Jim's column 15.2.14

As I write this the weather forecast for the next few days is not good. More rain is expected before today's home game with Bradford City and there must be some doubts whether the game will go ahead. It is a month since the last home game at Sixfields after the postponement of the Walsall game two weeks ago and as a result the Sky Blues have now played five successive away games. Several readers have pointed this out and asked when the club last had such a run. Older fans will remember the bad winter of 1976-77 when the Highfield Road pitch suffered serious drainage problems and the team played eight consecutive away games between 22 January and 2 April. Only one win (at Leeds) and one draw resulted from the eight matches and City spiralled from a comfortable mid-table position into a relegation battle which went to the wire and only resolved in that dramatic 2-2 draw with Bristol City on a Thursday night in May.

The 1976-77 season was the worst season in the club's history for postponed games with five call-offs with the famous Bristol game postponed twice, on 1 January and 1 March. That season even eclipsed 1947 & 1963, the UK's worst winters since World War 2, for home games called off. In 1947 City had three home games called off & because of government restrictions on midweek games they didn't complete their fixtures until the last week in May and the First Division title wasn't decided until June. In 1963 football was decimated again by snow and ice and City didn't play a game for two months but although there were 21 postponed away games (including 16 FA Cup ties at Lincoln) there were only two home games called off.

The Walsall postponement was the first Coventry City home game to be called off because of weather since January 2002 when the New Years Day fixture with Rotherham and the FA Cup tie with Tottenham four days later were postponed because of snow on the Highfield Road pitch. 

Ed Blackaby e-mailed me recently about Lee Hurst, a Coventry-born youngster who broke into the first team in 1991 and played 55 first team games before suffering a career-ending injury at a pre-season training camp in 1993. Lee, an all-round midfield player, had had an outstanding season in 1992-93 and looked to be a first-team regular for years to come before his unfortunate accident. He still lives in the area & runs a successful painting & decorating business & has attended several Legends Days. Ed's question was regarding another City player from the same period called Lee Hirst who he thought came from Scarborough.

Ed is correct. Lee Hirst was a central defender who scored the 93rd minute winning goal for Scarborough against City in a two legged League Cup tie in 1992-93. Bobby Gould signed Hirst for the Sky Blues the following summer and although he was given a squad number and played in one pre-season friendly he could not break into the first team & after a season in the reserves was released. One of his contemporaries at City told me that Hirst had a blinder for Scarborough but never repeated that form at City. Hirst had tough competition at Highfield Road; Gould had successfully converted Phil Babb to a central defender & he and Peter Atherton had excellent seasons plus there was also a young Dave Busst as back-up.

Today the Sky Blues entertain the Bantams (Bradford City). Over the years I have been asked hundreds of times 'Why were Coventry City nicknamed the Bantams before Jimmy Hill turned them into the Sky Blues?'

According to David Brassington's 'Singers to Sky Blues' excellent history of the club published in 1985, the Bantams nickname was first used in 1908 after Nemo in the Midland Daily Telegraph pointed out that City, who had recently admitted to the Southern League, were one of the only clubs not to have a nickname. He asked for suggestions and being the lightweights of the league the Bantams nickname was adopted & soon afterwards the small fowl was used to depict the club in newspaper cartoons. However I recently came across a letter from a Mr Kennell to the Coventry Telegraph from 1967. He recalled asking his father 40 years earlier why they were the Bantams & his father had explained that the were named after the bantam weathercocks on the spires of the three main churches of the city. I wonder if anyone has any other theories for the nickname?

Jim's column 8.2.14

Tony Hateley (13.6.1941 - 1.2.2014)

Tony Hateley who passed away last weekend was from the old school of centre-forwards in the mould of Tommy Lawton & famed for his heading ability. He played for seven Football league sides, including two spells at Notts County & his transfers generated fees of £400,000, then a British record. He only spent one year at Highfield Road but left his mark on the club's history.

