Matchday Memories: On This Pre Season Day 2000 – Robbie Riles The Wolves At Molineux

The pre-season friendly programme

On this evening (26th July) in 2000 the Sky Blues under Gordon Strachan (now a CCFPA member) were in the early days of an encouraging pre-season as they prepared for another Premier League season (as it turned out, their last). Their warm ups began with a 3-0 victory at non-league Hitchin Town (City scorers were Laurent Delorge (58 mins), John Eustace (81) (both now CCFPA members) and Stephen McPhee (89). Then came an easy 4-0 defeat of another non-league outfit, Fairford Town thanks to goals from (another CCFPA member before his death last year) Cedric Roussel (41), a brace from J.E. (43 & 55 mins) and a last minute effort from Jay Bothroyd.

Their third game was bound to be much tougher as they traveled to Molineux to meet Division One Wolverhampton Wanderers but they came away with a 1-0 win.

The fairly low key game, in front of a modest crowd of 4,800, was decided by a Sky Blue goal from, who else, Irish prodigy Robbie Keane who City had signed from the hosts almost a year previously for £6m, a record transfer fee for a teenager!  The Republic of Ireland international needed only three minutes after coming on as a substitute to break the deadlock after spending almost an hour on the bench (due to infected blisters on his feet)!

In the 56th minute, he cut in from the left wing following a short pass by (now CCFPA member) Marcus Hall, beat two defenders and fired home low inside the far post. The goal was followed by his trademark somersault. Wolves might have had a penalty just before half-time when Marcus tangled with Michael Branch in the box.

Gordon Strachan signs Robbie Keane in 1999

For the last half hour of the game City’s defence coped comfortably with Wolves’ attempts to come up with an equaliser. The nearest they came was when their trialist striker Koffi Faiwoo chipped just over following a through-ball from fellow substitute Carl Robinson.

In truth, the Sky Blues should have won more emphatically as they created the better chances. New City signing Jay Bothroyd shot wide with only Michael Oakes to beat and our Belgian striker (and CCFPA member) Cedric Roussel (who tragically suffered a fatal heart attack in 2023) brought out another great save from the Wolves’ keeper and then blazed wide from a lay-off by Moroccan Moustapha Hadji and also contrived to miss a sitter from less than ten yards. Overall, Cedric must have impressed the Wolves’ management as he was soon Molineux bound.

The Sky Blues lined up as follows (CCFPA members underlined):-

Chris Kirkland, Marc Edworthy, Marcus Hall, Barry Quinn, Paul Williams, Richard Shaw, Youssef Chippo (Moustapha Hadji -54), Paul Telfer, (the late) Cedric Roussel, Jay Bothroyd (Robbie Keane -54) and John Eustace (Gavin Strachan -77)  Unused subs:–  Runar Normann, Gary Breen and Gary Montgomery (gk)

The Referee was Andy Hall.

City only won one of the remaining pre-season games (1-0 at Sparta Rotterdam) including losing their only home game at Highfield Road 1-3 against top Dutch club Ajax of Amsterdam.

CCFC 2000-01

The actual Premier League season started promisingly after a Highfield Road defeat to Middlesbrough by 3-1 on the opening day. Back to back wins at both Southampton and Manchester City (their first league wins away in sixteen months) certainly boosted confidence. However all Sky Blue fans know that, despite numerous flirtations with relegation and last day heroics, the wheels finally came off the ‘Sky Blue Express’ in their millennium season. After 34 years at the top (and 43 years since their last experience of this calamity) they were relegated in penultimate spot (nineteenth) along with Bradford City and the ‘other’ Sky Blues, Manchester City.

Division One would be their home for next season and the desperately optimistic slogans at the time of ‘We’ll Be Back‘ have yet to be realised but with City’s fourth season in the Championship since promotion from League One we must again be at least within touching distance!

Thanks to CCFPA’s Mike Young for sourcing the images.

Matchday Memories: On This Pre-Season Day 1997 – Pars’ Blunder Gifts Game To Strachan’s Sky Blues!

On this day (July 26th) in 1997 the Sky Blues manager Gordon Strachan, starting out on his first full season in control at Highfield Road, had taken his team to his Scottish homeland to start his pre-season preparations for the upcoming Premier League campaign. A couple of days previously Ayr United had been seen off 2-0 (see earlier post on the 24th) and today’s game was at Dunfermline Athletic before finishing off the mini Scottish tour in Edinburgh at Hibernian in two days time.  There was a fair crowd at East End Park to watch proceedings.

