Jim's column 28.4.12

                                                         Bobby McDonald - 160 consecutive games       

Coventry City’s relegation to League One (or Division Three) was confirmed with the home defeat to Doncaster Rovers last Saturday – a sad conclusion to a miserable season. Today the injury-ravaged team travel to Southampton’s St Mary’s Stadium to try and recover some pride against the team most likely to follow Reading to the Premier League.

Coventry City have now been relegated four times in their League history. Ian Harris wrote in and wanted to know if in our previous relegations (1925, 1952 and 2001) we were relegated on the final day. In 1925 it was a 0-0 home draw with Derby in the penultimate game which sealed City’s relegation from the old Division Two. Coincidentally, the final game was at Southampton and the team lost 0-3. In 1952 their fate was settled on the last day with a 1-3 loss at Elland Road. In 2001, as many fans will remember it was the 2-3 defeat at Villa Park in the penultimate game which ended City’s hopes of retaining their Premier League status.

City fans will be glad to see the back of one of the worst seasons ever statistically but unfortunately I will have to do my statistical review next week when the season has finally ended.

Poor Richard Keogh saw his tremendous run of City appearances ended in the most unfortunate circumstances last Saturday - with a red card for giving away a penalty. He had played 90 complete league games without missing a single minute and looked set to be an ever-present for the second successive season, something not achieved by a City player since Oggy in the 1990s and by an outfield player since Bobby McDonald in the late 1970s. When the story of City’s time in the Championship is written Richard will be remembered as one of the big-hearted heroes of the era. The ovation he received as he left the pitch was memorable but fully deserved and acclaimed his excellent consistency over the last two seasons. He misses today’s game and City fans fear his form will have made him a target for Premiership or Championship clubs in the coming close season. Let’s hope he is still here come August to lead the club to promotion.

Many City fans (especially ones who travel away) have told me that they are looking forward to visiting lots of new grounds next season and I thought I would look at the likely trips we have next season. Promotion, relegation and play-off issues are still to be resolved in Leagues 1 and 2 (or Divisions 3 & 4 as I prefer to call them) but it is interesting to look at the definite, probable and possible opponents.

Definites – these 14 clubs will definitely face the Sky Blues next season.

Portsmouth

Doncaster

Brentford

Colchester*

Tranmere*

Bury

Bournemouth*

Hartlepool*

Preston

Yeovil*

Scunthorpe

Oldham

Swindon

Shrewsbury*

Several of these clubs have been in the same division as City in recent years (Pompey, Doncaster, Colchester, Preston & Scunthorpe, but City have not met Brentford, Tranmere, Bury, Bournemouth and Shrewsbury in league games since the 1960s. You have to go back to 1958-59 for the last league trip to Hartlepool when 4,032 saw the final game of City’s Fourth Division promotion season.  City will face Yeovil for the first time in a competitive game. The six teams marked with an asterisk are either new or totally reconstructed since the City’s last visit, with Colchester, Yeovil & Shrewsbury new grounds.

Probables  - these clubs have an outside chance of either being relegated or making the play-offs but will probably face the Sky Blues next season.

Leyton O*

Walsall

Notts Co

Carlisle

Crawley*

City will face Sussex club Crawley for the first time in League football and Leyton Orient’s ground has been totally reconstructed since City’s last league visit in 1966.

Possibles – these are the clubs who still have an outside chance of being relegated or those involved in the play-offs.

Sheff Wed

MK Dons*

Huddersfield*

Stevenage*

Torquay

Southend

Cheltenham*

Crewe

Oxford*

Gillingham

Sheff United

There is a strong chance that both Sheffield clubs will be promoted to the Championship and this would make Coventry, arguably, the biggest club in the division. If that was the case then City would face MK Dons, Huddersfield and probably Stevenage – all three at grounds never visited before by the Sky Blues in league action. Cheltenham and Oxford have outside chances of reaching the League Two play-offs and both grounds would be a first for City fans. Stevenage, Cheltenham and MK Dons (if you ignore their dubious claim to Wimbledon’s history) would all be playing the Sky Blues for the first time in their history whilst City have not played Torquay in league action since 1961-62 nor Huddersfield since the Terriers were in the old Division One, and played at Leeds Road, in 1971-72.

As a postcript to the obituary of Jack Evans last week I would like to thank Jack’s neighbour Mrs Margaret Skinner and friend John Green for ensuring that Jack’s wonderful scrapbook was donated to the Coventry City archives. The scrapbook tells Jack’s career story wonderfully and gives a great insight to football from a golden age. It also reminded me of my first ever visit to Highfield Road in 1962 when my father took me to watch Lockheed Leamington beat Rugby Town 5-1 to lift the Birmingham Senior Cup and Jack scored two goals. Ken Brown, a former playing colleague of Jack’s at Coventry and Lockheed, sent me a simple email: ‘Read your piece about Jack Evans. My own little tribute to him, in two words, ‘a Wonderful Man’.

