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REPORT: Coventry City 3-2 Wycombe Wanderers - McNulty brace helps the Sky Blues to victory

City take all three points on an eventful evening at the Ricoh...

22 December 2017

Match Reports

REPORT: Coventry City 3-2 Wycombe Wanderers - McNulty brace helps the Sky Blues to victory

City take all three points on an eventful evening at the Ricoh...

22 December 2017

The Sky Blues have made it two wins in a week at the Ricoh Arena thanks to a brace from Marc McNulty and a goal of the season contender from Michael Doyle.

Doyle opened the scoring in spectacular fashion, lobbing Wanderer's 'keeper Scott Brown from just inside the opposition's half. His second of the season, and one to remember.

Dan Scarr and Joe Jacobson both found the net for the visitors as they clawed back from two goals behind to at one stage draw level.

McNulty, Coventry's man of the match, was the star of the night, however, scoring either side of half-time to hand Mark Robins all three points on his 48th birthday.

The Sky Blues took the lead after 70 seconds against Cheltenham, and almost did the same in this one. McNulty raced through on goal but his last touch was a little too heavy, allowing Brown to push it out to Max Biamou, but the Frenchman could only fire wide.

What followed will certainly go down as one of the great Ricoh goals. Doyle's 50/50 challenge with Craig Mackail-Smith saw him hammer the ball 50-yards and dip over Brown, clip the bar, and into the net. Reminiscent of John Fleck's audacious lop against Gillingham three years ago, but this time the ball landed the right side of the white line.

Peter Vincenti came close to doubling City's lead on the half-hour mark. A well-worked set-piece routine with Jordan Shipley resulted in him rising highest but his header floated wide of the far post.

McNulty has not been able to stop scoring lately, and the number ten found the net again just before half-time. Vincenti played a delightful ball over the Wycombe defence for McNulty to chase. The Scottish striker turned on the ball to faced Sido Jombati before curling the ball into the bottom corner.

Wycombe's fortune began to turn just before half-time. Dan Scarr pulled one back for the visitors just before the break with a thunderous effort from range.

Adebayo Akinfenwa went down first in the area and was booked for diving before Nathan Tyson was fouled seconds later, giving former Shrewsbury left-back Joe Jacobson the chance to draw Wycombe level, and he did.

Wycombe had the momentum, but the Sky Blues would make the most of the open play to win a spot-kick for themselves. Coventry were yet to score, or concede, a penalty in a league game yet this season but had now done both once McNulty had fired his penalty straight up the middle to restore City's lead.

McNulty was chasing a hat-trick and had a golden chance to seal the win late on. Duckens Nazon, who had only been on the pitch for 60 seconds after replacing Shipley, played the striker one-on-one with Brown before he rounded the keeper and went down in the area, but the referee judged it to be a dive.

Three was enough, and the Sky Blues sent Wycombe home defeated.

 

Attendance: 7,234 (696 away)

Yellows: Tyson 11', Bayliss 33', Akinfenwa 46', O'Nien 51, Scarr 53', Shipley 82', McNulty 85', Jacobson 90'

Reds:

Goals: Doyle 14', McNulty 41', Scarr 45', Jacobson 49', McNulty 54'

Coventry City XI: Burge (GK), Grimmer, Willis, McDonald, Stokes; Vincenti (Dev. Kelly-Evans 45'), Doyle (C), Bayliss, Shipley (Nazon 83'): McNulty, Biamou (Davies 90').

Subs: O'Brien (GK), Haynes, Stevenson, Ponticelli.

Wycombe Wanderers XI: Brown (GK), Jombati, Jacobson, Stewart, Bloomfield (C), Saunders, O'Nien, Akinfenwa, Tyson (Eze 78'), Mackail-Smith (Cowan-Hall 69'), Scarr. 

Subs: Kalambay, Freeman, Dee Havillano, Southwell, Gape.


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