John in the Sky Blue

By all accounts the pre-season friendly was pretty unmemorable except for a monumental blunder by Pars’ keeper Ian Westwater who gifted the the Sky Blues their win with a bizarre blunder just a quarter an hour from the final whistle. A cross from (now CCFPA member) John Salako had looked as though it was going safely into the ‘keeper’s hands but he somehow he managed to catch it and then throw it in his own net!

Strachan’s Sky Blues lined up as follows (CCFPA members underlined):-

Gordon the Gaffer

Magnus Hedman, Richard Shaw, Marcus Hall, Paul Williams (Willie Boland -67), Martin Johansen, Kevin Richardson, Paul Telfer, Michael O’Neill (David Burrows -67), Dion Dublin (Trond Egil Soltvedt -46), Gary McAllister (c) (Kyle Lightbourne -46) and John Salako   Unused sub.:- Steve Ogrizovic (gk).

Bert Paton put out the following Pars’ side:-

Ian Westwater, Ivo Den Bieman (Colin Miller -46), Raymond Sharp (Greg Shields -46), Andy Tod, Dave Barnett, Craig Ireland, Hamish French (Andy Smith -60), Scott Young (Harry Curran -46), David Bingham, Derek Fleming and Scott McCulloch  Unused subs.:-  John Fraser, Chris Templeman and Hay (gk)

Though he didn’t play, young Sky Blue player Craig Faulconbridge was loaned to the Pars this season. CCFPA member and former Sky Blue seventies captain Roy Barry has been a leading light in our sister organisation, the Pars FPA for several years.

City continued their pre season with an excellent 2-0 win at Hibs before conceding their first two goals in a 2-0 defeat at Stoke City at the end of the month, their only pre-season defeat. On August 1st normal service was restored with a 4-1 win at Torquay United and, in City’s only home game before the season started, top Dutch team Feyenoord (from Rotterdam) were overcome 2-1 at Highfield Road (see detailed post here when that day comes round again this year). 

CCFC 1997-98

As far as the 1997-98 Premier League campaign went things were reasonably satisfactory with an eleventh placed finish well clear of relegation and Gordon stayed in charge right up to the Sky Blues departure from the top flight in 2000-01.

Thanks to CCFPA’s Mike Young for sourcing the images.

Blast From The Past: On This Day 1996 – Gary Mac, Scottish International Star Comes To Cov

Gary in Sky Blue action

Thanks to CCFC historian Steve Phelps for reminding us of the signing a legendary former Sky Blue player who strutted his stuff on Coventry City’s top level footballing stage at the turn of the millennium. The memory above is excerpted from his book ‘Coventry City On This Day’ (Pitch Publishing 2010) which points up lots of interesting Sky Blue related anniversaries*.

Gary McAllister- Sky Blue ‘gaffer’

Scottish international Gary McAllister had two spells with CCFC first as a player from 1996-2000 and later, with less success, as player-manager from 2002-04. When he first came to Highfield Road from Leeds United in July 1996 in a shock £3m big money move to join up again with both City’s gaffer ‘Big’ Ron Atkinson and influential player (later successor to Big Ron) Gordon Strachan (both now CCFPA members) Sky Blue fans felt this was a great marker of intent.

The Scottish midfielder had developed his illustrious career with Leicester City (well over 200 games from 1985-90)  after starting out at Motherwell in 1981. A core player at Leeds United between 1990-96, where he played 231 League games netting 31 times, Gary gained a reputation as a consummate ball player and a cultured and forceful midfield influence.

Gary in the Sky Blue

When he first joined the Sky Blues he was therefore a seasoned professional aged 30 and he captained the side under Big Ron and then WGS through difficult times with relegation escapes as well as some memorable performances. On their day, with the likes of Noel Whelan, Dion Dublin, Darren Huckerby, John Salako, Moustapha Hadji, Steve Froggatt, Youssef Chippo (all CCFPA members) as well as George Boateng and Robbie Keane) the Sky Blues could beat anyone. Despite their flair and excitement these Sky Blues’ teams never achieved the sort of solid consistency needed for a top finish. Gary wore the Sky Blue with distinction on 140 occasions (netting 21 times) in his first Coventry spell.