Born in Derby he attended Normanton Junior School where he towered above his class-mates. His height helped him win the Derbyshire Schools High jump title & become a formidable centre-half in schools football. Joining Notts County as a 17-year old apprentice he was converted to a centre-forward after netting five goals in a reserve game and soon after scored on his first team debut. Towards the end of the 1959-60 season he became the regular centre-forward and eight goals in ten games helped clinch County's promotion to Division Three.

In the higher division he excelled & netted 70 goals over the next three seasons but scored only twice in six games against Coventry. His tussles against the City captain George Curtis were legendary & generally George came off on top except for a 2-0 defeat at Meadow Lane when 'Big-Tone' scored both goals. In 1962-63 he was paired up-front with another young striker, Jeff Astle and between them they netted 30 goals in the final 25 games. A move to a higher level was inevitable & in the summer of 1963 First Division Aston Villa, managed by Joe Mercer, paid £22,000 for his signature. Ironically his replacement at County was Terry Bly, jettisoned by Jimmy Hill to make way for George Hudson. Bly turned out to be a flop & County were relegated that season.

At Villa Park Tony was an immediate hit, returning to Nottingham to score a debut winner at Forest & netting 19 goals in a poor Villa team in his first season. In 1964-65 he & Curtis came face to face again as Second Division City travelled to Villa Park for a Third round FA Cup tie. Villa were again struggling in the league & 20,000 City fans made the short trip anticipating a Sky Blue victory. Hateley had other ideas & scored two goals in the 3-0 victory. The following season he was amongst the goals again & netted four second half goals as Villa came from 5-1 down at Tottenham to draw 5-5. Tony's 86 goals were the main reason for Villa staying in the First Division for those three seasons & it was no surprise when they were relegated the year after he left.

In 1966 Chelsea manager Tommy Docherty paid a club record £100,000 to sign him as a replacement for Peter Osgood who had broken his leg. Osgood's stylish play suited Chelsea's skilful passing game & Hateley struggled to adapt his game where he wanted the crosses and long balls for his deadly forehead. As a result he scored only six league goals but did score the winning goal (what else but a header) as Chelsea beat Leeds in the FA Cup semi final at Villa Park. At Wembley a Dave Mackay inspired Spurs were too good for Chelsea & Tony had to be content with a loser's medal.

After just one season he was on the move again as Liverpool manager Bill Shankly paid a club record £96,000 for the big man. Shankly didn't make the same mistake as Docherty and adapted Liverpool's game to accommodate  Hateley and wingers Ian Callaghan & Peter Thompson gave him such good service that he scored 28 goals. Shankly's one-liners are legendary but one, possibly apochryal, is when Docherty defended Hateley with the line: 'You have to admit Bill he was good in the air'. Shankly supposedly replied: 'Aye, so was Douglas Bader & he had wooden legs'.

Whilst the Kop loved his towering headers, Shankly ultimately decided that Hateley wasn't for Liverpool and when Noel Cantwell was rebuffed in his efforts to buy Newcastle's Wyn Davies he paid £80,000 for Tony. His one -year stay at City started badly; the day he signed his wife was involved in a car crash that left her uninjured but shaken up & his arrival was delayed. He wasn't fully match fit & took seven games to score his first goal, a trademark header in the last minute to rescue a League Cup tie against Swindon. The fans waited patiently to see if Hateley would mesh well with City's other centre-forward, Neil Martin, who had been dogged by injuries, in a twin strike force. The two got their chance at Stoke's Victoria Ground in early November in a thrilling 3-0 victory. Tony scored two first half goals including a stunning header described by Derek Henderson thus: 'Hateley's .... opener projected the ball with such force from Machin's diagonal cross that even a man of (Gordon) Banks' calibre was left helpless'. That game apart the partnership failed to gel & by Christmas City languished in the bottom two. An ankle injury kept Tony out for six weeks & in his absence City's form improved dramatically. Once he was fit he couldn't get into the side & played just one more game in a Sky Blue shirt. In August 1969 he joined Second Division Birmingham City for £72,500 with City grateful to only lose a small amount after a less than productive five goals in 20 games. He stayed just over a year at St Andrews, before moving back to Notts County, now in Division Four, for £20,000. The prodigal son had returned to Meadow Lane and over 21,000, more than double the average crowd, watched his debut. His scoring touch returned and he netted 23 goals as County won the Fourth Division title.

