Geoff Strong 1937-2013 RIP

The former Coventry City defender Geoff Strong died on 17 June 2013 after a long battle with Alzheimer's Disease. Geoff was one of the country's top players in the 1960s and but for his versatility in numerous positions he would have probably won international honours. His time at Coventry was quite brief - from 1970-72 - but his experience & defensive ability was instrumental in the Sky Blues' outstanding defensive record in 1970-71.

Born in Kirkheaton in Northumberland in 1937, Geoff's first club was Stanley United where his goalscoring ability was spotted by Arsenal. National service delayed his league debut until he was 23 years old but over four years he was a regular goal scorer in an unimpressive Gunners side. In 1963-64 he scored 31 goals and formed a formidable partnership with Joe Baker, the pair netting 62 goals between them.

Arsenal were going through a period of transition and were not in the hunt for honours. Geoff was ambitious and in 1964 sought a transfer. Liverpool manager Bill Shankly paid £40,000 to take him to Anfield and after just 16 appearances in a red shirt Geoff, deputising in midfield for the injured Gordon Milne, won an FA Cup winners' medal as Liverpool beat Leeds United 2-1 at Wembley.

A year later Geoff was a member of the League Championship winning side but missed out on a European Cup Winners Cup final through injury sustained in the semifinal against Celtic when, despite limping with his injury, he scored a stunning headed goal to win the tie.

Over six seasons at Anfield he played almost 200 games and in virtually every position before finally settling at left back. In 1970 after a shock FA Cup defeat to Watford Shankly rang the changes & Strong found himself out of favour. Noel Cantwell signed him for a £30,000 fee as a replacement for the injured Roy Barry who was expected to miss most of the season following his broken leg.

Strong made an inauspicious debut in central defence at Nottingham Forest in a 0-2 defeat but quickly developed a good understanding with Jeff Blockley. City had qualified for Europe by virtue of finishing in sixth place the previous season & it was always going to be difficult to improve on that achievement. The defence however was the strong part of the team, conceding just 38 league goals, a club record which still stands. Geoff played 40 games that season including three of the club's European games and the 6-1 defeat to Bayern Munich. However after the disastrous FA Cup defeat at Rochdale he was one of a number of senior players who  were dropped by Cantwell. He later returned to the side at left-back.

In 1971-72 with Roy Barry fit again & young defenders Bobby Parker & Jimmy Holmes emerging, Geoff's first team opportunities were limited & his solitary appearance was in a 0-4 defeat at Manchester City. At the end of 1971-72, aged 35, he decided to retire.

Post-football he became a successful businessman from his base in Southport, running a hotel furnishing business & later co-owning a pub with his former Liverpool team-mate Ian Callaghan.

As Alzheimer's took its toll in recent years Geoff was in a care home in Southport but still managed the occasional trip to Anfield. In a poll to find 100 players who shook the Kop, Geoff was voted in at number 98.

2012-13 Season review

Off the field shenanigans have taken the spotlight for most of the 2012-13 season & have blurred what by Coventry City standards has been a good season. Five managers have been at the helm (two of them caretakers) and 37 players have worn the shirt but the results have been better and there have been more highs than lows.

The home form has been poor but the victories over Birmingham, Walsall & Preston (JPT) were as exciting as we have had in the last five years and the hard won victories over the two promoted sides showed what the team were capable of. Sadly there were too many defeats against lower sides & the disappointment of the Crewe JPT game to swallow.

If you are a travelling supporter then it has been the best season ever with a record-breaking 11 league victories & some amazing highs at Milton Keynes, Hartlepool & Doncaster not forgetting historic trips to Arsenal & Spurs.

Games: Coventry City played 58 competitive games this season, 46 league, 3 FA Cup, 3 League Cup & 6 Johnstone’s Paint Trophy. This is the most by any City side in history beating the 57 games played in 1962-63. 30 home games was also a record.

Points: The Sky Blues gathered 65 points (reduced to 55 by the 10 points deduction for going into administration) during the season. This equalled the second highest total by a City team since three points for a win was introduced – the highest being 66 in 2001-02.

