Coventry 1 Leeds 0 - 16/09/2006
Coventry 1 Leeds 0 - 16/09/2006
Coventry City: Andy Marshall, Marcus Hall, Elliott Ward, Robert Page, David McNamee, Christopher Birchall, Jay Tabb (Colin Cameron 74), Stephen Hughes, Michael Doyle, Stern John (Leon McKenzie 69), Kevin Kyle (Don Hutchison 88)
Subs not used: Kevin Thornton, Dele Adebola
Booked: Jay Tabb 24, Kevin Kyle 19
Goals: John 26
Leeds United: Tony Warner, Matthew Kilgallon, Gary Kelly, Stephen Crainey, Paul Butler, Ian Westlake ( 85), Sean Gregan ( 45), Kevin Nicholls, Sebastien Carole ( 69), David Healy, Geoff Horsfield
Subs not used: Ian Moore, Eddie Lewis
Booked: Matthew Kilgallon 45, Stephen Crainey 73, Paul Butler 36
Attendance: 22146
Referee: I Williamson
Teamtalk
Stern John's first-half strike gave Coventry a 1-0 win over hapless Leeds to pile more misery on manager Kevin Blackwell at the Ricoh Arena.
Good link-up play down the left from Jay Tabb and Marcus Hall presented the Trinidad & Tobago international with his third league goal of the season.
Hall found Tabb with his back to goal 25 yards out and he returned the bouncing ball to the defender.
Hall headed the ball back into the path of Tabb and his low cutback from the byline fell beautifully into the path of John who did not have to break his stride to roll the ball past Tony Warner and into the bottom corner from 12 yards.
Leeds left-back Stephen Crainey, the subject of much criticism from Leeds fans this week following his performances in the home defeats to Wolves and Sunderland, was caught in possession by Chris Birchall in the fourth minute after overrunning the ball out of defence.
Birchall robbed Crainey on the wing before getting to the byline and crossing for Kevin Kyle but he headed over the bar from close range.
Two minutes later, another Birchall cross had to be headed away to safety while under pressure from Kyle from inside his own six-yard box by Leeds captain Paul Butler.
A long punt upfield from City goalkeeper Andy Marshall was sliced out of play by Butler in the eighth minute. Stephen Hughes' resulting corner was met by Kyle but his downward header was easily fielded by Warner.
Straight from Warner's clearance, Leeds almost took the lead against the run of play when the ball broke to Ian Westlake on the left. His deep cross to the back post was met by David Healy at full stretch whose header looped over Marshall and onto the crossbar.
Coventry took a deserved lead in the 26th minute through John and could have doubled their lead on the stroke of half-time but Birchall hit the wall with a free kick.
In the second half, Westlake forced Marshall into action for the first time when the summer signing from Millwall had to dive to his right to parry a curling left-foot shot from the midfielder.
Geoff Horsfield spurned a glorious opportunity to equalise in the 55th minute after Healy's ball put him clear through on goal. But the on loan Sheffield United striker took a heavy touch that allowed Marshall to gather the ball at his feet.
But, just as the visitors looked like getting back into the game, the Sky Blues almost put the match beyond them with a second goal.
Tabb broke from midfield and fed Kyle on the right, the big striker crossed first time, low into the box, but Warner rushed from his line to produce a sprawling point-blank save to deny the arriving Michael Doyle from six yards.
Home debutant Leon McKenzie, 69th minute replacement for John, tried to open his City account with an angled shot from just inside the box with 10 minutes remaining but Warner once again parried the ball to safety.
CCFC
The Sky Blues maintain their unbeaten home record with a positive performance earning them a 1-0 win over Leeds thanks to Stern John's first half goal.
Micky Adams made two changes to the side which lost at Ipswich in midweek with David McNamee and Jay Tabb both returning to the side following injuries.
McNamee came in at right back for Andrew Whing who picked up a calf injury this week while Tabb replaced Kevin Thornton on the left side of midfield after recovering from a hernia operation for his full debut.
City started brightly with last week's opening scorer Chris Birchall making a darting run down the right but his shot was blocked by Matthew Kilgallon.
More excellent work by Birchall - who took on two Leeds defenders down the right flank before putting an excellent ball into the box - led to Kevin Kyle getting a header but he could not direct it on target and his effort flew harmlessly over.
On eight minutes the big target man got another header, this time from a Hughes header, which he directed downwards but straight at Leeds keeper Tony Warner.
The visitors then broke straight up field and David Healy's header beat Andy Marshall but thankfully came back off the crossbar, giving the Sky Blues a stark warning that they could not take their opponents lightly. Leeds may have come into the game on the back of only one win in their last five outings but they were backed by a sizeable and vociferous travelling support, and their side had its fair share of talented players.
