Michael Chopra’s last-gasp winner saw the Blues to a dramatic 3-2 victory over Coventry at the Ricoh Arena. Town went ahead through a deflected Jay Emmanuel-Thomas shot but allowed the home side back into the game before the break via a Sammy Clingan penalty and Gary Deegan. However, in the second half Chopra followed up Lee Martin’s penalty to equalise, then clinched all three points at the death.
Town boss Paul Jewell named an unchanged side with Alex McCarthy, back after a one-match ban, replacing Richard Wright on the bench the only change to the 16. Former Blue Hermann Hreidarsson missed out for the Sky Blues due to a shoulder injury.
With snow falling, the Blues, in black, threatened for the first time in the third minute after a burst of pace down the right from Carlos Edwards. The Trinidadian found Lee Martin, who took the ball into the area and tricked his way past a defender before hitting the turf. A penalty looked not out of the question but the lack of protest from the Town players suggested the former Manchester United had slipped. In any case referee Nigel Miller wasn’t interested.
Town continued to have the better of the opening phase, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas cutting the ball back from the byline on the right but a defender’s toe intervened ahead of Martin. Moments later from a corner, stand-in skipper Ibrahima Sonko headed wide.
On seven, Cresswell crossed right-footed from the left to Daryl Murphy, who headed over with the Blues starting very confidently.
As the snow continued to fall more heavily, chances became rarer, but in the 23rd minute the Blues went in front, largely thanks to some dreadful defending by the home side.
Former Canary Sammy Clingan headed a Carlos Edwards cross from the right across his own area towards the corner flag, then one-time Town target Richard Wood's clearance only succeeded in hitting Clingan, who diverted the ball to Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, the former Arsenal man setting himself before blasting a low shot off a defender and into the net for his third goal in a week.
Town were fully deserving of their lead but in the 29th minute, as so often this season, they were made to pay for an individual error. Sky Blues skipper Clingan sent over a freekick from the left and, before David Bell laid it across for Gary McSheffrey to tap it into the net, referee Nigel Miller pointed to the spot for handball by Sonko as it had come across. There were few protests from the Blues and Clingan beat Arran Lee-Barrett from the spot.
Coventry, who previously hadn’t managed a shot on goal, were given a huge lift by the goal, which had come out of nothing. The Sky Blues were starting to provide the greater threat and on 43 Lee-Barrett pushed over Clingan’s 25-yard strike.
Moments before the game moved into first half injury time, the home side went in front. A long Jordan Clarke throw from the right was nodded back to the edge of the box by Clive Platt, where midfielder Gary Deegan picked it up and hit a low shot to Lee-Barrett’s right and into the net.
There was little more action in a half which had seen the Blues once again repeat their trick of shooting themselves in the foot.
At 1-0 Town were comfortable but the needless penalty saw Coventry get back into the game and for the remainder of the half they looked the more likely to score, Deegan, a player reported to have been targeted by Roy Keane during his time at Bohemians, duly putting his team in front moments before the whistle.
The Blues threatened first after the break, with the snow still falling heavily and by now starting to lay on the pitch, Cresswell cutting in from the left and crossing low towards Chopra, but Wood got across to put the ball behind.
Andy Drury, who scored his first Town goal at Leeds recently, forced Joe Murphy to push his 25-yard strike round the post in the 48th minute with the Blues starting the second half more strongly than they had finished the first.
Town should have got back on terms on 52 when Murphy found Sonko after a set piece and the central defender played Chopra in on goal, the striker scuffing the ball wide when he really should have scored. Three minutes later, Sonko headed wide from a Drury corner on the left.
As the game reached the hour mark, the Blues weren’t particularly looking like getting back on terms. But then on 63 they were awarded their second penalty in a week after Lee Martin was upended by former Blues Academy schoolboy and ballboy Richard Keogh as he took the ball into the box.
There were more protests from the Coventry fans than from the players as Martin prepared to take the kick himself. The midfielder hit the ball down the middle, Murphy diverted it on to the bar, it bounced out to Chopra, whose header eventually bulged the roof of the net after the Sky Blues keeper had again got a touch. It was the former Cardiff man’s ninth goal of the season, putting him equal with former loanee Keith Andrews.
Chopra had a chance to put Town back in front in the 73rd minute when Emmanuel-Thomas played in him in but the ex-England U21 international’s first touch let him down and keeper Joe Murphy blocked, with Blues midfielder Daryl Murphy feeling the ball ought to have been laid across to him.
Coventry’s Alex Nimely felt he ought to have had a penalty when colliding with Sonko on 75 but it seemed a somewhat hopeful appeal. Two minutes later, Clingan curled a freekick just wide from 25 yards.
Both sides were continuing to look for all three points in a game being played in increasingly difficult conditions. Emmanuel-Thomas almost found Chopra in the Coventry area after a powerful run, then Sonko blocked from Nimely at the other end with the home crowd appealing for penalties almost any time a Town player made a challenge in the danger zone.
As the game moved into injury time, Lee-Barrett, who earlier had had one shaky moment on a cross, was forced to chest away outside his area, but it was Town putting on the pressure in the closing stages and in the final moments they won it.
After a corner had been cleared, Edwards picked up the loose ball and played it to Drury, who whipped in a superb cross which Chopra headed home from inches out to win the game.
The Blues players piled on top of the goalscorer, a last minute 3-2 turnaround for once having gone in their favour. There was no time for Coventry to hit back before the whistle went.
For much of the game it looked like Town had managed their usual trick of turning a winning position into a defeat but after the break, the Blues regained the upper hand and were on top when they won the penalty, although without threatening.
But they kept going and were the more threatening side in injury time when Drury sent in the best cross of the afternoon and Chopra finished clinically to take him to 10 goals for the campaign and the Blues to their second important win this week.
Coventry City: Murphy, Cranie, Keogh, Wood, Clarke (Willis 85), McSheffrey, Clingan (c), Deegan, Bell (Norwood 65), Nimely, Platt. Unused: Dunn, Baker, Eastwood.
Town: Lee-Barrett, Edwards, Cresswell, Sonko (c), Smith, Hyam, Drury, Emmanuel-Thomas, Murphy, Martin, Chopra. Unused: McCarthy, Scotland, Delaney, Bullard, Leadbitter. Referee: Nigel Miller (County Durham). Att: 13,464 (Town: 1,164).