Members News- Sky Blues’ Unique ‘Keepers Record Remembered This Time Last Year

Closeup of the signed shirt

Oggy signs for Sarah

This time last season we marked a unique achievement of two Sky Blues goalkeepers 37 years apart – namely scoring an outfield goal in a match. The Association’s committee members husband and wife team Sarah & Richard Morris, who are our long-time match-day organisers/hosts  at Sky Blues games, were in a great position to capitalise on a wonderful opportunity to source a unique piece of club memorabilia on a Saturday game at the CBS Arena a year ago.

Ben displays the keepers jersey

The club’s legendary shot-stopper and long time servant of CCFC, Association member, Steve Ogrizovic was, as usual, ‘around and about’ the CBS Arena prior to taking up his position in the Press Box as part of the BBC CWR live matchday commentary team as the Sky Blues faced Reading in their late season Championship clash. Most Sky Blues fans are aware that, amongst all his other accomplishments, ‘Oggy’ was the first Sky Blue ‘keeper to score a goal for his side when he punted a wind assisted effort at Sheffield Wednesday‘s Hillsbrough in a 2-2 draw on October 25th 1986.

Last season, over 35 years later City’s then No.1 Ben Wilson emulated Steve when he bundled in a vital equaliser from a Sky Blue corner in the fifth minute of injury time in our 1-1 draw at Blackburn Rovers on April 19th 2023!

Oggy Ben show off the signed shirt

The shirt centrepiece of our GD23 auction items

Sarah & Rich got Ben and Oggy together pre-match at the Reading game and they generously agreed to sign a then current Sky Blue goalie shirt to produce a one-off memento of their joint Sky Blue achievement- truly unique! Ben then went off to help ensure the Sky Blues 2-1 defeat of the Royals to earn fifth place in the table!

The shirt was auctioned to benefit the work of this Former Players’ Association amidst considerable interest from collectors. PS It made over £1,000 when auctioned at our Golf Day 2023 last June!

Thanks to Ben and Oggy for agreeing to the meet to give us their monnikers and to Richard and Sarah for having the idea and getting it done (and for the photos)!

Matchday Memories: On This Day 2010 – See Chris Coleman’s Sky Blues Stalemate At Strachan’s Boro

Chris Coleman- Sky Blue Gaffer

On this day thirteen years ago (24th April) in 2010 the Sky Blues were ending their Championship season under manager Chris Coleman and struggling well down into the bottom half of the table. The Sky Blues last win was nine games ago on 6th March, a 1-0 defeat of Peterborough United and Sky Blues fans were nervously looking over their shoulder. Last time out the Sky Blues had seemingly stopped the rot by getting a 1-1 draw at the Ricoh against Preston North End (after three straight defeats). Today they were in the north-east facing Middlesbrough in Teesside.

Aron in the Sky Blue

‘Boro were making making a good fist of their first season back in English football’s second tier for eleven years and trying hard to make the playoffs. The two sides had called it a draw (2-2) at the Ricoh back in the end of September with City’s goals coming from Clinton Morrison and  Leon Best (both now CCFPA members). Leon’s equaliser had come in the fifth minute of added time before the final whistle!

The team who now played at the Riverside stadium were managed by former Sky Blue player and ‘gaffer’ (and now CCFPA member) Gordon Strachan!  The outcome was another sharing of the spoils and a goal apiece, both scored in a five minute second half spell. The home team got their goal first after 53 minutes thanks to Scott McDonald who netted with a fine drive from inside the box after a cross was left unchallenged.

Clinton in Sky Blue action

The Sky Blues saviour today was their Icelandic midfielder (another CCFPA member now) Aron Gunnarsson who popped in a close range equaliser after 58 minutes after good work from Clinton. There was no further scoring though both sides had chances and ‘Boro had a second half goal disallowed. This was a disappointing result for them and the home supporters in the 20,771 crowd as it was their last home game of the season. The 365 members of the Sky Blue Army present were glad of the point but still nervous about their own last game at home to Watford.

 

Chris Coleman‘s CCFC lined up as follows (CCFPA members underlined):-

Keiren Westwood, Stephen Wright (sub. Jordan Clarke -75), Martin Crainie, Leon Barnett, Richard Wood, Aron Gunnarsson, David Bell (sub. Carl Baker -79), Sammy Clingan, Freddy Eastwood, Clinton Morrison (sub. Shaun Jeffers -84) and Michael McIndoe 

Unused subs:- Marcus Hall, Chris Hussey, Jermaine Grandison and Dimi Konstantopoulos (gk)

 

Gordon Strachan -when City’s ‘gaffer’

WGS‘ Boro’ side took the field as follows:-

Brad Jones, Justin Hote, Chris Riggott, Stephen McManus, Rhys Williams, Joe Bennett, Barry Robson, Scott McDonald, Jeremie Aliadiere (sub. Jonathan Franks -73), Lee Miller (sub. Leroy Lita -62) and Luke Williams Unused subs:-  Chris Killen, Julio Arca, Jonathan Grounds, Kyle Naughton and Danny Coyne (gk)    Referee:- D.McDermidd

The Sky Blues lost their last game of the season by the crushing margin of 4-0 at home to the Hornets and Chris Coleman, perhaps inevitably, departed in May with City grateful to survive in nineteenth spot, albeit seven points and three spots clear of the drop. The relegated trio were Sheffield Wednesday, Plymouth Argyle and, a long way at the foot of the table, Peterborough United.

