked Swansea off top spot with a 3-1 win in October 1981 while it took us until December to win an away game, 2-1 at Spurs. A week later and I viewed the orange ball for the first time at Highfield Road - Manchester City with Ray Ranson, Bobby McDonald and Tommy Hutchison in their side conquered the frozen conditions with a 1-0 win in the only game I’ve ever left early – well I had forgotten my gloves.

 

There was no League Cup glory this time around, Everton's Mick Ferguson saw to that as his towering header in front of his once adoring West Terrace sent us heading for the exits in shock. The immutable law of the ex I’d come across for the first time, how could he do it to us? After Christmas Notts County thrashed us 5-1 on a school night as the brilliant Mercia Sound sport team reported the bad news – and they had three disallowed.

Martin Singleton, fresh out of the youth team, scored on his debut past Everton’s Neville Southall before we turned on the style to wallop Sunderland 6-1, inspired by Gerry Francis in midfield. Then came two hat-tricks in four days through Mark Hateley in the 5-5 epic draw at Southampton before Steve ‘The Cannonball Kid’ Whitton smashed in a treble at Maine Road.

We had a quarter-final run in the FA Cup until Big Cyrille sent us packing 2-0 on a sodden day at the Hawthorns after we’d thrashed Roy Barry’s Oxford United 4-0 in the previous round.

West Brom 2 City 0 FA Cup quarter-final March 1982

January 1982's 'Goal of the Month' was Peter Bodak’s solo effort at Maine Road in the fourth round, definitely worthy of another watch, he had so much ability it was frightening, what a shame he fell out with Gordon Milne.

'Bodak's the name, scoring's my game'

A semi-final and a quarter-final, these cup runs were becoming the norm, I’d surely look forward to many more in seasons to come....

Next week...1982/83 and 1983/84

Nicky Platnauer and Graham Withey - from Eastville to the game of their lives

The summer of 1983 brought an influx of lower league players to Highfield Road following the departure of the club’s famous youth policy of the late 70’s and early 80’s. Bobby Gould brought hitherto unknown talent to the home of football and, as we all know, unearthed the likes of Trevor Peake, Michael Gynn, Dave Bennett and Micky Adams. He also introduced a duo from Bristol Rovers, his former club, who spent less than two seasons with the club but made an instant impact upon their arrival. Their names were Nicky Platnauer and Graham Withey.

Graham Withey appeared in a City shirt on 27 occasions and scored seven times. Signed as back up to Terry Gibson and Dave Bamber, his transfer fee was £5000 and he would score past Ray Clemence on his debut at White Hart Lane and made a substitute appearance in the famous 4-0 win over Liverpool. After two seasons he was sold to Cardiff City and went on have a distinguished career in the lower divisions with Yeovil, Bath City and Cheltenham Town amongst others.

 

Nicky Platnauer played 53 times for the Sky Blues and scored six goals following his £10000 move from Eastville. His debut came as substitute in the 3-2 win at Watford on the opening day and he would spend most of the time in midfield with his trusty left foot. Not only did he open the scoring in the first minute against Liverpool with a grass level diving header, he went on to be named the club’s Player of the Year at the end of 1983/84, no mean feat with Terry Gibson in the side.

 

His departure from City coincided with Bobby Gould leaving at Christmas ’84 and he transferred to Birmingham City from where he took in spells at Cardiff, Notts County and Leicester amongst others on his way to 450 senior appearances. Both men contributed to one of the most memorable days ever witnessed at Highfield Road in December 1983 and they will go down in history as part of the side who demolished the champions along with Raddy Avramovic, Brian Roberts, Stuart Pearce, Trevor Peake, Sam Allardyce, Dave Bennett, Michael Gynn, Dave Bamber, Terry Gibson and Gerry Daly.

Nicky Platnauer's finest moment - December 10th 1983

On his visits to City with Forest and Southampton David McGoldrick was always on the periphery, used as a substitute or substituted. When we signed him I was sceptical but how wrong can you be. Six goals so far and we are still in October - last season’s top scorer scored just nine goals and it’s rare to see a Sky Blues’ striker in the goal scoring charts. Mark Robins will be planning for the new year, there won’t be any waiting until late December to sort out new deals for his loan stars, that mistake won’t happen again. A new idol may be forthcoming at the Ricoh, we have to rewind to big Mo for the last one. As the song goes: ‘he scores when he wants, he scores when he wants, David McGoldrick he scores when he wants’  - last season the team couldn’t score for love nor money, what a refreshing change.