In 1972 he joined Oldham Athletic, his final English club although he did sign for Boston Minutemen in 1974 but managed just three games before his knees gave in & he was forced to retire. He did play some non-league football until 1979 but was unsuccessful in finding a coaching job & became a sales rep for a brewery firm. He settled on Merseyside & worked for the Everton lottery as well as watching with pleasure as his son Mark came through the Sky Blues ranks to play over 100 games & go on to play for England in the late 1980s. Later Mark's son, Tom,  became a professional footballer and was in the Tranmere squad that played at Sixfields earlier this season.

Tony suffered from Alzheimer's Disease later in life possibly not helped by heading all those sodden leather balls in the 1960s.

Career record

Notts County  139 games  79 goals

Aston Villa     148 games   86 goals

Chelsea       33 games  9 goals

Coventry    20 games 5 goals

Birmingham  30 games 6 goals

Notts County 86 games 46 goals

Oldham     5 games   1 goal

Jim's column 1.2.14

16-year old George Thomas became the sixth youngest player in history to wear the Coventry City shirt on Tuesday night at Leyton Orient. The Welsh youngster, unknown outside the club until a few months ago, was 16 years and 310 days old and was also the third youngest player to start a competitive game for the club-  only two days older than Isaac Osbourne and 37 days older than Brian Hill. The three other younger debutants having been used as substitutes.

The top ten youngest players are now:

1. Jonson Clark-Harris (Aug 2010) 16 years 20 days (sub)
2. Ben Mackey (Apr 2003) 16 years 167 days (sub)
3. Gary McSheffrey (Apr 1999) 16 years 198 days (sub)
4. Brian Hill (Apr 1958) 16 years 273 days
5. Isaac Osbourne (Apr 2003) 16 years 308 days
6.George Thomas (Jan 2014) 16 years 310 days

7. Perry Suckling (Aug 1982) 16 years 320 days
8. George Curtis (Apr 1956) 16 years 351 days
9. Dietmar Bruck (Apr 1961) 17 years 9 days

10. Conor Thomas (Jan 2011) 17 years 71 days (sub)

Sadly the Sky Blues were unable to extend their unbeaten run of five league games at Brisbane Road and suffered their fourth away defeat of the league campaign. For the first time in a league game this season they failed to net an away goal. The highlight of the night was yet another penalty save by Joe Murphy - this time from Kevin Lisbie. The Irish keeper has excelled with spot-kicks this season, saving four of the six he has faced & I believe he set a new club record. Information about penalty saves is patchy before World War 2 but since then several keepers have saved three in a season including Bill Glazier, Jim Blyth & Murphy himself in 2011-12. Glazier's saves were in that exciting but nail-biting 1967-68 season & his saves were all away from home & from stars of the day Denis Law (Manchester United), Charlie Cooke (Chelsea) & Francis Lee (Man City). Lee, especially, was renowned as one of the top penalty takers of that era & Glazier's efforts were outstanding. Jim Blyth saved three penalties in 1977-78, another exciting season when the Sky Blues scored 75 goals & narrowly missed out on a European spot. Jim saved from Liverpool's Phil Neal in a 1-0 victory at Highfield Road, from Leicester's Dennis Rofe in a 2-1 win at Filbert Street but his most crucial save was in the last minute of the 5-4 victory over Norwich City when he foiled John Ryan's attempt to make it 5-5. In 2011-12 Joe saved from Messrs Hunt (Reading), Martin (Ipswich) & Danns (Leicester).