Jim's column 21.4.12

                                                  Jack Evans in his playing days

                                        Jack leads off the old boys at Legends Day 2007

It is with great sadness that I have to report the death of former Coventry City footballer Jack Evans. Jack who was 86 a few weeks ago was on City’s books between 1942-52 and was a regular in the reserve team for several seasons and made eight first team appearances between 1949-51. After leaving City in 1952 he had a long and successful career in local non-league football, playing at a high standard until the age of 36. He died suddenly after being taken ill on the golf course at Maxstoke Park last Sunday morning.

Born in Coventry on 11 March 1926, Jack was just too young to be called up for World War 2 but did his National Service in the army just after hostilities ended and was an accomplished glider pilot. He was signed by City after he wrote in asking for a trial and impressed the management staff. He played centre-forward and wing-half for Modern Machines (City’s Youth team) and in April 1949 after some good performances for the reserves he got his first team chance when injury ruled out Ted Roberts. The opponents in a Second Division match were Fulham at Highfield Road and a few years ago he told me the story. He was getting changed in the dressing room before the kick-off and the tannoy announcer gave the team changes. He read out’ “Number 9 – Jack Evans” only to be greeted by a chorus of boos. Jack however had the last laugh, scoring the only goal of the game against the side who would be promoted later that month.

Nemo in the Coventry Evening Telegraph was complimentary about the new boy:

‘Evans is the nearest thing to (Ted) Roberts on the City books. Lionhearted, not knowing what it is to be beaten, he did the job entrusted to him with real credit. It was a joy to observe his 100% enthusiasm and get a goal’.

The following week, with Roberts fit again, it was back to the ‘stiffs’ and it was the following season (1949-50) before he got another opportunity.  He made three appearances that season, two home 0-0 draws (v QPR and Preston) and a 0-1 defeat at Cardiff. 1950-51 was a good season for Coventry City – they were in the Second Division promotion hunt until the last few weeks of the season, in fact they led the table at the turn of the year. Ted Roberts was a virtual ever-present but when he was injured Jack made four appearances without finding the net:

Leicester (h)  won 2-1

Preston (a) drew 1-1

Cardiff (a) lost 1-2

Cardiff (h) won 2-1

Manager Harry Storer signed ace scorer Tommy Briggs the following week and Jack’s first team days were over.

Jack told me about a friendly game he played in in 1950 against the Turkish side Galatasaray at Highfield Road. They were probably one of the first Turkish sides to visit England and, according to the Coventry Evening Telegraph report, they created a wonderful friendly atmosphere at Highfield Road by carrying the Union Jack on to the pitch and throwing bunches of flowers to the crowd. A crowd of 9,350 saw City win 2-1with goals from Jack and Noel Simpson. Jack told me that the Turks were extremely sporting on the pitch, and they picked City players up when they fell down. Then in the second half, when Ken Chisholm was floored, he was picked up, had his hand shaken and was embraced by the Galatasaray player!

Jack obviously realised he wasn’t going to be a top-class footballer and whilst on City’s books he worked at Daimler and trained to be a carpenter, playing football as a part-time professional. Later he worked at Rolls Royce at Anstey where he was also involved in union duties. He told me that in those days he could earn more as a skilled carpenter than playing football full-time.

In May 1952 he was released by City and joined Nuneaton Borough and the following season had short spells with them and also appeared for Bedworth and Rugby Town. He was back with Bedworth for the 1953-54 season but by March 1954 he was appearing for Banbury Spencer and was playing at outside right.

In 1957 he joined Lockheed Leamington, where his former City colleague Les Latham was manager, and also a favourite grazing place for ex-City men. He played alongside several former City colleagues including Charlie Timmins, Ken Jones, Ken Brown and Mick Lane.

Moving back to wing-half he played his part in Lockheed’s golden era in the early 1960s and won championship medals in 1961-62 and 1962-63. In 1962 he returned to Highfield Road at centre-forward in the Brakes team that lifted the Birmingham Senior Cup by defeating Rugby Town 5-1 in what was my first ever visit to Highfield Road. Jack scored twice and winger Ernie Ward (a former City apprentice) scored a hat-trick. As a young boy I remember Jack leading the Brakes’ forward line and winning virtually every ball in the air with his bald head!

Jack hung up his boots in 1963 at the age of 37 and was assistant manager at Leamington for a time before being granted a testimonial against Nottingham Forest in 1964 for his service to the club.

Jack was a keen golfer and played regularly until his death. After growing up in Cheylesmore he lived in Duncroft Avenue, Coundon for many years. In 2007 he attended the inaugural Legends Day but told me then that he was disillusioned by the modern game and had no interest in coming regularly to City games. According to his old friend John Green, who played with Jack in the Modern Machines team after the war, Jack didn’t even watch football on the television.

A date for his funeral has not been announced at the time of going to press.

Thanks to Paul O’Connor, Paul Vanes and John Green for their assistance in preparing this obituary.