 

Roy Wegerle - from Tampa Bay to his time at Highfield Road

Swindon Town’s only season in the top flight came in 1993/94. The Wiltshire club, led by John Gorman, won just five games, conceded 100 goals but made many friends with their pass and move style, inspired by former manager Glenn Hoddle. During the season a Norwegian international bagged their only hat-trick, a former FA Cup winning captain shored up their back line and Sky cameras missed their last minute leveller at Highfield Road.

In April 1993 Kevin Gallacher departed Highfield Road in a swap deal with Blackburn Rovers’ Roy Wegerle. Until his departure in the close season of 1995 the USA international appeared 63 times and scored on 11 occasions for City.

 

The visit of Swindon was broadcast to the nation and it was Wegerle’s fine finish from a move inspired by Chris Marsden that looked to have taken the points until Andy Mutch’s non-televised last gasp leveller stunned the sky blue hordes (forward to 3:40 mins and also check out Richard Keys' jacket).

City 1 Swindon 1 January 1994

The return fixture at the County Ground brought a 3-1 defeat for City as Jan Aage Fjortoft bagged a treble and Brian Kilcline kept City's strikers at bay. Julian Darby netted for the Sky Blues on a cold February day in front of just over 14000 supporters.

Swindon 3 City 1 February 1994

Wegerle inspired an eight-game unbeaten run at the beginning of 1993/94 which included the 3-0 triumph at Arsenal, a 1-0 at home to Liverpool and the late comeback (2-1) at home to Newcastle when Mick Harford headed the winner. Bobby Gould played Wegerle in a floating role which befitted his undoubted talent. His quick feet and creative passing brought chances galore for Mick Quinn and Peter Ndlovu as the Sky Blues entertained the supporters. They ended ‘93/94 in 11^th position and completed the double over both Arsenal and Tottenham.

One of Wegerle’s finest moments in football came at Elland Road as he waltzed through Leeds’ defence in a QPR shirt as you can see below - an artist at work - a player who was able to hold the crowd’s attention with his trickery and invention.

Roy Wegerle's finest moment

With four of the Sky Blues’ squad numbers over 30 it highlights the wind of change at the Ricoh. Introducing fines for poor marking at set-pieces amongst others is an interesting move and Robins’ disciplined aura seems to have gone down well with the City support after the Hi-di-Hi tenure. It’s about time there was a shake-up at the Ricoh, we pay hard earned cash (travel and ticket) to watch our side and have each spent thousands of pounds down the years. Mark Robins appears to see what we have all been seeing for years, finally, finally we might just have found the man to take us forward after years of being stuck in reverse.  A 4-0 away win is a great start to the week, bring on Di Canio and his Wiltshire wonders.

Paul Telfer - from Kenilworth Road to Parkhead via the Sky Blues

Connections between Saturday’s opponents, Bournemouth, and the Sky Blues are few and far between in recent years. One man departed trophy laden Parkhead after winning two Scottish league titles and, via retirement, rocked up at Dean Court following six years in sky blue and a total of 12 seasons with Gordon Strachan. Having scored on his City home debut he would end his time at Highfield Road carried off on a stretcher with a broken leg. The place was Villa Park, the leg was his and the end result was relegation. His name was Paul Telfer.

 

Telfer spent seven seasons with Luton before Ron Atkinson signed him in the close season of 1995 for £1.5 million. Until his departure in 2001 he appeared 225 times and scored on 12 occasions. A mainstay on the right side of midfield, Telfer overcame a quiet start to win over the City faithful, renowned for his stamina, heading ability and reliability as an unsung component of the Atkinson/Strachan era.

His first professional goal for Luton came at Sheffield United’s Bramall Lane, coincidentally at the same Kop end he powered home a free-kick in the FA Cup quarter-final replay of 1998.

 

Paul Telfer's first professional goal for Luton

 

Sheff Utd v City FA Cup Quarter-Final 1998

 

If fate decreed Telfer would have taken City to a semi-final at Old Trafford against Newcastle but as history points out the Blades levelled in added time and triumphed on penalties. Manchester City were on the receiving end of his home debut as he powered home a header from Ally Pickering’s fine cross in the match remembered for Isaias inspiring the Sky Blues. ‘Telf’ would have been a pivotal player in the second tier but departed when his contract expired reuniting with Strachan at Southampton and Celtic, playing in the 2003 FA Cup final against Arsenal. Following two brief retirements he played for Bournemouth and Gary McAllister’s Leeds side before moving into the coaching side and is now player-coach at Conference South side Sutton United... now there's a side with connections to the Sky Blues.

