Coventry City FA Cup Match

A Coventry City FA Cup Match was our destination when we saw them draw Oxford United in the third round of this famous cup competition – two clubs with a great history from the 1980s and a game we decided to attend.

Coventry City Stadium

The Coventry Building Society Arena is a stadium which many will know by it’s former name, The Ricoh Arena and has a capacity of 32,609.

Driving to the stadium meant we were seeking a parking spot in the local area however we were thwarted by all roads in the area being designated for permit holders only – typically only when an event is on.  Therefore as we circled the area we paid for a parking space at a residential address using the Your Parking App which cost £10 for a 4 hour stay and was a 15 minute walk to the arena.

The Coventry Building Society Arena

As we crossed the pedestrianised bridge across the motorway, the famous crest of this once top division club was in view and we made our way round to the East Stand where we passed the statue of club legend and TV personality Jimmy Hill who managed the club between 1961 and 1967.

Coventry City played 34 continuous seasons in the top flight.

The Jimmy Hill Statue

Match Ticket

This Coventry City FA Cup Match was great value for money.  The club made tickets available from just £7 for children and £15 for adults and whilst much lower than the league match attendances, this led to another good crowd of just over 18,000.

We purchased our tickets the day before the match and instantly received an email with a PDF attached which we downloaded to our devices and scanned at the turnstile.

Coventry City Memorial Garden

A lovely touch outside the Coventry City Stadium is a unique memorial garden which has the plaques of people passed.  It is a small garden where fans can spread the ashes of loved ones and a place to remember them before a match, something which they probably once enjoyed together.  A lovely feature.

In the centre is a memorial dedicated to the late Jimmy Hill.

Stadium Facilities

The whole experience before the match at the stadium was excellent.  There were many different choices for food and drink and outside the stadium were bars and toilets and plenty of space to enjoy drinking outside on what was a bright, sunny, but cold day.

At half-time, whilst you could obtain food and drink underneath the stadium, the fire exits were open and people were again allowed outside to use the different vendors and it was great again to be able to have a drink in the sun, rather than being held inside.

Inside the Stadium

Inside the stadium, as you would expect, it is a sea of Sky Blue seating.  There were great views from all four stands and we were positioned in the East Stand fairly close to the half-way line.

Coventry City v Oxford United

This Coventry City FA Cup Match was not one to be late for as there was a flurry of early goals.

Coventry were ahead after just 8 minutes when Joel Laitbeaudiere scored but just two minutes later the visitors were level and it looked as though we had a classic cup tie on our hands.

One name we were keen to watch on the team sheet was Ellis Simms who had signed from Everton and whilst he didn’t get on the score sheet he brilliantly provided the second goal for Coventry City by smartly crossing to Ben Sheaf who finished from close range – this just a minute after the equaliser.  2-1 after 11 minutes.

Ben Sheaf put Coventry 2-1 up after 11 minutes

The moment of the match came from the Man of the Match – the classy Kasey Palmer who collected the ball just inside the opposition half, completed a majestic turn by rolling the ball under his foot and then drove towards the Oxford goal before unleashing an unstoppable effort to make it 3-1 before half-time.  You can watch the goal below.

With that third Coventry goal after just 17 minutes there was some good light-hearted fun between the sets of supporters.  First the home fans, believing the game was over, started to cheer every pass as though it was the last few minutes of the game.  After that long period of possession was lost, the Oxford fans replicated this as their team strung some passes together – at 3-1 down and practically game over, it was great to see the fans enjoying themselves.

It was Kasey Palmer again early in the second half who took the game away from Oxford United.  His excellent effort saw a foul as he struck the ball wide, and Callum O’Hare stepped up to clinch number four from the spot.

Chance after chance came Coventry City’s way and it could have been 5,6,7 or 8 before Oxford pulled one back to make it 4-2 very much against the run of play.

One of the biggest cheers of the day was the late introduction of substitute Matt Godden and the noise was louder when he struck two late goals on 84 and 88 minutes – both laid on by Jamie Allen.

Final Score:  Coventry City 6  Oxford United 2

Final score 6-2

In the Hat

Coventry City find themselves in the hat for the 4th round draw on Monday, after this dominant performance I don’t think any team would fancy playing them in the next round.