Home Form: The home record was won 7, drew 7, lost 9 – worse than last season’s record. The total of 28 points was the lowest at home since 2002-03 (24 points) but some way off the all-time low of 19 set in the 2001 relegation season. The goals scored (29) and conceded (27) were almost identical to 2011-12 (28-26)  – only the third positive home goal difference since 2006-07. Only once did the team win two home games running.

Away Form: The away form was nothing short of staggering with 11 away wins a club record, topping the 10 wins in 1969-70. 37 points was also a new club record. The eight defeats (from 23 games) was the lowest since 1992-93 when Bobby Gould’s side lost six from 21. The away goal difference (37-32) was the first positive difference since 2003-04 and only the sixth time in 87 seasons of league football. Between 27 October & 29 December the team won six consecutive away league games (seven if you include the JPT win at York), beating the club record of four.

Wins: City won eighteen league games in total – the third highest total in the last 45 years, topped only by 2001-02 (20) and 1969-70 (19).

Biggest win:  The biggest win of the season was the 5-0 league win at Hartlepool in November. It was the first time City have scored more than three goals in a league game since 2008. They had last scored four in October 2008 against Southampton at the Ricoh (4-1) and last scored five in April 2008 at Colchester (5-1). Although it wasn't a record away win (that was the 7-0 at Aberdare Athletic in 1926-27) it was amazingly the first time in the club's history that they have won an away league game 5-0. Three weeks later they scored five again in beating Walsall at home (5-1).

Biggest defeat: The 0-4 Easter Monday defeat at Walsall was the biggest league defeat but topped by the 1-6 loss at Arsenal in the League Cup.

Goals: The goals total of 66 was the third highest by a City team since the club came out of the old Division Two in 1967, only 1977-78 (75) and 2003-04 (67) were better. At one stage the Sky Blues topped the League One scoring list but eventually finished fourth highest. They did however top the away scorers with 37. Between September & the end of the year the team scored in 24 consecutive league & cup games, the best such run since 1966-67.

Final position: The final position of 15th was the lowest finishing position since 1960-61 when the Bantams finished 15^th in the old Division Three under Billy Frith. It means that the Sky Blues have finished in the top ten only once in the twelve seasons since they left the Premiership in 2001.  They are the only club, bar long-serving Premiership clubs and recent promotees from the Conference, not to have been promoted or reached the play-offs since the play-offs were introduced in 1987 nor to finish in the top six of a division.  But for the points deduction a final position of 12^th would have been achieved.

Leading scorers: For the first time since 2005-06 the Sky Blues had more than one player reach double figures in league games. David McGoldrick finished as top league scorer with 16 (in 22 games) followed by Carl Baker with 12 (in 43 games). McGoldrick’s league total was the best by a Coventry player since 1997-98 when Dion Dublin scored 18 to finish joint top scorer in the Premiership. If you add in Cup games McGoldrick netted 18 and Baker 15 with Leon Clarke netting 10 in all games. McGoldrick’s goal ratio (0.72 goals per game) was only slightly better than Clarke’s (0.62), the best by a City striker since George Hudson in 1963-64 (0.77) but some way from Clarrie Bourton’s record set in 1931-32 (1.19). McGoldrick did smash one of Clarrie’s records however, by netting in seven consecutive away league games (all victories). Leon Clarke later netted in five consecutive away games (six, if you count Cup games). Clarke, who had played for Scunthorpe before joining the Sky Blues in January, finished as the division’s second top scorer with 19 goals in 26 league games and but for his injury would surely have finished top. Clarke also became the first player to score for and against the Sky Blues in the same season since Dion Dublin in 1998-99 (not including own goals).

Doubles: City achieved the double over four sides including the two promoted sides Doncaster & Bournemouth plus Hartlepool & Oldham – the highest number since 2001-02 (5). On the other hand three sides did the double over City (Crewe, Carlisle & Shrewsbury) – the lowest number since 2005-06.

Appearances: Joe Murphy started every league game bar the final game at Notts County, the first league game he had missed in two full seasons. Carl Baker was involved in 43 league games and was missing only through injury & suspension. Two players failed to start a league game but made substitute appearances (Jordan Willis & Roy O’Donovan).