CCFC 2009-10

At the other end Newcastle United walked the Championship title beaten only four times and with 102 points eleven clear of runners up (and also promoted) West Bromwich Albion. It was a two horse race as third place Nottingham Forest were a further dozen points behind them. The side that took the final playoff promotion place were Blackpool in sixth a full 32 points behind the Magpies!

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

Committee Members News: Read Chairman Jim’s Latest (Cup) Blog, Out Now!

Jim Brown

This Association’s committee Chairman and founding member Jim Brown has produced a long-standing, roughly weekly, blog post about all things Sky Blue for many years. Parts of it have also appeared in a regular column for the Coventry Telegraph.

The posts are a mine of information about the club’s recent and long distant past. As most Sky Blue fans know Jim is also Coventry City FC’s official club historian. The latest blog at the back end of this Championship season 2023-24 has recently been published online so why not take a look?

Not surprisingly, though written before the outcome of last Sunday’s F.A.Cup Semi Final match at Wembley was known, the current blog focussed entirely the last time the Sky Blues reached the same stage in the same competition in 1987 when, of course, George and John’s charges went all the way and won the trophy at the twin towers, after extra time, beating Tottenham Hotspur 3-2. Sadly the 2024 Sky Blues were cruelly deprived of their second Final appearance in 141 years, this time under the Arch, by VAR and penalties.

Rather than looking at the Final, in this blog Jim concentrates exclusively on the 1987 semi final, at Hillsborough, against Leeds United on 12th April 1987. Jim gives chapter and verse on the CCFC’s exciting 3-2 extra time win!

CCFPA committee member Dave Bennett, F.A.Cup ‘Roy of the Rovers’ Keith Houchen and pocket dynamo Micky Gynn scored our goals (all are ‘Boys of 87’ regulars and Association members)!

Benno in the Sky Blue

‘Roy of the Rovers’ Houchen

Micky in 1986-87

Apparently David Miller in The Times that season rated the game as one of the best the competition had seen for the previous twenty years, a match of rare drama and excitement.

No doubt the Sky Blues 2024 Semi-Final will be rated as probably the most incident packed and exciting F.A.Cup semi-finals in living memory! Their performance will live long in the memory of this generation of Sky Blue fans and encourages them to ‘keep the faith’ for the remaining games of the current Championship campaign.

This blog and all previous instalments of the blog can be read by clicking on the link below:-       

www.jimbrownsjournal.blogspot.co.uk

As usual it is well worth a read!

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George & John together

NB. If you want to make a donation to the George Curtis and John Sillett statue appeal you can do it via:-

www.CCFC.Co.uk/statue-appeal

Matchday Memories: On This Day 1976 – Sky Blues Last Day Triple Cross Crush Clarets

Sky Blue Manager Gordon

On this day (24th April) in 1976 (now CCFPA member) Gordon Milne‘s Sky Blues visited Turf Moor on the last day of the 1975-76 Division One season. In a red letter day for our Association member, centre-forward David Cross Milne’s Men came away with a satisfyingly emphatic end-of-season victory.  David finished the season exactly as he started it, with a hat-trick! Back on the 16th August 1975 his treble, along with a goal from fellow member Alan Green stunned Goodison as the Sky Blues claimed a sweet 4-1 win at Everton.

David Cross in the Sky Blue

This time he scored all three of the Sky Blues’ goals in their 3-1 win at Burnley. David had also got City’s consolation goal against them at Highfield Road at the beginning of October when an injury time winner for the Clarets gave them the points in a 2-1 win.

The Lancashire side were already relegated and fielded four youngsters in an experimental formation. There were 11,636 fans in the homely Turf Moor enclosure. The home team were initially heartened, scoring within six minutes from their winger Derrick Parker. It was not until after the interval that the Sky Blues’ ‘Psycho’ began his one man mission!

Jim Blyth

David hit the net three minutes after the restart and the mediocre game looked likely to drift into an unsatisfactory stalemate. However, David’s brace at the death, a stunning drive on 86 minutes and a perfect header a minute later, gifted the Sky Blues a first ever win at the Burnley ground. It would be their last top flight game at Turf Moor for the next 32 years until the Clarets returned back to top flight football in 2009.

We are proud to report that Milne’s men that day all went on to become Association members. They were:-

Jim Blyth, Brian Roberts, Chris Cattlin, Jimmy Holmes, Alan Dugdale, Mick Coop, Donal Murphy, Alan Green, David Cross, Barry Powell and Tommy Hutchson

Good to see Jim, Brian, Chris, Jimmy and Tommy all back in Coventry joining our wonderful Legends Day 2023 reunion this time last year!

Joseph Brown‘s Clarets that day lined up as follows:-

Gerry Peyton, Derek Scott, Keith Newton, Mike Summerbee, Jim Thompson, William Rodaway, William Ingham, Joe Jakub, Peter Noble, Tony Morley and Derrick Parker     Referee:- Pat Partridge

CCFC 1975-76

CCFC finished the 1975-76 season in fourteenth on forty points, ten points clear of the drop and twenty points shy of Champions Liverpool (who pipped Queens Park Rangers for the title by a point).

Wolverhampton Wanderers, today’s opponents Burnley and bottom club Sheffield United were all relegated.

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