Coventry City 3-1 Stevenage

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Coventry City 3-1 Stevenage

Postby dutchman » Sat Apr 21, 2018 3:46 am

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Re: Coventry City 3-1 Stevenage

Postby dutchman » Sat Apr 21, 2018 3:49 am

Sky Blues strengthen grip on League Two play-offs

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A quick-fire brace from leading scorer Marc McNulty inside the first six minutes helped the Sky Blues blow away ten-man Stevenage to strengthen their grip on the play-offs.

City’s leading scorer hit a 35-yard screamer past the visiting keeper after just a minute and 20 seconds to light the sky blue touchpaper and followed it up with a second minutes later from a corner in an action-packed first half at the Ricoh Arena.

Although Alex Revell pulled one back in the 20th minute, City midfielder Liam Kelly restored the two-goal cushion just past the halfway mark before Borough had a man sent off for allegedly stamping on McNulty off the ball.

But it was arguably the best half of league football seen at the stadium this season with a superb atmosphere to match as 8,613 City fans sang their hearts out throughout.

McNulty’s opener came after Jonson Clarke-Harris closed in and blocked a clearance from keeper Tom King and the ball fell to the striker who took aim and wellied it with the sheer power and swerve beating the No.1.

And City went for the kill from a corner a few minutes later when Rod McDonald flicked the ball on to the far post where the striker bundled home to leave Dino Maamria’s side shell-shocked.

Borough pulled one back on 19 minutes when Danny Newton intercepted McDonald’s attempted clearance and the ball bounced kindly along the 18-yard line to Alex Revel who was able to side foot past the exposed Lee Burge to reduce the deficit.

However, the impressive Kelly restored Coventry’s two goal cushion in the 36th minute when he was teed up by Jordan Shipley and hit a precise angled shot inside the far post in an increasingly fiesty affair at the Ricoh.

The referee booked both skippers and had a word with four Stevenage players about their antics before pulling out a straight red card and reducing the visitors to ten men, seven minutes before the break.

Centre-back Luke Wilkinson was given his marching orders for leaving McMulty on the deck and requiring treatment in an off-the-ball incident, the defender understood to have stamped on the striker.

The game flared up after Doyle had been fouled in his own half and while the ref was dealing with that, City’s players rushed to the centre-circle where McNulty was lying on the grass in some discomfort and requiring treatment.

After a brief delay the referee, Michael Salisbury, showed Wilkinson a straight red and his manager had a go at him as he headed down the tunnel.

Although it was a goalless second half, City remained firmly in control and kept a tight rein on the opposition’s attempted fight-back, largely keeping them at arm’s length to see out the confidence-boosting result that keeps them right in the play-off mix.

The Friday night victory enabled the Sky Blues to put a bit of distance between themselves and their nearest threats to a place in the top seven, giving them a four point cushion over chasing rivals Mansfield Town ahead of Saturday’s league programme.

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