Joe Murphy, Richard Wood and Adam Barton are the only three players to play against MK Dons who also lined up at Yeovil on the opening day such is the wind of change at City. In Tuesday's game we controlled just 36% of possession against a side renowned for their ball retention. All the more frustrating then to see how wasteful we have become with throw-ins. Instead of a throw to feet and taking the return we resort to tossing up a hopeful lob in the forlorn hope the recipient will control the ball on their head, beat two men and find a team-mate. After working so hard to force opposition error I cannot understand the logic as we needlessly turn a throw-in into a 50/50 ball and surrender possession - basic skills, surely? A final comment looks at Murphy's contribution each time the ball threatens his goal and runs out of play. Instead of getting on with the game he'll leave the ball to berate whoever comes into his eyeline. I've never seen a City 'keeper waste so much time when he has the ball, if we're winning 1-0 with minutes to go then fine but that has hardly been the case in the last 12 months. Having said that I admire the way he controls his area and marshals his back four, I just wish he'd get on with the game.

Kevin Gallacher - from Tannadice to the title via Highfield Road

Led by Joe Royle into the top flight in 1991, Oldham Athletic spent three seasons amongst the elite until their relegation in 1994. As a Division Two side they lost to Nottingham Forest in the Littlewoods Cup final of 1990, the season City fell at the semi-final hurdle to Brian Clough’s men. New City manager Mark Robins knocked the second tier ‘Latics’ out of the FA Cup semi-final in 1991 during his Manchester United days as the likes of Andy Ritchie, Mike Milligan, Paul Warhurst and Rick Holden thrived on their underdog tag in both league and cup. In August 1992 both Coventry City and Oldham Athletic were founder members of the Premier League, this Saturday they meet at Boundary Park, the Sky Blues on a mission for that elusive first league victory.

Sky Sports dispatched their myriad of cameras to City against Oldham in January 1993 for their Saturday teatime spectacular and were rewarded with three City goals in the opening 19 minutes.

Coventry City 3 Oldham Athletic 0 1992/93

Scoring his last goals for the club was Kevin Gallacher, signed from Dundee United for £900,000 early in 1990. In just over three seasons the Scotland striker appeared 117 times and scored 35 goals. Signed primarily as a winger he successfully converted his pace and ball skills to a central role partnering Big Cyrille and Robert Rosario before reverting to the wing upon the arrival of goal machine Mick Quinn.

 

High spots of Gallacher’s time at Highfield Road included a treble in the memorable 5-4 League Cup win against Forest, a fantastic strike at Carrow Road along with a fine finish in the 5-1 victory over Liverpool. Following his departure to Blackburn Rovers he went on to collect a Premier League title medal but took four years to return to Highfield Road due to various injuries, finally re-appearing in the goalless draw of 1996 to a warm reception. What Kevin Gallacher gave to City was electric pace, an eye for goal and boundless energy. Along with a goal every three games he gave 100% each time he took to the field - current side take note.  He took the Player of the Year award in 1991 and top scored in 1990/91 and 1991/92, a fine achievement in three seasons at the club.

Kevin Gallacher in sky blue (forward to 4:05 mins)

Sky Blues 5 Forest 4 Rumbelows Cup 1990/91

Mark Robins has wasted little time in tinkering with the debris found upon his arrival. Three midfielders and a left-back brought in so far point to a manager who has identified major chinks in the armoury although I think he should shop around for a centre-half or two judging by the uncertainty reigning in front of Joe Murphy at present. From what I’ve seen Robins isn’t going to take any messing, shape up or ship out is the message to the side after just 90 minutes of football. You could see his annoyance when interviewed by ‘Clem’ on the ‘Football League Show’ – ‘we just didn’t play’ – were his words. I have a hunch Robins will sort us out, I know it’s been said time and time again after a new manager walks through the revolving Ricoh door but there is something about his steely demeanour that makes me think his arrival could be a turning point for our great club.

 

Isaias - from Highbury masterclass to Highfield Road cameo

The summer of 1995 welcomed the first Brazilian to play in the Premier League. Prior to this in November 1991, Elton Welsby and the 'European Match Live' had screened Arsenal's European Cup second round, second leg tie against Benfica, a clash the Gunners were expected to win for progression to the group stage. Colin Pates opened the scoring but it was a mercurial, bearded midfielder who stepped up and inspired the Portuguese giants to a 3-1 victory with two fine goals and an assist in his finest moment in football.

 

Ron Atkinson signed Isaias Marques Soares from Benfica for £500,000 in the summer of 1995 on a two-year contract. His debut inspired the Sky Blues to a stunning 45 minutes of football (we were unable to play for 90 minutes even back then) as Manchester City were put to the sword at Highfield Road. Most of Isaias' 14 appearances were made prior to Christmas with fitness the main issue. During this time he became the first visiting player to score at the Riverside and swept in a fine finish arriving late into the box at Chelsea.

