CITY 1 COVENTRY CITY 1
FA Premiership
27th August 1993
Attendance 21,537
scorers
City Sheron(34)
Coventry Wegerle(85)
Ref Philip Don
City Coton, Fiitcroft, Phelan, McMahon, Curle, Vonk, White, Sheron, Quinn, Groenendijk, Holden – subs Quigley(unused), D Brightwell(unused), Dibble(unused)
Coventry Gould, Atherton, Rennie, J Williarns, Ndiovu, Wegerle, P Willlams, Boland, McGrath, Busst, Booty – subs Jenkinson(84), Sheridan(unused), Ogrizovic(unused)
It was a somewhat surreal atmosphere when City faced Coventry on Friday 27th August 1993 for only the fifth match of the new season. Less than 36 hours earlier City’s popular manager Peter Reid had been dismissed by a man widely regarded as Chairman Peter Swales’ henchman John Maddock.
Many supporters seemed intent on yelling abuse at the Chairman, while the large number of media representatives were simply there to find out what the latest rumour was from a club that seemed to enjoy shooting itself in the toot throughout the 1980s and 1990s. On the pitch Mike Sheron gave the Blues a flrst half lead, and for most of the match it seemed as if events off the pitch had carefully been ignored by caretaker boss Tony Book and the City players. Unfortunately, Roy Wegerle snatched a late equaliser and the match ended 1-1.
During the match, the news circulated that City had already appolnted thelr new manager and that he was actually in the stadium. Radio 5 broke the news to many Blues… that Oxford’s Brian Horton was in the executive boxes at the Platt Lane end and had been appointed by John Maddock earlier that day, After the match an angry crowd gathered outside the main entrance. Most seemed stunned with the appointment, and within minutes of the frnai whistle few commented on the match as off the pitch events were once again more newsworthy than those on the pitch…
ADAPTED FROM AN ARTICLE BY GARY JAMES PUBLISHED IN THE CITY PROGRAMME 26TH AUGUST 2000
