The Sky Blues earned another pre-season victory this evening with a 1-0 win over Northern Premier League side Mickleover Sports...
Jordan Ponticelli scored the game’s only goal as a youthful Coventry side were given a chance to showcase themselves to Mark Robins who watched on from the dug-out, while under-18's manager Jason Farndon took the side.
“During pre-season, all we want is the fitness but tonight we saw a young group put in a really good performance that we are all very happy with,” said Farndon.
“Mickleover gave us a physical battle which is something that these players do not get that much in the development side. They gave us a workout and everyone put a real shift in all the way through.
“The gaffer has said to them that this is a club of opportunities and that they have just got to prove themselves.”
“I thought that Tom Bayliss and Callum Maycock were excellent. There were a lot of times that they found themselves outnumbered out there and I thought they were both very good.
“Maycock probably does not get as many plaudits as he should. He does what most people call the horrible work and he is amazing at it. It says a lot about his character that he comes here tonight, keeps his head down and gets on with it.”
Ponticelli, who excited fans last season with his prolific scoring record at under-18 level, missed a brilliant opportunity early on to give the Sky Blues the lead but made up for it in the second half, calmly finding the corner.
“Jordan was disappointed at half-time. He hit his first effort a little too sweet but the second one is what he did over and over again last season. It was a typical ‘JP’ finish.
“In terms of his development, he is right where we want him to be. He has been training with the first team so he has not been with the development group and has been learning what the manager expects of him.
He added: “This is a really important year for Jordan. If he keeps scoring goals he is going to ask questions but I think he is where he needs to be."