Arsenal 1 Benfica 3 (Isaias 2) November 1991

Chelsea 2 City 2 August 1995

Isaias brought flair to Coventry, a big name player who lined up alongside Nii Lamptey and Peter Ndlovu, as you would expect from a 'Big Ron' team. That first half against Manchester City was exhilarating, Paul Telfer headed in Ally Pickering's cross as Isaias sprayed the ball around from his pivotal spot in central midfield. Following his injury-plagued time at City, Isaias transferred to Campomaiorense in the Portuguese Third Division for two seasons before he concluded his career with cameos at Brazilian sides Cabofriense and Friburguense. His five seasons at Benfica (1990-95) brought him worldwide recognition and a move to the Premier League. He displayed flashes of his undoubted ability, it was just a shame that injuries caught up with him. His final game in English football came as substitute in our 1-0 defeat to Liverpool in September 1996 as he failed to feature during Gordon Strachan's tenure.

Mark Robins was the man whose winning goal at Nottingham Forest in the 1990 FA Cup third round saved Sir Alex Ferguson from the sack and went on to score the winning goal against Oldham in the semi-final as you can see below. Many former United players have gone on to have successful managerial careers no doubt influenced by their former gaffer. He'll need to change the culture as its been said many times down the years by various managers and continually by the fans. The core is rotten, when the side trail you may as well leave the ground, there's no supporter expectation that they can triumph following any kind of adversity.

Man Utd v Oldham 1990 FA Cup semi-final


Upon Robins' appointment he said "If we can turn things round here it will be fantastic." He could not have put it better, if success is achieved he'll have the freedom of the city. For far too long the players have had the freedom of the dressing room, now is the time for change at our beloved club. Let's hope Mark Robins can bring back the glory days for the Sky Blue Army, for that we will be eternally grateful.

Raffaele Nuzzo - a five goal howler at Tranmere and its arrivederci Highfield Road

In the season when City failed to win on their travels (1999/00) it should have come as no surprise that a cup tie against lower league opposition would follow suit. Tranmere Rovers, then in the second tier, welcomed Gordon Strachan’s men to Prenton Park for the Worthington Cup second round, first leg tie in September 1999. A weakened City side lined up with Gary Breen at right-back, Gavin Strachan and Marc Edworthy in midfield with Gary McSheffrey, then just 17 years of age, leading the line. Messrs Hadji, Whelan, Keane and Aloisi were absent yet perhaps the biggest surprise for the travelling sky blue army saw on-loan Inter Milan ‘keeper Raffaele Nuzzo line up between the posts for his sole City outing. Between 1991 and 2000 Nuzzo was loaned out by Inter on many occasions to third tier Italian clubs and his spell at Highfield Road lasted from June to November 1999. By the time the final whistle blew at Tranmere his bags were packed and bound for Heathrow.

 

City led through Gary McAllister’s strike and there was no sign of the calamity the second-half would bring. Five goals - 50, 58, 63, 80 and 90 minutes - from Scott Taylor and a treble from David Kelly along with a red card for David Burrows ensured the tie was over before it reached Highfield Road. Nuzzo transferred from Inter to Reggiana in 2000, took in a loan spell at Wigan in 2001, before finally becoming Reggiana first-choice in 2005. His retirement came in 2007 at the age of 34 after just over 120 first team appearances in 16 seasons.

Five league games in and we’ve been outwitted by each side we’ve pitted our wares against. I can’t connect with this division, in the Premier League and Championship you knew all the players in every team. In League One I haven’t a clue who half the opposition players are yet they are tactically superior, sharper and hungrier for the ball. I’m not being disrespectful, just honest. Gary Johnson, Danny Wilson, Peter Shirtliff, Steve Davis and Gary Smith have set up their teams with a plan of action to not just counter our efforts but to take the three points. The Ricoh will be the best stadium fellow teams visit this season, as a result they’ll raise their performance level and see us as a major scalp. I’ve had 22 top flight seasons and 11 desperate second tier campaigns, my main ask is to be entertained by my club. If I’m driving 200 miles round trip I want wingers, ball to feet, skilful forwards and defenders bringing the ball out of defence to begin attacks. What I’m getting is long balls up to small strikers, a midfield so narrow they all fit in the centre circle and a defence unable to concentrate for 90 minutes. As I write Dennis Wise has still not been appointed manager, I’m assuming he’s amongst the shortlist of nine. His appointment will get the fans onside, two or three wins in succession and they’ll be flooding back in their droves. A bit of success is all we crave, heaven forbid if we got a bit of glory, we wouldn’t know how to cope it’s been so long. Eventually, we’d savour the moment and to quote Martin Tyler, as Sergio Aguero netted to clinch the title, “drink it in, savour it” – I think we’d drink Coventry dry.

