Cambridge United 4 - 0 Coventry City

[dutchman]

[dutchman]

Sky Blues suffer FA Cup humiliation



Coventry City will miss out on the third-round draw for a third year in succession after being stunned by Luke Berry’s first-half hat-trick.

The result was perhaps less embarrassing than those home exits against Worcester City and Northampton Town but it was another morale-shredding blow on the back of four League One defeats which have shoved them into the relegation zone.

Berry added a late fourth to complete his memorable day and rub salt into Sky Blue wounds which show no signs of healing.

Mark Venus made six changes from the damaging League One defeat against MK Dons, three of them enforced with Ben Stevenson suspended, Dion Kelly-Evans injured and Jamie Sterry unwell.

Chris McCann was back in the squad for the first time since picking up a thigh injury in October but he was on the bench as City plumped for 3-4-3 formation which featured Gael Bigirimana at wing-back.

It all started so well as City dominated the early stages, moving the ball slickly from side to side as they probed for a gap, but they were undone in the seventh minute by Cambridge’s first real attack, a kick-and-chase down the left which saw Maris force a throw-in and collect the ball to swing over a waist-high cross for Berry to dart in and tuck home from three yards.

City wobbled for a while, Burge doing well to force Ikpeazu wide when he was sold short by Page’s back-pass, but they were regaining territorial and possession control when they conceded the second goal in the 28th minute.

Harries got the wrong side of Berry in the box and dragged down the Cambridge forward who was only too eager to stand up and send Burge the wrong way from the spot.

The official BBC stats were still showing City with a 60-40 possession advantage but they found themselves 3-0 down in the 37th minute.

Gadzhev was far too tentative as Lameiras spooned a pass in his direction midway in the City half and the turnover left Berry with a free passage down the right to complete his hat-trick with a precise low finish.

Venus opted for experience at half-time, pitching on McCann and Reid for Harries and Maycock, but City nearly conceded in the first minute as Burge reacted sharply to turn over Berry’s header from a Maris free-kick.

Venus played his final card when he sent on Jones for Lameiras, the substitute’s first touch a blocked shot after good work by Reid.

The PA had just announced Berry’s inevitable man-of-the-match award when he claimed his fourth goal, a simple tap-in after Halliday had hared down the right to sling over a far-post cross.