The curtain has fallen on Leon Clarke's Coventry City career and the unhappy striker has had his wish for a move to his hometown club granted. He has left behind a lot of bad will at the club & amongst Sky Blue supporters but at least the club have pocketed a large cheque as some compensation. His scoring record at the club was impressive with 28 goals from 43 games plus 2 substitute appearances in all competitions. This equates to an impressive scoring rate of 1.53 (a goal every 1.53 games) and he is up there with some of the great goalscorers in the club's history. You won't be surprised to learn that leading the way is the legendary Clarrie Bourton with a rate of 1.32 (182 goals in 241 games), followed by David McGoldrick 1.33 (18 in 24), George Lowrie 1.44 & Terry Bly 1.45 (29 goals in 43 games). Leon is fifth in that table and whilst he may end this season as the club's leading league scorer unless Calum Wilson or Franck Moussa overtake his total of 15 league goals, he has failed to beat McGoldrick's 16 league goals of last season which was the best haul since Dion Dublin's 18 back in 1998. Talking of Moussa I understand the Football League has awarded him the second goal at Rotherham, taking his total goals for the season to 12 (10 league & 2 Cup). I find the decision puzzling as however many times I watch the clip of the goal it looks a clear header by Cyrus Christie not Moussa but there you go.

Follow me on Twitter @clarriebourton 

Jim's column 25.1.14

The perception of many City's fans is that historically City have always conceded more late goals than they have scored so I thought it worthwhile doing some research on the subject. The table below shows that in the last two seasons in the Championship (under Aidy Bothroyd & Andy Thorn) the side conceded far more late goals than they scored.

Goals scored after 80 minutes (all games)

	By City	By Opponents
2009-10 (Coleman)	11	7
2010-11 (Bothroyd/Thorn)	6	8
2011-12 (Thorn)	6	17
2012-13 (Thorn/Robins/Pressley)	18	11
2013-14 (Pressley)	15	13

Some fans will remember conceding late goals in those seasons to lose at Crystal Palace, Blackpool, Ipswich and at home to Norwich & Burnley to name but a few. In League One however City have definitely outdone their opponents. This season those 15 late goals for the Sky Blues have on 11 occasions resulted in wins or draws, and we are only just past the halfway mark of the season. Of course late goals that count for something (a win or draw) send the fans home buzzing - the late equalisers at Wolves, Preston at at home to Preston all seemed like victories at the time not to mention the late winners at Barnsley, Rotherham, MK Dons and at home to Hartlepool, Bristol City & Gillingham. On the other side of the coin it is clear that City are still vulnerable to late goals themselves. Of their four away league defeats, three have been because of goals after the 80 minute mark (Crawley, Port Vale & Swindon) plus the League Cup exit at Orient.

Dean Nelson, an avid City fan who has an amazing collection of videos & clips of City games not to mention hundreds of film clips of old Coventry, has been in touch asking for more information on a little-known City friendly game in 1963.

The winter of 1962-63 was the worst in living memory and City didn't play a game between Boxing Day and the last week in February. Game after game was called off because of snowbound or icy pitches as the country virtually ground to a halt. At the end of January after the coming Saturday’s game at Shrewsbury was postponed manager Jimmy Hill grasped the nettle. A call to Manchester United’s manager Matt Busby resulted in a hastily arranged friendly in Dublin. Hill always seeking publicity for the club, had realised that Ireland was far less badly hit by the weather and using his contacts in the Fair isle organised this tasty friendly. Hill had first tried Joe Mercer at Aston Villa but Joe’s players were worried about getting injured. Busby however was more adventurous and, like Hill, was desperate for his team to get some competitive play, and duly put out his strongest team including his expensive forward line of : Johnny Giles, Albert Quixall, David Herd, Denis Law and Bobby Charlton. On a day when only four games were played on the English mainland City and United met at Shamrock Rovers’ Glenmalure Park in a game that belied the two division’s difference in the club’s status. With United’s stars rattled by City’s enthusiasm City recovered from an early Quixall goal to lead 2-1 at half-time thanks to goals from Ronnie Farmer and Jimmy Whitehouse. With Willie Humphries and Ronnie Rees giving Shay Brennan and Noel Cantwell an uncomfortable afternoon and Brian Hill marking Law like a limpit City had chances to increase their lead. Bobby Charlton finally saved United’s red faces nine minutes from time with an equaliser but Coventry City had made an impression, and made a few bob from a 15,000 crowd.