 

Nii Lamptey - from Anderlecht to Highfield Road

John Filan, Brian Borrows, Marcus Hall, Kevin Richardson, David Busst, Paul Williams, Gordon Strachan, Paul Telfer, Peter Ndlovu, John Salako and Nii Lamptey. These eleven men were responsible for the last time Coventry City overcame a two-goal deficit to win a league/cup fixture – 25^th October 1995 – City 3 Spurs 2 League Cup third round tie. The man listed last on the team sheet may be unknown to younger City supporters but at the age of 16 (1990) he was a first-team regular with Anderlecht and one of the hottest properties in world football. Pele hailed him his ‘natural successor’ and he would score on his European Cup debut for the Belgian giants.

 

‘Old before his time’ can certainly be applied to Nii Lamptey. He was smuggled to Belgium in the back of trucks, virtually kidnapped, and after two years with Anderlecht shone for PSV Eindhoven (with his Robbie Keane-style goal celebration - see second clip) while collecting international caps for Ghana. He joined City from Aston Villa, signed twice by Ron Atkinson, and his year in sky blue, 1995/96, saw him debut at Anfield. Lamptey scored twice, home and away, against Hull in the Coca-Cola Cup but made just six starts with five substitute appearances before he was released to join Italian side Venezia. His one goal at Highfield Road is in the clip below when he also had his head trod on by a Hull defender who saw red for his slip of foot.

City 2 Hull City 0 Coca-Cola Cup

Ron Atkinson recalled how the restrictions on foreign players along with the amount of time he spent away on international duty made it impossible for him to feature regularly. Following his move to Italy, still aged just 22, he became a journeyman, ending up in Argentina, Turkey, Portugal, Belgium, Germany, China, Dubai and then home to Ghana. After scoring on his international debut at 16 he partnered Tony Yeboah and Abedi Pele in a fearsome strike force and went on to collect 38 caps, the last of which came in 1996. He promised so much and his arrival at City was a real coup, it was just a shame it failed to work out for him.

Nii Lamptey's time at PSV Eindhoven - prior to Highfield Road

Lamptey himself cited pressure as a big factor: “When Pele said I could go on to become like him it was a great honour for me. To get such high praise from him was wonderful but it had its negative side – everywhere I went I was supposed to live up to very high standards. Once I couldn’t meet people’s expectations I was considered a failure. It’s easy to be a star but it’s difficult to maintain being a star. When I went to Belgium I was alone at a very young age without anybody and it was so difficult.”

He has recently been immortalised by a group of Sky Blues’ supporters – Knowl (gmkonline), Neil Allison (Sky Blues Blog), Joey Crone and Ed Wilson - who have named a podcast after him – ‘The Nii Lamptey Show’ - which you can download on iTunes and follow via twitter @NiiLampteyShow. The audience is growing by the week and the content is excellent, you should take a listen.

N.B. Lamptey's quote and Atkinson's recollection taken from Amy Lawrence's 'Four Four Two' article in 2004.

From Crewe to Clarrie - in search of a Sky Blues' hat-trick

Over ten years have elapsed since Sky Blues’ supporters cheered a hat-trick on opposition soil. The Alexandra Stadium (formerly Gresty Road), home of Saturday’s opponents Crewe Alexandra, witnessed Roland Nilsson’s side coast to a 6-1 win back in February 2002. £5 million (cough) signing Lee Hughes took home the match ball while David Thompson and a brace from Laurent Delorge completed the rout. Gary McSheffrey was on the bench that day and would himself contribute a treble eight months later in the 8-0 thrashing of Rushden and Diamonds in the Worthington Cup.

With just two league trebles during the eleven second tier seasons (Freddy Eastwood against Peterborough for the second) there’s hope that surely this year will see a glut of goals. Cody McDonald looks sharp and opened his account down at Yeovil but he has some way to go to match the exploits of record goal scorer Clarrie Bourton. During his City career (1931-1937) he scored 13 hat-tricks with seven in 1931/32 alone when he set the club record of 50 goals in a season.

