After each matchday programme this season, we publish the regular column from the Coventry City board on our website. You can read Coventry City Chief Executive Dave Boddy's column from our game against Swansea City below:
Good evening and welcome to the Coventry Building Society Arena for tonight’s game as we host Swansea City.
I would also like to welcome the players, staff, officials and supporters who join us from Swansea tonight.
As this is our last fixture of 2023, it would be poignant to look back at the year for the Sky Blues. In January, Doug King was ratified by the EFL as the new Owner of Coventry City Football Club, having bought a controlling interest in the Sky Blues and later in January he had bought the remaining shares from SISU to place the Club 100% in his charge.
With an injury depleted squad at the start of the New Year we crashed out of the FA Cup at the first hurdle, with home defeat to Hollywood glamour club Wrexham by 4-3 in a pulsating tie. The January window closed with us bringing in Luke McNally, Josh Wilson-Esbrand, Brooke Norton-Cuffy on loan, plus Sean Maguire on a short-term contract.
After a stuttering January, we then proceeded to lose just 2 further Championship games between the start of February and the end of the season and secured the point we needed in the final league game of the season away at Middlesbrough to ensure that we made the Play-Offs, finishing 5th in the table – our highest finish in the Championship since relegation from the Premier League in 2001.
The two-legged Semi-Final again saw us facing Middlesbrough. The first game at the Arena ended goal less in front of a sell-out crowd and then we achieved a fantastic 1-0 win at Middlesbrough with a stunning Gus Hamer finish to send us to Wembley for the third time in the Mark Robins era.
It was another sell out at Wembley and another fantastic occasion and atmosphere, however it ended in agonising defeat on penalties after a 1-1 draw. The Final was recognised as a great achievement for the underdogs, with both Clubs recognised as having bottom six budgets in the Championship, as were Sunderland who Luton defeated in the other Semi-Final.
The Summer window saw a massive turnaround in the squad, with Viktor Gyokeres, who scored 22 goals during the season, leaving for Sporting Lisbon and Gus Hamer, who scored 11, heading to Sheffield United – both for substantial fees.
Incoming we saw Jay Dasilva, Bobby Thomas, Tatsuhiro Sakamoto, Ellis Simms, Haji Wright, Liam Kitching, Joel Latibeaudiere and Milan Van Ewijk all signing permanent contracts, plus Luis Binks and Yasin Ayari joining on loan.
This season, we have seen results improve as the new squad has gelled together which sets the scene nicely for January and the New Year to see if we maintain that improvement and force our way into the race for the Play-Offs once again.
Thank you as always for your support – I would like to take this opportunity to wish all Sky Blues supporters a happy and prosperous New Year. PUSB.
Dave
Dave Boddy
Chief Executive
Coventry City Football Club