Players used:  Thirty-seven players were used in league and cup games. Of the 37, 22 players made their debuts during the season, nine of them loan players and 9 of them came from the club’s academy. In addition to the 37 players used, three more, Lee Burge, Louis Garner and Leon Lobjoit sat on the bench as substitutes but were not used.

Records: Gary McSheffrey reached 281 appearances by the end of the season and is now in 21^st equal place in the all-time chart, level with Cyrille Regis and close behind players such as Brian Hill (286), Ernie Machin (289) & Micky Gynn (291). McSheffrey also crept up to 9^th place in the club’s all-time goalscorers list having now scored 72 goals for the club. He is no level with & just behind George Hudson (75) in the all-time scorers chart. With Gary’s future at the club seemingly in the balance will he ever add to those outstanding figures?

Substitutes: John Fleck made the most substitute appearances (17 league & cup) whilst Gary McSheffrey was the most substituted player. Gary was ‘pulled’ on 21 occasions in 26 league starts, a new record for the club. Seven substitutes came off the bench and scored: Fleck (at Shrewsbury), Ball (at Arsenal), McDonald (at Oldham), Hussey (at York), Barton (at Hartlepool), Wilson (Colchester), Elliott (Oldham). My records are incomplete but I believe this is a club record.

Average attendance: Home 10,938 (2011-12 15,121), down 27%. Away 6,895 (2011-12 17,619), down 61%. The home average attendance was the lowest since the 1982-83 season when the average was 10,552. In the league City’s tremendous away following, no doubt boosted by new grounds and the away form, actually increased from around 900 per game to almost 1200 (the second highest in the division) with almost 5,000 travelling to Milton Keynes. In Cup games too 8,000 City fans travelled to Arsenal and 5,000 to Spurs.

Highest home attendance: The biggest league crowd was 15,185 for the visit of Shrewsbury Town on New Years Day. In February 31,054 watched the JPT Area Final game v Crewe – the second largest crowd to watch the Sky Blues at the Ricoh.

Lowest home attendance: Only 8,862 attended the midweek visit of Crawley in November – the lowest league crowd at the Ricoh and the lowest City home league gate since March 1992 when 8,454 went through the Highfield Road turnstiles for the visit of Norwich. The Scunthorpe home game four days later attracted 9,892 – the lowest for a Saturday home game since 1993. Cup games attracted the lowest crowds however with only 5,437 at the Burton Albion JPT game, the lowest crowd at a City home game since 1985, and two FA Cup crowds under 7,000 with the 6,339 at the Morecambe second round tie the lowest home crowd in the competition since 1908.

Highest away attendance: The biggest away league crowd was at Bramall Lane for the Friday night game in February – 17,511. A massive 58,351 were at the Emirates for the League Cup game – the largest crowd to watch City since the Old Trafford League Cup game in 2007.

Lowest away attendance: Four crowds under 4,000 watched City’s league games with the smallest at Colchester for the midweek game in November – 3,229. This was the smallest crowd to watch City in a league game since 2002 when 2,077 watched them play Wimbledon at Selhurst Park and the fourth lowest post-war away crowd. At Dagenham & Redbridge in the League Cup only 1,904 were present and 580 of them came from Coventry. It was the lowest crowd to watch the Sky Blues in the competition.

Won from behind: (6) City had failed to come from behind to win for almost three years but broke that record by beating Birmingham in the League Cup second round. Then they achieved the feat three times in December (Walsall (h), Stevenage (a) & MK Dons (a)), once in January (Preston (h) JPT) and finally at Scunthorpe in March. On three occasions they did concede the first goal but won a point. At MK Dons City came from behind twice to win – for the first time since 1997.

Lost from in front: (5)  Four at home: Stevenage, Scunthorpe, Crewe & Swindon, & Brentford away.   In a further ten games City took the lead only to be pegged back for draws. In total 33 points were lost from leading positions.

Best run: The Sky Blues went unbeaten in ten league & cup games in November & December, the best run since 2002 when under Gary McAllister the team went 10 unbeaten in all games.

Worst run: City started the season badly and failed to win any of their first eight league games. Added to the six without a win at the end of 2011-12 meant a run of 14 league games without a win – the worst since the spring of 2003 when McAllister’s mixture of kids and loanees went 16 without a win.