In the late eighties David Speedie claimed two headed trebles in one season, the 4-3 loss to Middlesbrough and the 5-0 destruction of Sheffield Wednesday, both at Highfield Road. The irony of the latter, as just five days later Sutton United and their Gander Green Lane ground took top billing on Match of The Day as we made national headlines. I’ve selected Speedie’s treble against Wednesday in the clip below for the quality of the goals and a reminder to the current crop that we really would like to see a City player topping the scoring charts this year and smashing the 20-goal barrier.

City 5 Sheff Wed 0 (Speedie 3, Sedgley, Kilcline (pen) )

When I wrote my 'Coventry City Miscellany' last year the section on Sky Blues’ managers detailed an average tenure of just over two years. Andy Thorn’s sacking on Sunday after less than 18 months in charge now makes it 11 managers in 12 years, a horrible stat and one that needs stability immediately. The new recruits look promising but the play is so narrow we rely on Hussey and Clarke/Brown to supply the service from out wide which is inconsistent to say the least. The new man must be able to vary tactics as messrs Fleck, Jennings, Barton, McSheffrey, Thomas, Kilbane and Baker can play the game of football. Cody McDonald and Stephen Elliott know the way to goal and need either ball to feet or supply from out wide. We need width and we need it quick, we’re still unbeaten after all and turning draws into wins will soon see us climb the table. Yet again we’re hoping the change will generate success, if the City supporters get a whiff of glory the roof will come off the Ricoh and all visiting grounds. The big name managers have flunked at City but the thought of Dennis Wise making the similar kind of impact he made as a player is inspiring. I want rid of the diamond formation and wing-play brought back to Coventry City. Arise Sir Dennis to work with Richard Shaw and Lee Carsley.

Footnote 10:30pm Tuesday - what a great comeback - the first time we've overhauled a lead since September 2009 at Watford - great stuff City and still unbeaten!

John Williams - from Royal Mail to the Premier League

Twenty years ago this week the FA Premier League opened its doors as 22 clubs competed in its debut season. As we all know Coventry City were one of those teams and began 1992/93 under the second reign of Bobby Gould. With the bulk of Terry Butcher and Don Howe’s legacy at his disposal, Gould handed opening day debuts to two players recruited from the lower leagues. Substitute Phil Babb signed from Bradford City while £250,000 headed to Swansea City as the services of speed merchant John Williams were secured.

During his three seasons at Highfield Road Williams appeared 86 times and scored on 11 occasions. He was the Sky Blues' first ever goal scorer in the Premier League and his goal on home debut against Middlesbrough was the second quickest in Premier League history. Three days later he followed this with both goals at Tottenham as City won 2-0. They secured three straight wins with a 2-1 triumph at Wimbledon to become the first outright leaders of the new division. His celebration with Mick Quinn at Highbury in the 3-0 opening day success is well remembered as is the pace and strength he used to his advantage against unsuspecting defences. Williams departed for Wycombe in the summer of 1995 having etched his name into Coventry City’s Premier League history.

City 2 'Boro 1 1992/93

Four months on from THAT day at the Ricoh Arena against Doncaster Rovers, my first sighting of Andy Thorn’s men since that woeful afternoon took me to Bristol Rovers last Saturday. Clearly apparent was the freshness on show, new personnel on the pitch but also a shake-up in the dugout. A back four of Clarke, Hussey, Wood and Reece Brown had the odd hiccup but on the whole looked solid and this augurs well. New recruit Adam Barton looks a more than decent acquisition while Carl Baker will shine at this level. Gary McSheffrey should mirror the form he showed on loan to Luton many years ago and create havoc while Kevin Kilbane’s experience will calm the nerves.

Conor Thomas has removed Gary Deegan from his Christmas card list after his recent crocking, hopefully by the time he returns to fitness we'll be lodged in the upper reaches of the division. David Bell's hip injury I must have missed on Sky Sports breaking news, I can see another bit part season for him, he has the technique but seems physically unable to play 46 games. The pairing of Cody McDonald and Callum Ball looks good, Cody the 20-goal marksman we've craved since Dion while Ball could well be the ace in our pack with his left foot and strength. Stephen Elliott appears on the attacking periphery at present while John Fleck’s goals from midfield will support the aforementioned trio and catapult at least one City player into the PFA Team of the Year for a pleasant change.

So, all in all, a cause for sky blue optimism? Definitely.

Footnote: Kevin Kilbane's experience came to the fore in the 90th minute at Dagenham and Redbridge last night - let's hope for more of the same at Yeovil.

Peter Atherton - from Wigan to Division One

In a rare astute moment during his 15 months in charge at Highfield Road, Terry Butcher replaced a crowd favourite with a 21 year old whose three seasons in sky blue would prove simply outstanding. Having caught Butcher’s eye in the previous campaign’s FA Cup tie against Wigan Athletic, Peter Atherton signed for £330,000 and stepped up from the third tier like he had played in the top flight all of his career.