The following Saturday, again after another early postponement (a home game with Port Vale) City flew to Cork to play Wolves in a friendly. Whilst not the force they had been in the late 1950s, Wolves were in the top six in Division One (higher than Manchester United) and fielded experienced internationals Ron Flowers and Peter Broadbent. On a miserably wet day, the muddy pitch suited Wolves’ style perfectly and although City had chances in the first half, Wolves’ strength and experience told and they ran out 3-0 winners in front of a drowned crowd of 6,500.

Last week I wrote a tribute to Albert McCann and David Selby, an Essex-based City fan who is also a director of Chelmsford City reminded me that Albert played for Chelmsford. David writes: 'He was released by Portsmouth in 1974 and went to play in South Africa where he no doubt played with Bobby Kellard, who was also in South Africa at the time. He made his debut for Chelmsford City in February 1976 some 6 weeks after Kellard had taken over as City Manager, as City lost 2-0 at Telford United and went on to make 11 appearances before leaving the Club at the end of the 1975-1976 season. He had originally signed a contract for a month but saw the season out. His second appearance saw City win 3-0 at home to Wimbledon to earn Kellard his first league win as Manager, at the eighth time of asking. He scored 1 goal for City, in a 4-0 home win over Wealdstone in April 1976'. Alberts's son Mark tells me that Albert found the travelling to Chelmsford too tiring and so joined Waterlooville (now Havant and Waterlooville) where another ex-Pompey player Jim Storrie was the manager. 

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Jim's column 18.1.14

 

Former Coventry City player Albert McCann sadly passed away last week. Albert, or Albie as he was known by his colleagues, played the majority of his career at Portsmouth but spent the 1961-62 season with Coventry City.

Albert was born in Maidenhead on 1 November 1941 and signed for Luton Town straight from school. He made his debut for the Hatters as an 18-year old in their First Division side but after only six appearances in two seasons manager Billy Frith snapped him up for a small fee in the summer of 1961. Bought as cover at inside-forward, he soon forced his way into the first team making his debut in a 1-1 draw at Shrewsbury as Frith rang the changes after a dismal League Cup defeat at Workington. After a number of games he was out of the side and was fortunate to miss the Kings Lynn FA Cup shock in November of that year. Jimmy Hill arrived at Highfield Road the following week but Albert didn't get a first team chance until February 1962. The recalled McCann put on a masterful display at Fratton Park in City's 2-3 defeat. He scored a goal and made a big impression on Pompey boss George Smith. Nemo in the Coventry Telegraph wrote: 'There was no doubting the introduction of little Albert McCann to the attack. His superb ball control got him out of tight spots on many occasions..... he looks a safe bet to stay in the side'.

Albert, with his trademark blond quiff, was a regular for the rest of the season in the number 10 shirt. He scored the winning goal in the 3-2 win at Peterborough, was one of few City stars in a disappointing end of season and looked set to play a part in JH's Sky Blue plans, then Pompey came in with an attractive £8,000 offer and Hill, anxious to bolster his kitty for the transfer market decided to cash in. In total Albert played 22 games for City, scoring three goals.

In the summer of 1961 as a young boy I can remember getting very excited that City had signed two Scottish internationals (McCann & Stewart Imlach) until my Dad pointed out that we had signed another McCann not Motherwell's international, Bert. In May 1962 I saw Coventry City for the first time when they played Lockheed in the Leamington Charity Cup game at the Windmill Ground. Albert played and I managed to get his autograph after the game; I still have that autograph today. The following week I attended my first game at Highfield Road and saw Albert play in a 4-2 defeat to Burnley in a match to celebrate the opening of the new Cathedral.

At Portsmouth Albert was a virtual ever-present for ten years in their Second Division side. Pompey never set the world alight in that era and their best season during the period was in 1967-68 when they looked promotion favourites for a large part of the season but faded & finished 5th. McCann made 372 appearances and scored 98 goals between 1962-73.

The following season he appeared against the Sky Blues in the epic cup-tie between the Sky Blues & Pompey that went to three games. In the first replay at Highfield Road with Pompey 0-2 down he 'mesmerized' the City defence, scoring one and making another to force another replay.  In 1967 he scored twice at Highfield Road as Pompey beat Hull City 3-1 in a FA Cup 3rd round 2nd replay, the second a wonder goal after a long and mazy dribble which older Portsmouth fans still talk about.