Hat-tricks: (0) No City player scored a hat-trick but McGoldrick scored five braces (four in the league) with Carl Baker twice scoring two in a game.

Opposing hat-tricks: (0) None. Several players scored two in a game including Leon Clarke (Scunthorpe), Clint Dempsey (Tottenham) & Theo Walcott (Arsenal). Brentford’s Jamie Forrester netted twice at Griffin Park & once at the Ricoh.

Own goals: For City: (3) Robertson (Preston h), Maguire (Sheff United JPT) & Ellis (Crewe JPT).

Own goals: By City: (1) Blair Adams (Walsall h)

Penalties: For City: (6) Kilbane, Fleck, McGoldrick, Baker (2) & McSheffrey scored from the spot. One penalty was missed: McSheffrey (Portsmouth a) 

Penalties: Against City: (4) Healy (Bury h), Richards (Shrewsbury a), Cadamarteri (Carlisle h), Clarke (Scunthorpe h), Akins (Stevenage a), Westcarr (Walsall a). One penalty was missed when Joe Murphy saved Arsenal’s Oliver Giroud’s effort in the League Cup game.

Fastest Goal scored: 2 minutes: Frank Moussa scored in the 2^nd minute in the home game with Swindon in March.

Fastest Goal conceded: 2 minutes: Carlisle’s Matty Robson in the game at Brunton Park in January.

Red cards: Coventry: (1): Jordan Stewart at Walsall for two yellow cards. This is the lowest number of sending-offs since 1993-94 season. City last went through a whole season without a red card in 1986-87 (FA Cup winning season).

Red cards: Opponents: (1) Butler (Walsall h). This is the lowest figure since 1996-97 when no opponents were sent off.

Bookings: Most yellow cards award went to Jennings (7) followed closely by McSheffrey (6) & Baker (5).

Television: The Sky Blues appeared live on television twice – the home league game against Stevenage & the JPT area semi final at home to Preston.

New Grounds: City played at seven grounds for the first time in competitive games. It was the first ever visits to Yeovil, Stevenage, MK Dons, Crawley & Dagenham & Redbridge. In addition they visited the new grounds of Shrewsbury & Colchester.

Internationals: For the first time since the 1989-90 season Coventry City had no full internationals.

Man of the Match: Frank Moussa won the most Andy Turner Man of the Match awards. The leading contenders were: Moussa 9, Baker 7, McGoldrick & Jennings 6.

With many thanks to Paul O’Connor.

Jim's Column 27.4.2013

                                                   Bill Patrick - hat-trick scorer

Today is the last game of the season for the Sky Blues and a trip to Notts County’s Meadow Lane for the first time since 1992. The ‘Lane’ was a bogey ground for the Sky Blues in the old First Division with defeats in all four meetings between 1981-1992 including a 5-1 thrashing in 1982-83.

The home season ended last weekend with a disappointing home defeat to Leyton Orient – the first time Orient had won in seventeen visits to Coventry since 1922 when Clapton Orient won 2-1.

My mention last week of Noel Simpson breaking a leg at Highfield Road prompted several readers to send me their thoughts of the incident & memories of other tragic broken legs involving City players.

I spoke to former City player Lol Harvey about Simpson & he remembers Noel breaking his leg whilst playing for Exeter City (who he joined after leaving City in 1957). Jim Hone confirmed that the incident occurred after Simpson had left City but thought it was against Swindon. Mick Sanders recalls him breaking his leg near the centre circle. Barry Ireland remembers it being against Exeter in a game City won 6-1.

The game in question was on 9 November 1957 at Highfield Road & City did win 6-1 with goals from Bill Patrick (3), Charlie Timmins (penalty), Ken McPherson & Ray Sambrook. Noel Simpson, who had left City the previous summer after 270 appearances, was captaining Exeter and the Coventry Telegraph reported that Simpson was carried off after 35 minutes following a tackle with City’s Roy Kirk. The match report however describes his injury as ‘damaged knee ligaments’. Noel never played senior football again and retired the following summer, aged 36. The number of readers who remember the sound of the break seems to indicate the match report was incorrect about the nature of the injury. Several people also seem to think that the protagonists ‘hadn’t seen eye to eye’ prior to Simpson’s departure but it’s probably best to let those sleeping dogs lie.