In the 19th minute Kevin Kyle was shown a yellow card - his fourth of the season - for dissent following a bad challenge on Michael Doyle which led to the referee giving Leeds a free-kick.
With 22 on the clock a weaving run from Stern John - not too dissimilar to the one which saw him score against Norwich last week - presented Tabb with a half chance but his shot from 10 yards was gathered by Warner. Moments later Tabb received a yellow card for a dangerous challenge on Sebastien Carole.
More excellent interplay from the same duo gave the Sky Blues the opening goal in the 25th minute. Tabb was played through by Doyle and while he had a chance to shoot on his preferred left foot he unselfishly centred for Stern John who sidefooted the ball past Warner for his third of the season.
City continued to control the first half until the interval without creating any real opportunities but it was Leeds who were in need of a pick-me-up and at half time Kevin Blackwell made one substitution, bringing on Jonathon Douglas for Sean Gregan.
Apart from Healy's first half header off the woodwork, Leeds had offered very little as an attacking outfit but Ian Westlake did force Andy Marshall into his first real save in the 55th minute with a decent curling effort that the City shot stopper fisted clear.
Leeds were coming into the game more and by the hour mark, Geoff Horsfield had gone close three times. He was inches away from connecting with a Westlake cross before his touch let him down as he was one-on-one with Marshall and finally he sent a header narrowly wide of the upright.
With 20 minutes left, Stern John was brought off to rapturous applause form the Sky Blue Army. City's goalscorer had once again been a star performer and he was replaced by Leon McKenzie who got half a chance soon after coming on as he just failed to connect with a Kyle centre.
Five minutes later Tabb - who had too been in excellent form in his home debut - was replaced by Cameron. City had done the hard work and now needed to remain tight at the back and on 77 Healy volleyed over as Leeds looked to turn up the pressure.
McKenzie then had a shot saved by Warner as City started to play effectively on the counter-attack with Leeds pushing more and more men forward.
With five minutes left Robbie Blake came on in Leeds' last throw of the dice but he placed the visitor's last chance wide of goal as City stayed firm.
Don Hutchison replaced the superb Kevin Kyle in the dying stages and City were well worth their third win in four home matches this season.
4thegame
Coventry City piled the pressure on Leeds United manager Kevin Blackwell with a hard-fought victory at the Ricoh Arena.
Stern John's first-half strike was the difference between the two sides as the West Yorkshire outfit slipped to their third defeat in a row.
Leeds fans chanted "time to go" at Blackwell as Coventry secured their first league victory over their Elland Road rivals since Boxing Day 1996.
Despite finishing the game with four men up front, Leeds remain the league's joint lowest scoring team and looked short on ideas.
The Sky Blues created the first-half chance of the match in the fourth minute after good work by Chris Birchall.
The Trinidad and Tobago international beat Stephen Crainey to get to the by-line and his cross was headed just over by Kevin Kyle.
But Leeds almost took the lead five minutes later after excellent work on the right by Ian Westlake.
The former Ipswich man's cross was met by David Healy but the Northern Ireland international's header came back off the face of the crossbar.
With the midfield tussle between Coventry's Michael Doyle and Kevin Nicholls of Leeds a match in itself, both teams struggled to take control of the game.
But Coventry looked the more inventive in the first half and took the lead thanks to a wonderful flowing move clinically finished by John in the 26th minute.
Kyle found Marcus Hall with a pass which the left-back headed on to Jay Tabb. He ran into the area before cutting the ball back to John to score his third of the season with the inside of his right foot.
Blackwell sent his Leeds team out five minutes early for the second half indicating that his half-time pep talk had been short and sweet with on-loan Blackburn midfielder Jonathon Douglas replacing Sean Gregan.
A mazy run by Gary Kelly, which resulted in a 25-yard shot which had Coventry goalkeeper Andy Marshall scrambling, was the only highlight to a dour opening to the second half.
But, urged on by their vociferous support, Leeds started to step up their game with Westlake playing a delightful one-two with Healy before curling a shot which Marshall did well to parry.
The move gave the Yorkshire side confidence with both Healy and Geoff Horsfield going close.
But Coventry almost doubled their lead in the 68th minute after Tabb played in Kyle down the right. His cross was met by the on-rushing Doyle but his shot was excellently saved by Tony Warner.
Leeds desperately searched for an equaliser with Nicholls firing a 30-yard shot just wide of the post before Healy fired over the bar after a slip by Elliott Ward.
City's Leon McKenzie was denied by Warner before substitute Robbie Blake almost salvaged a point for Leeds at the death.
