Our last time at Highfield Road

It isn’t that long since we played them but there have been significant changes at Coventry with some new players coming in and more importantly a change of manager. It was Peter Reid in charge when they drew 2-2 at the Turf in October but he lost his job during the first week of 2005.

Reid had strengthened the squad meantime and in November he signed Reading captain Adie Williams but had lost some of the many loan players he had available to him with Rohan Ricketts and Florent Laville returning to Spurs and Bolton respectively.

He did bring Dean Leacock back from Fulham for a second loan spell just before departing and handing over temporarily to his number two Adrian Heath.

Initially it looked as though the former Burnley manager was going to get the job but Coventry appointed former Leicester boss Micky Adams with Heath reverting to the number two role although it looks clear that Alan Cork, who arrived with Adams, is the real number two if not in name.

Adams is keen to strengthen the squad and in particular is looking for a big defender. He hasn’t been successful as yet but has brought in two loan players, one of whom is very well known to Burnley fans.

Midfielder Christian Negouai has arrived from KKMC whilst Steve Cotterill’s first ever loan signing Richard Duffy is there in a similar deal until the end of the season.

Tomorrow will actually be Adam’s first home game in charge. He was appointed the day before they were beaten 2-1 at home to QPR but he left Heath in charge. Since then they have gone out of the FA Cup at Newcastle and lost a league game at Preston.

Their last win was on New Year’s Day when goals from Stern John and Adie Williams gave them a 2-1 win at Rotherham.

Click HERE to see all Coventry’s results this season.

Micky Adams looks set to be boosted with the return of three players who have returned to fitness after injury. Steve Staunton, Stuart Giddins and Christian Negouai are all expected to be available.

The only player definitely ruled out is Andy Morrell whilst Richard Duffy has returned from international action with a hamstring injury and might not make it.

Even if he doesn’t there could be two other familiar faces in the home squad, the last two players to play on loan for the Clarets last season, Neil Wood and Dele Adebola.

Wood has only featured in fourteen games this season, with just nine starts, but he came on at Preston last week in the closing stages. Adebola meanwhile looked to be on his way out of the club and was on loan at Bradford for three months, but has been back in the squad ever since returning and started last week at Deepdale.

Coventry will select from: Luke Steele, Andrew Whing, Richard Duffy, Richard Shaw, Adie Williams, Dean Leacock, Micky Doyle, Stephen Hughes, Claus Jorgensen, Gary McSheffrey, Dele Adebola, Scott Shearer, Craig Reid, Isaac Osbourne, Graham Barrett, Neil Wood, Steve Staunton, Stuart Giddins, Christian Negouai.

Click HERE to see the full Coventry squad.

Steve Cotterill will be hoping to welcome back Michael Duff but will be without Frank Sinclair who was sent off last week just as the sponsors were naming him man of the match. He misses the one game and this one will be it.

Other than that, and with no new signings, it is almost certain to be close to the side that lost to Leeds with the only possible changes being in the wide positions where John Oster and Lee Roche started last week.

I suspect it might just be the same and if so we can expect Burnley to line up: Brian Jensen, Michael Duff, Gary Cahill, John McGreal, Mo Camara, Lee Roche, Micah Hyde, Tony Grant, Graham Branch, John Oster, Ian Moore. Subs: Danny Coyne, Paul Scott, Joel Pilkington, Matt O’Neill, Jean-Louis Valois.

Now does anyone really want reminding of our previous visit to Highfield Road? If not, then I don’t blame you, it really was one of those days when you felt ashamed to be supporting the side such was the appalling display.

They had returned from a break in Spain prior to this game, it was supposed to give them a lift for the relegation battle ahead. It did anything but, and you wondered just what they had been up to on the Mediterranean for the previous week.

We were basically murdered by a Coventry side who found it so easy that manager Stan Ternent turned on the players big style after the game. “That was woeful and as bad as anything I can remember,” he growled.

“We haven’t been that bad for a long time. We lacked bollocks,” he added. It was just what the fans thought as they trooped out of the ground and you would have found it very difficult to find one fan willing to put a pound on us staying up as they left.

Alan Moore played at left back with Mo Camara out suspended, it remains the only game Camara has missed since he joined the Clarets, but it was the incompetence and inability to defend in the middle from David May and Mark McGregor that set the pattern. If anyone wondered just why these two were released then Coventry must have been one of the games they missed.

If you have got this far, then it ended 4-0, and it left Derby needing to win just one game in hand to plant us into the bottom three with BRBC and Franchise. Poor Ryan Townsend and Paul Scott both came on as subs for their debuts, they must have wondered what on earth was going on.

The teams were,

Coventry: Scott Shearer, Peter Clarke, Callum Davenport, Steve Staunton (Mo Konjic 76), Martin Grainger, Bjarni Gudjonsson, Eric Deloumeaux (Graham Barrett 80), Micky Doyle, Stephen Warnock, Julian Joachim (Dele Adebola 73), Gary McSheffrey. Subs not used: Gavin Ward, Richard Shaw.

Burnley: Brian Jensen, Dean West (Ryan Townsend 80), Mark McGregor, David May (Neil Wood 59), Alan Moore (Paul Scott 77), Glen Little, Richard Chaplow, Tony Grant, Paul Weller, Robbie Blake, Ian Moore. Subs not used: Nathan Abbey, Luke Chadwick.