Wycombe Wanderers 2 Coventry City 4

[dutchman]

All four City goals were scored by Academy graduates



The Sky Blues secured a home tie in the last 32 of the Checkatrade Trophy, when they wiped out a 2-0 deficit with three goals in nine minutes against Wycombe Wanderers.

With league leaders Scunthorpe booked into the Ricoh on Saturday, Mark Venus made it clear that energy conservation was a bigger priority than venue advantage in this over-engineered and thus far unloved competition.

He stuck rigidly to the rules by kicking off with the minimum five players from Sunday’s starting 11 at Morecambe – accommodating the additions by slotting Jack Finch and Cian Harries alongside Jordan Turnbull in a back three – and used all three of his substitute options at the start of the second half.

But those replacements proved decisive, particularly Ryan Haynes who, having gifted Wanderers their second goal, scored twice to equalise, and then laid on the fourth that put the game to bed.

The Sky Blues fans – including a shouldn’t-be-allowed drummer – livened up a decidedly low-key opening quarter with a greatest-hits medley that echoed around the picturesque ground. The game was 19 minutes old before the hint of an opening, McGinn running out of room after a surging run down the middle, but seconds later Wanderers almost took the lead, Kashket swivelling on the edge of the box to shoot fractionally wide.

The Sky Blues finally conjured up an opportunity just before the half-hour – or rather Wycombe conjured it up for them as Pierre surrendered possession in a perilous position and was hugely relieved as Lameiras dragged his low shot past the far post. And it took Wanderers just three minutes to cash in that get-out-of-jail courtesy of a major slice of luck, McGinn’s half-hit shot from the 18-yard line taking a deflection that nudged it out of Charles-Cook’s reach and into the bottom corner.

Home keeper Brown had to intervene for the first time when he dashed out to block at Thomas’s feet as the young Welsh striker seized on to a clever through-ball from Lameiras. But Wanderers were a whisker away from doubling their lead in the final minute of the first half as Harries surrendered the ball and Freeman’s shot smacked against the foot of Charles-Cook’s right-hand post and ricocheted across the face of the goal.

City’s three substitutes combined in a promising move at the start of the second half but Weston curled his shot wide when Bigirimana gave the ball away and there was no reprieve couple of minutes later as Haynes’s back-pass sold Charles-Cook hopelessly short and Kashket nipped in to slide home. It was a dreadful error but it prompted a thrilling response from the Sky Blues.

Haynes earned instant redemption by cutting in from the left to swerve home a right-foot shot – a goal reminiscent of Jamie Sterry’s equaliser at Morecambe – and then produced a calm finish when Jones robbed Harriman near the corner flag and slid over a perfect low cross.

There was some doubt as to whether Thomas had got a final touch before the ball crossed the line – but no doubt at all three minutes later as Jones again tormented Harriman to tee-up a point-blank finish. City were in complete control by this stage and capped an exhilarating half for their fans when Haynes collected Thomas’s cross and set up Bigirimana for a precise finish.

The game will have little bearing on Venus’s preparations for Scunthorpe this weekend, but he will no doubt be delighted to confirm that he has some depth in his squad for greater challenges ahead.