Upon Trevor Peake’s departure to Luton, Atherton partnered Andy Pearce and David Busst before his third and final season saw him team up with Phil Babb. They would form one of the best central defensive pairings in modern times before they went their separate ways within months of each other in 1994. During his time at City the composed and quietly effective Lancastrian made 120 appearances without finding the net and took the Player of The Year award in 1992/93.

His final game in sky blue came at Old Trafford the day United lifted the Premiership trophy for the second time. Atherton typically bowed out with a clean sheet as City finished 1993/94 in 11^th position. A key departure along with Babb, this weakened the side as Ron Atkinson subsequently arrived to ensure final day safety just 12 months later. After six seasons with Sheffield Wednesday he spent a further five with Bradford City including relegation along with us in 2001 before his career concluded at Halifax Town where he remains assistant manager to this day.

For a Peter Atherton-related Sky Blues' clip (as he never scored for us) I've gone for one of my favourite games at Highfield Road (in which he played and we kept a clean sheet), the Boxing Day win over Villa in 1992...

Sky Blues 3 Villa 0

With the backbone of Andy Thorn’s defence having gone their expected ways this summer, Richard Keogh and Martin Cranie will be a hard partnership to follow while Sammy Clingan, still without a club, is long gone in the memories of City supporters. With the arrival of the tall and promising Adam Barton and the goal glut through pre-season from John Fleck we have options and we didn’t say that very often last season. Stephen Elliott has pedigree while Kilbane's experience will be vital away from home against partisan crowds. The big glamour friendly is at Bristol Rovers this Saturday as we count down to Huish Park, home of Yeovil and the M5 traffic in eleven days time.

Lee Hurst - from Nuneaton to the Premier League

The influx of ‘youth team’ academy starlets augurs well for the future of Coventry City with transfer fees now a distant memory. In the late 70’s and early 80’s there was a steady stream of brilliant young talent on show at Highfield Road as the club’s reputation for providing opportunity at first team level shone through. Sadly, many of the stars on show were sold by the summer of 1983 and moved on, some to greater things, others not. Bobby Gould wheeled and dealed in the transfer market to bring lower-league talent to Highfield Road and three seasons later Ogrizovic, Peake, Gynn, Kilcline, Houchen and company thrilled millions at Wembley in our finest hour.

In February 1991 Nuneaton-born Lee Hurst, aged 20, was given his first team league debut at Wimbledon's Plough Lane by Terry Butcher. He would light up the inaugural Premier League campaign, season 1992/93, as part of Bobby Gould’s entertaining side during his second spell as manager.Wearing the number eight shirt, Hurst partnered Stewart Robson and then Lloyd McGrath in a City side that would finish 15^th after becoming the first leaders of the Premier League and winning their first four away games.

When Villa were swept aside on Boxing Day City sat fourth and by the beginning of March they were fifth only to fall away during the run-in. One of the outstanding results of the season saw Blackburn Rovers defeated 5-2 at Ewood Park in a fixture remembered for a fantastic long-range strike from Hurst (forward to 1:10 mins). His energy and left-foot gave balance to the all-action styles of Robson and McGrath and it was a huge loss when he was sidelined through a knee injury the following pre-season which led to his retirement.

Blackburn 2 Coventry 5

Lee Hurst’s final game for Coventry came in the 3-3 thriller with Leeds on the final day of ‘92/93, also the final sighting of the Spion Kop before its demolition. He never scored a senior goal at Highfield Road but his style of play made him hugely popular with the City support and he was a hard act to follow. Last season he appeared at half-time on the pitch during Legends’ Day, 19 years after his last game for City, to huge applause, fondly remembered after all those years. In total he appeared 55 times for the Sky Blues and both of his goals came while wearing the ghastly red and white away kit of the time.

If any of the academy starlets make the same impression as Hurst we will have some player on our hands to take the club forward again. Not many City teams have hit fourth place in the top flight but Hurst was part of that side who managed the feat and with Mick Quinn's arrival they were great to watch.

Steve Livingstone's League Cup legacy

It wasn't solely Keith Houchen who excelled in cup competitions during his time in sky blue. While Houchen shone in the FA Cup a City youngster came through the ranks to leave his own legacy in the League Cup and so nearly take City back to Wembley in 1990. Having introduced himself to supporters with his FA Youth Cup final winning goal days prior to the cup win, Middlesbrough-born Steve Livingstone stepped up to the first-team squad and wrote his name into the history books.