Other readers remembered other broken legs with 83-year old George Hopkins, a former programme seller at Highfield Road recalling left winger George Ashall breaking his leg in a heavy clash with West Brom’s Stan Rickaby in 1947. Thirty-six year old Ashall, an England prospect before the war, never played football again.

Chris Lambert recalls loanee Craig Hignett suffering a hairline fracture at Bramall Lane in 2002 when he got in the way of a shot from United’s Peter Ndlovu.

Dean Nelson remembers Dave Bennett suffering a broken leg against Sheffield Wednesday at Highfield Road in 1988 but it was in fact against Derby. ‘Benno’ collided with Peter Shilton & came off worst. He later suffered further breaks playing for both Swindon and Sheffield Wednesday.

Peter Louch thought Peter Hill broke his leg in a Boxing Day game in the 1950s but I can find no records of this.

After my piece about Dan Dan the Rhyming Man a couple of weeks ago I had an email from Hag Harris, a City fan exiled in Lampeter, South Wales.

Dan's mini poems amused me as a young chap at Highfield Road and even now going through late 1950s and early 1960s programmes in my forested vastness warms my cockles!  Manager Billy Frith's notes are always worth a re-read as he rails against outrageous bad luck and misfortune, the 'London Press' and discontented barrackers.

Hag goes on to say that he looks forward to the definitive text on the '1920 Bury Affair' and ' The Life and Times of Arthur Lightening' and no, I am too young to have seen Clarrie play.

This is the last column of the season for me but look out for my usual statistical summary of the season next week. Thanks to everybody who has contributed to the column this season and have a great summer. Lets hope the warring parties can resolve their differences and we can watch the Sky Blues at the Ricoh next season.

Jim's column 20.4.13

                                                                Ronnie Rees

Some weeks ago Keith Ballantyne wrote to me regarding former City player Ronnie Rees. Keith was reminded of the Welsh winger after the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy debacle against Crewe. Keith remembers travelling to Gresty Road in 1966 for the FA Cup tie: ‘City trailed until the last few minutes until a Rees goal got them out of jail as I recall’.

You are correct Keith, Rees equalised in the 88^th minute after Crewe had led from the ninth minute, when a Peter Kane shot went in off George Curtis’ face. Fourth Division Crewe’s chance of a giantkilling act had gone & two days later the Sky Blues convincingly won the replay 4-1 with goals from Dave Clements, George Hudson (2) & Ronnie Farmer (a penalty).

Keith recalls that Rees was City's only full international for some years, that at some stage he left for West Brom and that he featured in one if not two thrashings that we suffered at their hands. Like most of us children of the 60s his memory is sketchy but he thought Rees played in a 6-1 Sky Blues defeat.

Ronnie was only the fifth Coventry City player to win a full Welsh cap when he made his debut at the age of 20 against Scotland in October 1964. He went on to win 21 caps whilst he was with the Sky Blues, scoring two goals. He left City for West Brom in March 1968 after making 262 appearances for the club & scoring 52 goals. He wasn’t City’s only international during that time, Dave Clements made his debut for Northern Ireland in 1965 and also won 21 caps between then and 1971. Also during 1964-65 City regularly put out a side with two full internationals on the wings, Rees on the left and Northern Ireland’s Willie Hunphries on the right.

After leaving City, Rees played only one full season at the Hawthorns and appeared against the Sky Blues twice, scoring on both occasions. In City’s 4-2 home win in August 1968 he scored one of the Baggies’ goals, then repeated the feat in a 6-1 Baggies’ league win at the Hawthorns two months later.

In 1969-70 he had joined Nottingham Forest & amazingly repeated the scoring feat, netting in Forest’s 3-2 defeat at Highfield Road and their 4-1 defeat to the Sky Blues at the City Ground. He did appear against City twice the following season without finding the net. Ronnie won a further 18 full Welsh caps after leaving City, taking his total to 39. His club career ended at Swansea City in 1975 and he went to work at the Ford factory in the city but had to retire at the age of 51 after a stroke.

He still lives in Swansea with June, his Coventry-born wife and although Ron is in poor health he likes to keep abreast of news from the Sky Blues.