Former City player Dietmar Bruck remembers him well: 'Albie was a quiet but friendly guy who took a lot of banter in the dressing room because of his bow legs. He looked like he'd just climbed off a horse. He was a skilful player and his bow legs made it easy for him to do the step over trick which fooled a lot of defenders. I remember him from the cup ties with Portsmouth in 1963. He caused us a lot of problems at Highfield Road & for the second replay at White Hart Lane JH gave me the job of marking him. I didn't let him get a kick all night and we won 3-1. After he left he always played well against us for Pompey. When he came to Legends Day a couple of years ago we hadn't seen each other for 40 years but it seemed like 40 minutes'.

Albert was rewarded for his loyalty to Portsmouth with a Testimonial match against West Ham in May 1973. His popularity at Fratton Park can be measured by the fact that Pompey averaged under 10,000 that season but 22,000 fans turned out to pay homage to one of their legends. Soon afterwards Albert left Pompey & had a two-year spell in South Africa. After hanging his boots up he ran a newsagent's shop in the Portsmouth area for many years and later managed a care home. He joined the Former Players Association in 2010 and attended Legends Day in 2010 when he met up with many former playing colleagues who he hadn't seen for many years.

I also have to report the death of fellow CCFPA committee member Bob Bromage last week. Bob had been poorly for a while but it was still a shock to hear of his passing.  I had known Bob for a number of years, since he joined the committee in the early days of the foundation of the association. From the time he joined the committee Bob always came up with good ideas for the association and his knowledge of City's older players was second to none. He had been a City fan since the 1950s & had seen the ups and downs of our club. One of his main tasks on the committee was tracking down former players & he travelled all over the country to find them. He would regale us with tales of finally finding an elusive player & how he had spent several hours with them reminiscing about the old days - this is what he loved doing. When he retired not so long ago he was determined to spend even more time seeking out former players & visiting members who had fallen on hard times to see if the association could help them. Sadly he was diagnosed with cancer and his trips became a thing of the past. He will be remembered as a hard-working committee member who loved his football team. I speak on behalf of the whole CCFPA committee when I say he will be sadly missed and our thoughts are with Sandra at this sad time.

His funeral will take place at Canley Crematorium on Wednesday 22nd January at 2.30.

                                                                 Bob Bromage

Jim's column 11.1.14

There was another remarkable comeback at Oakwell last Saturday which saw the Sky Blues reach the fourth round of the FA Cup, only the second time they have achieved that as a Division 3 side the other being the famous FA Cup run of 1962-63.  It was also the first victory over a club from a higher division since they knocked out Blackburn Rovers in a Ricoh replay in 2009. The Fourth round draw has given City a plum draw at Emirates less than eighteen months after a 6-1 defeat there in the League Cup.

Steven Pressley's team just don't know when to give up and they have now come back from a goal down to get a result in their last four games, three of which have resulted in victories. This season they have now come back from a goal down to win on five occasions (MK Dons, AFC Wimbledon, Peterborough, Rotherham and Barnsley) this season, all in the last six weeks and a record surely beckons.

My goal time records are incomplete before the early 1960s but since then the most comebacks to win has been six, achieved in 1962-63, 1977-78 and last season.

Last season the team came from behind to win against:

Birmingham (h) League Cup

Walsall (h)

Stevenage (a)

MK Dons (a)

Preston (h) JPT

Scunthorpe (a)

The news of the passing of the great Eusebio was very sad & took my mind back to the 1960s and the early years of the European Cup. British television gave little coverage to the competition unless an English club was involved but always broadcast the final. I remember as a boy watching the 1962 final between Benfica & Real Madrid with grainy black and white images relayed from Amsterdam. Real were probably past their peak but Di Stefano, Puskas & Gento were still world stars and they were expected to beat the Portuguese upstarts. A First half Puskas hat-trick gave Real a 3-2 lead but after the break Benfica equalised and the young, virtually unknown, Eusebio took over, causing all sorts of problems with his electric pace  and dynamic shooting. He scored twice in five minutes to make it 5-3 and guaranteed the trophy went to Lisbon. 

