Milton Keynes Dons 1 - 0 Coventry City

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Milton Keynes Dons 1 - 0 Coventry City

Postby dutchman » Sat Mar 18, 2017 3:37 pm

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Re: Milton Keynes Dons 1 - 0 Coventry City

Postby dutchman » Sat Mar 18, 2017 8:08 pm

Sky Blues move step closer to relegation

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Coventry City edged closer to mathematical confirmation of their relegation to League Two with their third consecutive defeat under new boss Mark Robins.

The Sky Blues struggled to assert themselves against an off-colour MK Dons – on a poor run themselves of only one win in eight going into the game against the bottom club – who secured victory with a single top corner strike from holding midfielder Stuart O’Keefe in the second half.

City were largely toothless in attack, managing a measly five shots all game with just one of those forcing the keeper into a decent save from the boot of Ruben Lameiras who had messed up for the opposition’s all important decider.

Robins made five changes to his side as he continues to run the rule over his wider squad as he searches for a winning formula, with rare starts for forwards Jodi Jones and Lameiras.

And Jones certainly had his work cut out against seasoned skipper and left-back Dean Lewington who is well versed in the darker arts of football as well as having a physical advantage over the fleet-footed forward whom Ben Stevenson looked to spring free down the right flank with long balls for the lad to chase.

But there were two early occasions when Jones had the ball under control but was unceremoniously shoved aside by the no-nonsense defender, while fellow full-back George Baldock grabbed Marcus Tudgay in a headlock as he attempted to contest a cross into the box – an offence that went unnoticed by referee Eddie Ilderton.

The home side enjoyed a greater share of possession in the first half when they used the right wing as an effective attacking outlet, sending in a string of threatening crosses for Lee Burge and his centre-backs to deal with, while the keeper was required to make three routine saves to deny shots from just outside the area in the opening half an hour, during which City didn’t manage a single attempt on the opposition goal.

Jones finally managed to get a shot off in the 35th minute but that was poor effort that took an early deflection and failed to trouble David Martin as the Dons continued to look the more likely from two corners in quick succession which saw Kieran Agard fire the wrong side of the far post and centre-back Joe Walsh get a free header to force Burge into another save.

Worryingly, yet another corner was met by the head of Lewington as City’s defending at set-pieces left a lot to be desired and lucky not to be behind at the break.

Tudgay was subjected to further physical treatment just before the interval when he was sandwiched between Lewington and another defender, with the former landing on his ankle as they fell to the deck leaving the centre-forward requiring treatment and limping with an injury that forced him to go off, replaced by Charles Vernam.

The Sky Blues' best spell of the half came in the closing minutes of four added for stoppages when Jones had another shot that was deflected wide for their first corner, from which Jordan Willis got his head but no direction to before the ball was recycled back into the box by Callum Reilly, whereupon Willis challenged the keeper who was awarded a foul. And as the loose ball trickled over the line seconds later the travelling Sky Blue Army made a joke of the fact that the ball was in the back of the net.

The fact that they’d kept a clean sheet to the halfway point was, perhaps, a positive but Robins’s men never looked like scoring in the opening 45 minutes as they looked for their first goal in four long games.

MK Dons kept up their shot tally, taking it up to nine, early in the second period when Harvey Barnes let fly from 25 yards, sending a low effort inches wide of Burge’s left-hand upright to provoke a collective “oooooh,” from the home fans.

But that turned to cheers of delight minutes later in the 51st when yet another corner – the Dons’ seventh – failed to beat the first man, Lameiras, who hit a poor clearance straight to O’Keefe who, to the left of goal, hit a sublime half volley that arced into the far top corner of the net to give the home side the lead.

Robins made a change shortly after, sending on marauding Dion Kelly-Evans for the understandably flagging skipper, given his lack of recent game time, and the little full-back provided a welcome outlet on the right to support Jones who was ploughing a lone furrow.

The Sky Blues simply didn’t have the attacking quality to cause their opponents problems in a lacklustre display until Ryan Haynes replaced another returning and tiring defender, Chris Stokes, and he immediately helped get the ball up the pitch with a lot more urgency.

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He first fed Vernam who hit and angled shot that was deflected wide and then sent in another threatening ball from the left to Lameiras who forced the keeper into his first real save of the afternoon.

Callum Reilly hit a tame, almost mis-hit effort midway through the half which sparked the ironic response from the visiting supporters who sang, “we’ve had a shot, we’ve had a shot...” but the midfielder sent the ball fizzing over the bar for a better effort as City attempted to get themselves back into the game.

Sadly, that was all too short lived and the home side finished the stronger of the two teams, seeing out their first win in five games.

The result leaves the Sky Blues on 26 points, still with a whopping 17 point gap to the safety cut-off mark with just 24 points left to play for from their remaining eight League One games.

Attendance: 9,060 (908 away).

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