George Ling, a friend of many years standing through the Coventry City London Supporters Club, posed an interesting question recently: Did Noel Simpson ever break his leg playing for the club? George is confident he was present at Highfield Road when he heard an almighty crack and Simpson collapsed on the floor in front of the Main Stand at the Spion Kop end of the ground.

                                                                    Noel Simpson

I’m afraid I was unable to answer the question but Noel played for the club between 1948-1957, in an era when broken legs took a minimum of six months to recover from. Looking at Noel’s record I can find no periods of that length when he was absent from the side and think George’s memory is playing tricks on him. Perhaps an older supporter can throw some light on the question.

George also asked which players I could remember breaking a leg whilst playing for the club and a few immediately came to mind including George Curtis at Nottingham Forest in 1967, Roy Barry (v Sheffield Wednesday 1970), Dave Busst (v Manchester United 1996), Bill Glazier (v Man City 1965), Lloyd McGrath (v Ipswich (Simod Cup) 1988) & Jim Sanders (v Aldershot 1958). Do any readers remember others?

Jim's column 13.4.13

Young Ryan Haynes made a steady debut for the Sky Blues last Saturday in the 1-1 draw with Brentford. Born on 25 September 1995, the Northampton-born full-back was 17 years & 191 days old & many fans wondered where he comes in the list of youngest City debutants. He doesn't make the all-time top ten youngest but is the third youngest to make a full debut (i.e. starting a game) since we left the Premiership in 2001. Numerous younger players have made their debuts as substitutes in that time including Ben Mackey, Jordan Willis & Jonson Clark-Harris, the latter being the youngest ever at 16 years & 20 days, but only Isaac Osbourne & Conor Thomas were younger than Ryan when they made their full debut.

Isaac Osbourne was 16 years & 308 days old when he started his first game in a 0-0 draw against Gillingham in April 2003. He went on to make over 120 appearances in an injury interrupted career for the club. He has been at Aberdeen for the last two years but has suffered more injuries restricting his appearances for the Dons to 42 in that time but he did net his first ever goal in senior football this season.

Conor Thomas was 17 years & 92 days old when he started his first game for the Sky Blues, an FA Cup tie at St Andrews in January 2011. Earlier that month Conor had been a substitute in an earlier cup-tie against Crystal Palace. Days after making his first start he went on loan to Liverpool with a view to a permanent move. Things didn't work out however and Thomas moved back to Coventry later that season.

Going back to Ryan Haynes, he is the youngest full-back to don a City shirt since the great George Curtis made his first start in April 1956 as a left-back at Newport County. George, who switched to centre-half in 1958,  was 16 years & 351 days, and went on to make x appearances for the club.

The top ten youngest full debutants is:

1. Brian Hill (April 1958) 16 years 273 days

2. Isaac Osbourne (April 2003) 16 years 308 days

3. Perry Suckling (August 1982) 16 years 320 days

4. George Curtis (April 1956) 16 years 351 days

5. Dietmar Bruck (April 1961) 17 years 9 days

6. Colin Holder (April 1962) 17 years 73 days

7. Conor Thomas (Jan 2011) 17 years 92 days

8. Lol Harvey (Nov 1951)  17 years 101 days

9. Bobby Parker (March 1970) 17 years 137 days

10. Bobby Gould (October 1963) 17 years 140 days

Coincidentally Colin Holder was at the Brentford game, his first visit to the Ricoh & the first City game he had been to for many years.

In the programme for the recent Bury away game a local writer did an interesting article about Dan, Dan, the Rhyming Man, a poet who featured in the City programmes in the late 1950s & early 1960s. I had completely forgotten about the witty poems of Dan & thought I would dig out a few for this week's column. 

The first poem of Dan's I can find was in the home programme versus Southend United on 26 October 1957 soon after Billy Frith had returned to the club as manager following the departure of Harry Warren. Tucked away near the back of the 12-page programme is a two line poem with a clever reference to the club's nickname at the time (the Bantams) and new boss Frith. I believe it was Dan's first appearance in a match programme:

My opening rhyme is short and pithy.

Up the Bants, and well done Frithy.

For the next league game Dan had expanded to four lines & made reference to a floodlit friendly victory against Partick Thistle:

The floodlight game with Partick Thistle

Stopped every pessimistic whistle,

Repeat the dose, let the League heads roll,

And make a one-way route to goal.