It was the same scoreline at Goodison Park in 1966 World Cup quarter final. Portugal were heading for a shock exit 3-0 down to the little men from North Korea when Eusebio got his act together and scored four goals to take Portugal through to a semi-final against England. Fortunately England got the better of him (or Nobby Stiles did) in the semi final and although Euesbio did score England triumphed to reach the final.

During those golden years of football Eusebio was Pele's only rival as the best player on the planet and in 1973 news broke that he would be appearing at Highfield Road for Portugal against Northern Ireland who had to play matches away from Ulster because of the troubles. Several readers have reminded me of the game, which ended 1-1, and believed they had seen Eusebio and George Best in the same game. Sadly they are mistaken, George was out of football at the time & wasn't selected by his country but Eusebio played, showed many of his great touches and scored a penalty which turned out to be his final international goal. Sadly there were only 11,000 at Highfield Road for what remained the only full international ever played on the ground.

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Jim's column 4.1.14

An excellent holiday period saw the Sky Blues claim seven points from three games & push up to 10th place in League One. But for a poor refereeing decision & some wayward finishing against Oldham it would have been maximum points from the festive programme. 

Both wins were terrific performances with the 4-2 win over Peterborough the first time City have twice come from behind to win a home league game since Chelsea were defeated 3-2 at Highfield Road on the opening day of the 1997-98 season. That day Dion Dublin scored a hat-trick and Leon Clarke should have had three but had a perfectly good goal ruled out for offside. 

In the Boxing Day game and on New Years Day at Rotherham a poor first half display was followed by a scintillating second half that saw deficits overturned. City have now come from behind to win on four occasions and to draw three times - the second best record in the division and a remarkable record when you consider that just over a year ago the team hadn't come from behind to win for over three years.

Former City academy players took the honours for opposing teams over Christmas with three of them netting in successive games against the Sky Blues. Swindon's Miles Storey started the run with the late winner at the County Ground in another winless day in Wiltshire - only one win in 13 league visits there since 1952. On Boxing Day Shaun Jeffers, released by the Sky Blues last summer, netted Posh's first goal and then City's youngest ever debutant, Jonson Clarke-Harris, released in 2012, scored Oldham's goal in the 1-1 draw. I don't count Storey as a former player as he never made the first team but it still means that four ex-Sky Blues have netted this season - Cody McDonald (Gillingham) and Chris Birchall (Port Vale) being the earlier ones.

The immutable law of the ex, as the famous football writer Brian Glanville described it, came into force but whilst it seems that ex-City men always score against us the statistics don't bear this out. For example Stern John played against City six times after he left before he netted and numerous prolific scorers never scored after departing. Readers wanted to know which ex-players had scored for more than one club after leaving and there a number including Bobby Gould (Wolves, Bristol C & West Ham), Ronnie Rees (WBA & Forest), Dion Dublin (Villa & Leicester), Darren Huckerby (Leeds & Man City), Robbie Keane (Spurs & Leeds) and Stuart Pearce (Forest & Man City). The best ever effort by an 'ex' though was probably the famous England test cricketer Patsy Hendren. He left City in 1911 after a brief career but came back to haunt us fifteen years later as a veteran of 37 playing for Brentford. In a 7-3 thumping at Griffin Park Patsy helped himself to four goals in what was his final season as a player.

I am not one for mid-season statistics but I have to mention Leon Clarke's scoring achievements in the calendar year of 2013. In 39 starts plus two sub appearances in the year Leon netted 27 goals in all competitions which is the best by a City player since 1963 when George Hudson netted 31 goals. Other City plays to have prolific years are the legendary Clarrie Bourton who netted 43 in 1932, 35 in 1933 and 30 in 1934, George Lowrie 39 in 1947 and Ray Straw 33 in 1958.  Leon is up there with the goalscoring giants of Coventry City's glorious history. We can only hope and pray that he stays at the club through the transfer window.

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