Coventry City: Andy Marshall, Marcus Hall, Elliott Ward, Robert Page, David McNamee, Christopher Birchall, Jay Tabb (Colin Cameron 74), Stephen Hughes, Michael Doyle, Stern John (Leon McKenzie 69), Kevin Kyle (Don Hutchison 88)
Subs not used: Kevin Thornton, Dele Adebola
Booked: Jay Tabb 24, Kevin Kyle 19
Goals: John 26
Leeds United: Tony Warner, Matthew Kilgallon, Gary Kelly, Stephen Crainey, Paul Butler, Ian Westlake ( 85), Sean Gregan ( 45), Kevin Nicholls, Sebastien Carole ( 69), David Healy, Geoff Horsfield
Subs not used: Ian Moore, Eddie Lewis
Booked: Matthew Kilgallon 45, Stephen Crainey 73, Paul Butler 36
Attendance: 22146
Referee: I Williamson
Teamtalk
Stern John's first-half strike gave Coventry a 1-0 win over hapless Leeds to pile more misery on manager Kevin Blackwell at the Ricoh Arena.
Good link-up play down the left from Jay Tabb and Marcus Hall presented the Trinidad & Tobago international with his third league goal of the season.
Hall found Tabb with his back to goal 25 yards out and he returned the bouncing ball to the defender.
Hall headed the ball back into the path of Tabb and his low cutback from the byline fell beautifully into the path of John who did not have to break his stride to roll the ball past Tony Warner and into the bottom corner from 12 yards.
Leeds left-back Stephen Crainey, the subject of much criticism from Leeds fans this week following his performances in the home defeats to Wolves and Sunderland, was caught in possession by Chris Birchall in the fourth minute after overrunning the ball out of defence.
Birchall robbed Crainey on the wing before getting to the byline and crossing for Kevin Kyle but he headed over the bar from close range.
Two minutes later, another Birchall cross had to be headed away to safety while under pressure from Kyle from inside his own six-yard box by Leeds captain Paul Butler.
A long punt upfield from City goalkeeper Andy Marshall was sliced out of play by Butler in the eighth minute. Stephen Hughes' resulting corner was met by Kyle but his downward header was easily fielded by Warner.
Straight from Warner's clearance, Leeds almost took the lead against the run of play when the ball broke to Ian Westlake on the left. His deep cross to the back post was met by David Healy at full stretch whose header looped over Marshall and onto the crossbar.
Coventry took a deserved lead in the 26th minute through John and could have doubled their lead on the stroke of half-time but Birchall hit the wall with a free kick.
In the second half, Westlake forced Marshall into action for the first time when the summer signing from Millwall had to dive to his right to parry a curling left-foot shot from the midfielder.
Geoff Horsfield spurned a glorious opportunity to equalise in the 55th minute after Healy's ball put him clear through on goal. But the on loan Sheffield United striker took a heavy touch that allowed Marshall to gather the ball at his feet.
But, just as the visitors looked like getting back into the game, the Sky Blues almost put the match beyond them with a second goal.
Tabb broke from midfield and fed Kyle on the right, the big striker crossed first time, low into the box, but Warner rushed from his line to produce a sprawling point-blank save to deny the arriving Michael Doyle from six yards.
Home debutant Leon McKenzie, 69th minute replacement for John, tried to open his City account with an angled shot from just inside the box with 10 minutes remaining but Warner once again parried the ball to safety.
CCFC
The Sky Blues maintain their unbeaten home record with a positive performance earning them a 1-0 win over Leeds thanks to Stern John's first half goal.
Micky Adams made two changes to the side which lost at Ipswich in midweek with David McNamee and Jay Tabb both returning to the side following injuries.
McNamee came in at right back for Andrew Whing who picked up a calf injury this week while Tabb replaced Kevin Thornton on the left side of midfield after recovering from a hernia operation for his full debut.
City started brightly with last week's opening scorer Chris Birchall making a darting run down the right but his shot was blocked by Matthew Kilgallon.
More excellent work by Birchall - who took on two Leeds defenders down the right flank before putting an excellent ball into the box - led to Kevin Kyle getting a header but he could not direct it on target and his effort flew harmlessly over.
On eight minutes the big target man got another header, this time from a Hughes header, which he directed downwards but straight at Leeds keeper Tony Warner.
The visitors then broke straight up field and David Healy's header beat Andy Marshall but thankfully came back off the crossbar, giving the Sky Blues a stark warning that they could not take their opponents lightly. Leeds may have come into the game on the back of only one win in their last five outings but they were backed by a sizeable and vociferous travelling support, and their side had its fair share of talented players.