From 1957 to 1961 Dan graced the pages of the City programme. I had a theory that Billy Frith and Dan were one and the same. Beyond the fun there was something rather school masterly about the poems, with references to history, geography & literature, and in the years between his two spells as City manager, between 1948 & 1957, Billy had been a schoolteacher and risen to the post of head of a local school. I contacted Billy's son John who was adamant that Dan wasn't a nom de plume of his father.

By 1960 Dan's poems had further expanded to six and sometimes eight lines and the Bury programme featured a classic from the City v Bury programme 1960:

In Bell Green and Barnsley, Binley and Brighton

Some call our guests 'Burry' though 'Berry's' the right'un

But why should we bother if diction's in doubt

Provided the Bantams can cancel them out.

So let's silence the grumblers, the old belly-achers

By extracting two points from this team called the 'Shakers'

If anyone can shed any light as to the identity of Dan please contact me as I would love to know.

Jim's column 6.4.13

                                                 City's goal v Walthamstow Avenue 1957

Two weeks ago I mentioned Coventry City's FA Cup First round tie in 1957 against non-league Walthamstow Avenue. Arthur Warner of Binley wrote to me with his memories of the game:

They were a strong amateur team as you said- I remember they gave City one hell of a game. I was behind the goal on the Kop with the lads again-aged 12-nearly 20,000 crowd (19,064 to be precise). Big Ken McPherson scored the only goal, at the Kop end , towards the end of second half if my memory serves me right. I am sure that Walthamstow  played in green and white hoops and City played in red as both teams normal colours were blue.

Rod Dean too, has vague memories of the game: 'It was 56 years ago! I seem to remember Walthamstow in quartered shirts and City in red'

I did a bit of research and found an old newspaper picture from the game (of McPherson's goal I think) and of the two players in the background the closer one is wearing a quartered shirt (green, I suspect) and is a Walthamstow player. The other looks like City player Ray Sambrook, and is wearing City's away kit of that time, red shirts and white shorts. Both teams would have changed shirts because of the colour clash to comply with the FA rules at the time. The match report says that the amateur side had been the superior team in the first half but after a half-time lecture from manager Billy Frith, City improved a lot and McPherson scored the only goal after 56 minutes.

Arthur also remembers Steve 'Kalamazoo' Mokone who I wrote about two weeks ago:

Concerning Steve Mokone, I was at the game in October 1956 when steve scored his only goal for City against GIllingham -we won 4-1, and the crowd of nearly 17,000. I was behind the goal, at the Kop end where all us young ones went in those days. i am sure he scored it at the covered end- later known as the West end. i do remember that he picked the ball out of the  back of the net,  put it under his arm, and ran back to centre circle, waving to the crowd, and placed it on the centre-spot, amid great cheering from the crowd. He was a exciting talent to us young ones and was like a breath of fresh air in the games I saw him play- first team and reserves. The football was pretty grim under Harry Warren I seem to remember.

Alan Gamble of Longfollow Road also has fond memories of Mokone:

I was 9 years old “city fan “and used to go to South Street School, after school a crowd of us would have a kick about at the bottom of Days Lane by the Vauxhall Tavern. One day Kalamazoo joined us, he was really friendly and mesmerized us with his skills, and I got his autograph and treasured it, until sadly lost it in a house move 20+ years ago.

CCFPA committee member Mike Young has been in contact with ‘Kalamazoo’ who recently celebrated his 81^st birthday and lives in Virginia, USA. He is a member of the FPA & would love to come over for a Legends Day however his health is not great but has promised to try and make it next year. 

What a disastrous result at Walsall, although by many accounts it wasn't that bad a performance but the red card for Stewart, City's first sending off of the season, and a stunning display of finishing by Walsall saw City beaten. It was their biggest league defeat of the season and the largest since the final day defeat at Southampton last season. In fact before Monday the team had only conceded more than two goals once in league games (at Shrewsbury in September).