With fierce competition for a striking berth following the Wembley triumph, Big Cyrille, David Speedie, Houchen, Gary Bannister and Kevin Drinkell provided the barrier to first-team opportunities which reflected in his league appearances. When ‘Livvo’ opened his account for the club he didn't stop there as Sunderland left Highfield Road on the receiving end of a 5-0 scoreline. John Sillett's men went through to the semi-finals after the last four goal haul by a Coventry player in an FA or League Cup fixture, 22 years ago.

As you can see from the clip below Livingstone was a powerful centre-forward who combined well in harness with Big Cyrille. Of his 15 goals for City, ten came in the League Cup including two in the 5-4 epic against Forest, as he made 42 appearances in total before big spending Blackburn Rovers signed him along with fellow youth cup winner Tony Dobson. Further moves to Chelsea and Grimsby saw him end his career with ten seasons in Cleethorpes leading the line along with Dion Dublin-style cameos in defence.

City 5 (Livingstone 4,Gynn) Sunderland 0 League Cup Q-Final

The Richard Keogh-gate drama was finally sorted this week, not to Bristol City or Cardiff City, surprisingly to Derby County who have installed him as team captain. Taking the unprecedented step of releasing a statement on the club website Keogh explained his reasons for leaving. For a man who always gave his best in a City shirt he'll be guaranteed the kind of ovation afforded him when he left the pitch as a City player for the final time following his red card against Doncaster. As he departed summer signings six and seven arrived in the form of Derby striker Callum Ball on a season-long loan along with Manchester United defender Reece Brown, brother of Wes. With just over three weeks until the trek to Yeovil its seven more signings than I thought we’d make this close season with more rumoured to be on the way. I'm optimistic, it could be the start of something good at long last.

Andy Pearce - from Halesowen to Highfield Road

Upon his arrival at Highfield Road in November 1990, player-manager Terry Butcher made a number of unpopular decisions with the FA Cup era squad. During his 15-month tenure he saw fit to sideline Big Cyrille, Trevor Peake, Brian Kilcline and David Speedie as he looked to stamp his influence on team selection. The man signed to replace the cup-winning captain arrived for just £15,000 from non-league Halesowen Town in March 1991, entering league football at the relatively late age of 24. His name was Andy Pearce and he would score the winning goal on his home debut in front of the West Terrace.

On that March 1991 night at Highfield Road, Pearce rose above Iain Dowie with seven minutes remaining to seal a 2-1 victory as you can see from the clip below (forward to 3:35 mins). He achieved what all City supporters could only dream of, scoring the winner at Highfield Road the first time you've ever played there and celebrating in front of the West End. All four of his City goals came at the great stadium with his final strike, in the inaugrual Premier League season, a 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace whose defence comprised messrs Shaw and Coleman. Pearce made 81 appearances for City as he partnered Trevor Peake and Peter Atherton before the arrival of David Busst in early 1993. The popular Busst's arrival from non-league Moor Green signalled the end of Pearce's time at City, one of his final games brought that calamitous own goal at Loftus Road when a clearance spun off his right boot to leave’Oggy’ helpless and City on the way to defeat.

Saint & Greavsie show March 1991 City 2 Luton 1


Sheffield Wednesday signed him for £500,000 where he stayed for two seasons before his career ground to a halt during four seasons at Wimbledon where he made less than a dozen starts, departing in 1999. At Hillsborough he achieved cult status with a derby day goal against the Blades while his last career appearance at Highfield Road came in a ‘Crazy Gang’ shirt back in 1995. Not renowned for comebacks, nine-man City fought back from 3-1 down to level at 3-3 as Pearce partnered Andy Thorn in their central defence while Richard Shaw saw red for City along with Paul Williams.

Last season it took three months to score eight goals. On Saturday, albeit against Hinckley United, City found the net eight times without reply. The arrival of Frenchmen Kevin Malaga and William Edjenguele are the fourth and fifth signings of the close season, strengthening the defence as Richard Keogh's time at the Ricoh seems to be drawing to a close. In recent seasons only Mo Konjic can compare to Keogh's cult-like status, his efforts in sky blue always appreciated by the supporters following his signing from Carlisle United. His stock has risen and he'll always be welcome back at the club and guaranteed a warm reception. It was expected he would depart (even though he officially hasn't yet) as most decent players do at Coventry yet you just clung onto the hope that he might just be the exception. Andy Thorn has kept his cards close to his chest so far having learnt his lesson from the Marlon King affair. He may well have a few more aces up his sleeve, hopefully a number nine to complement McDonald and Elliott, with a 20 goal marksman a must.