In the 19th minute Kevin Kyle was shown a yellow card - his fourth of the season - for dissent following a bad challenge on Michael Doyle which led to the referee giving Leeds a free-kick.
With 22 on the clock a weaving run from Stern John - not too dissimilar to the one which saw him score against Norwich last week - presented Tabb with a half chance but his shot from 10 yards was gathered by Warner. Moments later Tabb received a yellow card for a dangerous challenge on Sebastien Carole.
More excellent interplay from the same duo gave the Sky Blues the opening goal in the 25th minute. Tabb was played through by Doyle and while he had a chance to shoot on his preferred left foot he unselfishly centred for Stern John who sidefooted the ball past Warner for his third of the season.
City continued to control the first half until the interval without creating any real opportunities but it was Leeds who were in need of a pick-me-up and at half time Kevin Blackwell made one substitution, bringing on Jonathon Douglas for Sean Gregan.
Apart from Healy's first half header off the woodwork, Leeds had offered very little as an attacking outfit but Ian Westlake did force Andy Marshall into his first real save in the 55th minute with a decent curling effort that the City shot stopper fisted clear.
Leeds were coming into the game more and by the hour mark, Geoff Horsfield had gone close three times. He was inches away from connecting with a Westlake cross before his touch let him down as he was one-on-one with Marshall and finally he sent a header narrowly wide of the upright.
With 20 minutes left, Stern John was brought off to rapturous applause form the Sky Blue Army. City's goalscorer had once again been a star performer and he was replaced by Leon McKenzie who got half a chance soon after coming on as he just failed to connect with a Kyle centre.
Five minutes later Tabb - who had too been in excellent form in his home debut - was replaced by Cameron. City had done the hard work and now needed to remain tight at the back and on 77 Healy volleyed over as Leeds looked to turn up the pressure.
McKenzie then had a shot saved by Warner as City started to play effectively on the counter-attack with Leeds pushing more and more men forward.
With five minutes left Robbie Blake came on in Leeds' last throw of the dice but he placed the visitor's last chance wide of goal as City stayed firm.
Don Hutchison replaced the superb Kevin Kyle in the dying stages and City were well worth their third win in four home matches this season.
4thegame
Coventry City piled the pressure on Leeds United manager Kevin Blackwell with a hard-fought victory at the Ricoh Arena.
Stern John's first-half strike was the difference between the two sides as the West Yorkshire outfit slipped to their third defeat in a row.
Leeds fans chanted "time to go" at Blackwell as Coventry secured their first league victory over their Elland Road rivals since Boxing Day 1996.
Despite finishing the game with four men up front, Leeds remain the league's joint lowest scoring team and looked short on ideas.
The Sky Blues created the first-half chance of the match in the fourth minute after good work by Chris Birchall.
The Trinidad and Tobago international beat Stephen Crainey to get to the by-line and his cross was headed just over by Kevin Kyle.
But Leeds almost took the lead five minutes later after excellent work on the right by Ian Westlake.
The former Ipswich man's cross was met by David Healy but the Northern Ireland international's header came back off the face of the crossbar.
With the midfield tussle between Coventry's Michael Doyle and Kevin Nicholls of Leeds a match in itself, both teams struggled to take control of the game.
But Coventry looked the more inventive in the first half and took the lead thanks to a wonderful flowing move clinically finished by John in the 26th minute.
Kyle found Marcus Hall with a pass which the left-back headed on to Jay Tabb. He ran into the area before cutting the ball back to John to score his third of the season with the inside of his right foot.
Blackwell sent his Leeds team out five minutes early for the second half indicating that his half-time pep talk had been short and sweet with on-loan Blackburn midfielder Jonathon Douglas replacing Sean Gregan.
A mazy run by Gary Kelly, which resulted in a 25-yard shot which had Coventry goalkeeper Andy Marshall scrambling, was the only highlight to a dour opening to the second half.
But, urged on by their vociferous support, Leeds started to step up their game with Westlake playing a delightful one-two with Healy before curling a shot which Marshall did well to parry.
The move gave the Yorkshire side confidence with both Healy and Geoff Horsfield going close.
But Coventry almost doubled their lead in the 68th minute after Tabb played in Kyle down the right. His cross was met by the on-rushing Doyle but his shot was excellently saved by Tony Warner.
Leeds desperately searched for an equaliser with Nicholls firing a 30-yard shot just wide of the post before Healy fired over the bar after a slip by Elliott Ward.
City's Leon McKenzie was denied by Warner before substitute Robbie Blake almost salvaged a point for Leeds at the death.
posted by SkyBlueSnowy at 2:02 pm
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