I have written about City's topsy-turvy form, 11 away wins but only seven at home but there is another fascinating feature about the league record this season. Looking at a league table based on games against top half sides the Sky Blues are top of the league but on a table based on games against bottom half sides the Sky Blues are 17th. City have performed far better against the top sides & have done the double over Doncaster and Bournemouth and taken four points off Sheffield United and MK Dons. Conversely their form against lower sides has been dire with Shrewsbury & Carlisle doing the double over them and teams like Stevenage and Scunthorpe winning at the Ricoh. The Good Friday win over Doncaster Rovers was the second time this season that the Sky Blues have beaten the league leaders following the win over Tranmere in January.

Jim's Column 30.3.13

                                   Chris Chilton, who scored against Falkirk in 1971

John Green wrote to me recently to say that he had been visiting friends in Falkirk recently and had talked to some of the local supporters. They all agreed that Steven Pressley was doing he right thing by moving to England to manage the Sky Blues but were sad to losing a fine manager. One of the Falkirk supporters raised the topic of a two-legged game between Falkirk and the Sky Blues in the 1970s but did not remember much about the game or what the competition was but did remember that Man United boss Alex Ferguson played for Falkirk. John asks if I could supply some details of the games & confirm the Appearance of Ferguson.

The teams met in the now defunct Texaco Cup, a competition involving English & Scottish First Division sides who had not qualified for European competitions. City entered the Cup, sponsored by the oil company, for three seasons from 1971-74 with little success. The tie with Falkirk was played in September 1971 with City losing the first leg in Scotland 1-0 but winning the second leg 3-0 after extra-time at Highfield Road with goals from Chris Chilton, Ernie Hunt & Dennis Mortimer, to go through on aggregate 3-1. Alex Ferguson did play in both legs for the Bairns. City's team for the first leg was Glazier: Coop, Smith, Mortimer, Blockley, Parker, O'Rourke, Carr, Chilton, Hunt, McGuire sub: Barry. In the second leg Cattlin replaced McGuire, Young replaced O'Rourke.

Ian Harris of Radford posed an interesting question this week he points out that the club look set to play at least 58 competitive games this season (more if they reach the play-offs). Ian wanted to know if this is a record for the number of games played by the club in a season. The answer is yes it will be a record, topping the 1962-63 season when the team played 57 games. That season, severely disrupted by the bad winter, City played 46 League games, two League Cup ties and nine FA cup ties. Some people might argue that they played 57 1/2 games as the Colchester home game was abandoned at half-time because of fog. Ian also pointed out that they will also play 30 home games, another club record, topping the 29 set in 1962-63 and equalled in 1973-74.

Last week’s loss at Fratton Park was a rare away defeat for the team in a run stretching back to last October. It brought to an end a run of four league wins (five in all competitions) and was only the second away league defeat in 12 games since the reverse at Brentford on 23 October. This is undoubtedly the best away run since the club entered the League in 1919 and would have barely thinkable last season when the Sky Blues managed a single paltry away win. Several readers have asked about the ‘Brazil’ away kit and commented how lucky it has been. For the record the club have played 11 games in the change kit and won eight, drawn one and lost two (at Carlisle & Portsmouth). Once again this is a record for any ‘away’ kit the club have ever worn & highly unlikely to ever be topped. Older fans may point out that in 1969 we played two away games in green shirts and black shorts (the new green & black striped shirts weren’t ready at the start of the season), and won both, at West Brom & Ipswich, before retiring the quite dashing kit in favour of the stripes.

Gary McSheffrey hasn’t had a great season for the Sky Blues and the penalty miss at Portsmouth will not have helped his confidence. The miss was the first by a City player this season after five successful ones, strangely by five different players. Kevin Kilbane, John Fleck, David McGoldrick, McSheffrey himself and Carl Baker had all netted from the spot before last week.  Unfortunately Gary has set a club record which he won’t be proud of – the most substituted City player of all time. Before yesterday’s game he had been taken off in 21 of 26 league games in which he has started. The previous record, I believe, was held by Dele Adebola in 2005-06 – he was pulled in 16 games. Some statistics have been produced this week on the most substituted players of all time and Adebola is 9^th on the list having been ‘subbed’ on 202 occasions. Top of the list is Robbie Blake with 237 substitutions and I see that by coincidence he was released by Doncaster in the week the list was published! McSheffrey by the way has been ‘subbed’ 139 times and is in 79^th place in the list.