Matchday Memories: On This Day 1999 – See Strachan’s Sky Blues Make Owls Howl In Sheffield

Gordon the Gaffer

On this day (3rd April) in 1999 the Sky Blues, under (now CCFPA member) Gordon Strachan, completed the double over Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough. We had already beaten the Owls at Highfield Road by the only goal of the game scored in the 75th minute by Dion Dublin back in the previous October. This time there was still only one in it but the Sky Blues, wearing their garish purple and yellow away strip, won 2-1 in front of a decent crowd of 28,136. Perhaps this was a good time to meet Wednesday as this defeat became their fifth on the trot.

Gary in the Sky Blue

The win was a vital one as it took us four points away from the drop zone as the Sky Blues had been struggling in the lower reaches of the Premier League all season.  City got an 18th minute boost when Owls’ goalie Pavel Srnicek brought down (now CCFPA member) Darren Huckerby in the box and captain Gary McAllister put the spot-kick away.

Noel in 2000

The Sky Blues had to survive a strong come-back from the home team but kept them out just beyond half-time until the Owls’ Petter Rudi grabbed the equaliser on 50 minutes. The pressure on City redoubled but it was a goal from Noel Whelan just seven minutes from time that broke the hearts of the Sheffield club’s fans and took all the very welcome points back to Coventry.

Thanks to former CCFPA committee member Dean Nelson you can watch the highlights again by clicking on the video below:-

Strachan’s Sky Blues that day took the field as follows:-

Magnus Hedman, Gary Breen, Marc Edworthy, Paul Telfer, Paul Williams, Richard Shaw, George Boateng, Gary McAllister (sub. Phillipe Clement -90), Noel Whelan, Darren Huckerby and Steve Froggatt.

Unused subs: Trond-Egil Soltvedt, Stefano Gioacchini, Mo Konjic and Chris Kirkland (gk)

Steve Froggatt

Hucks & Snowy are pleased as punch

Current CCFPA members are underlined. It was great to see the last three named of the forwards that day (‘Snowy’, Hucks’ and ‘Froggy’) reunited again at our grand Former Player reunion, Legends Day 2019! Pleasingly Noel was back again at LD23 and will be our ‘special guest’ at the Sky Blues Championship game against Leeds in a few days time this season (2023-24).

Danny Wilson‘s Owls team that day lined up:-

Peter in the Sky Blue

Pavel Srnicek, Peter Atherton (c), Lee Briscoe, Wim Jonk (sub. Philip Scott -90), Emerson Thome, Des Walker (sub. Jon Newsome -46), Niclas Alexanderson, Benito Carbone, Richard Cresswell, Ritchie Humphreys (sub. Danny Sonner -46) and Petter Rudi  Unused subs: Junior Agogo and Kevin Pressman (gk)   Referee:- Keith Burge (Tonypandy)

The Owls had an ex Sky Blue (and current CCFPA member) captaining their side that day. Peter Atherton played well over a century of games for CCFC from 1991-94 before moving to the Wednesday. The Owls goalkeeper on the bench was Kevin Pressman who was briefly attached to the Sky Blues as goalkeeping cover in 2005 though never played for the first team.

CCFC 1998-99 (away strip)

In the end the Sky Blues survived to play yet another season in the top flight, finishing fifteenth, three places and six points above trouble. Wednesday were only three places better off! Manchester United took the Premier League title by only a point from Arsenal.

Charlton Athletic, Blackburn Rovers and bottom club Nottingham Forest were the relegated teams.

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