Gary (by then aged 35) left City before their relegation season in July 2000 for a late chance with Liverpool where, again, the cool, intelligent play of the ‘enforcer’ proved a stabilising influence on younger players. However, he was attracted back to Highfield Road in May 2002, for his first shot at management. With CCFC (now in Division One) his early managerial experiences were not without difficulties but he also kept his playing boots on, leading by example, playing for a further sixty times scoring a dozen goals. In December 2003 Gary was forced to relinquish the gaffer’s chair to Assistant Eric Black in order to look after his ailing wife.

CCFC 2002-03

After four years out of the game Gary returned to manage former club Leeds United in 2008 for a couple of seasons. Then followed a brief period in 2010 as first team coach at Middlesbrough and later the same year he moved to Aston Villa in a similar capacity (later acting as Caretaker manager on the illness of Gerard Houllier). From 2015 Gary assisted another former club Liverpool but most recently (since May 2018) Gary became Steven Gerrard‘s Assistant Manager at Rangers where the Sky Blues played and lost a friendly by two clear goals in pre-season game in  2020. He then moved with Steven in November 2021 to Aston Villa to be his assistant and took over as manager for a couple of games when Gerrard had Covid. Both departed from Villa Park in October 2022 but Gary is frequently consulted by the media today.

*Steve’s most recent work on the Sky Blues about the 1980-81 squad ’29 Minutes From Wembley’ was published by Pitch Publishing in 2017 and all his CCFC books are available online and from all good bookshops.

Thanks to CCFPA’s Mike Young for sourcing the images.

Matchday Memories: On This Pre Season Day 1995 – Late Marcus Finish Floors Finn Harps

Ron salutes the Sky Blue faithful

On this day (26th July) in 1995 Sky Blues ‘gaffer’ (and now CCFPA member) Ron Atkinson was preparing for his first full season in charge at Highfield Road with an initial pre-season warm up game in Ireland.

Manchester City, Southampton, Norwich City and Tranmere Rovers had also all travelled over the Irish Sea with the same intent and were playing Cork City, Waterford United, Glentoran and St. Pat’s Athletic respectively at roughly the same time.

The Sky Blues had travelled to Finn Park, Ballybofey, County Donegal for their evening match (ko. 7pm) and their opponents today were the county’s senior club Finn Harps. In a surprisingly tight game, the Irish First Division club, under new manager Ollie Horgan, only conceded victory in the last two minutes of the game.

Sky Blues wide player (now a longstanding Association member) Marcus Hall broke the deadlock with a close range header in the 88th minute (see the brief report above from the Irish Independent). NB Another source gives the goal to City’s Julian Darby! One new man making his debut today was a promising young Portuguese U21 named Carlita who ended up never getting a first team outing apart from seven of this year’s pre-season friendlies. Apparently his full name is Carlos Alberto Maior Silva Batista and he is Angolan born (in 1970).

According to match reports: ‘he impressed with his workrate and control’. He was a regular in the reserves during the first half of the season but sometime before the end of the season he returned to Portugal and played a handful of games for Boavista. After that he appeared to sink without trace!

Some action from the game

Marcus in Sky Blue action

We have very few other details of the teams and the game but clearly the Irish club gave the City a good contest and went on in to take their First Division title at the end of the 1995-96 season. The Sky Blues pre-season proceeded with a couple of games back in England producing a defeat at the end of July by the only goal of the game at Cambridge United and then, in early August, a 1-1 draw against Birmingham City at Highfield Road as the testimonial game for Sky Blues’ stalwart defender (and CCFPA member) Brian Borrows.

In their last pre-season game on August 12th, back in Scotland, the Sky Blues managed an excellent 5-1 demolition of top club Aberdeen (which we will tell you more about on that anniversary date – so check back on this site).

As far as the Sky Blues’ own 1995-96 Premier League season is concerned the City needed a late four game unbeaten run in their last four games to ensure top flight survival in sixteenth place two places above the drop. It was another tight squeeze as only goal average separated the Sky Blues, seventeenth placed Southampton and Manchester City who went down in eighteenth place along with Queens Park Rangers and Bolton Wanderers.

CCFC 1995-96

Thanks to CCFPA’s Mike Young for sourcing the images.