Robins backing City to get back on track
MARK Robins insists his Coventry City players will respond to Saturday’s disappointing display at Bristol City when they entertain Sunderland in their next game.
The Sky Blues boss is backing his side to bounce back with a much-improved performance in what many see as the biggest game of the season so far.
The Black Cats will be backed by nearly 5,000 travelling supporters, making for a highly charged atmosphere at the Ricoh Arena which is sure to be replicated on the pitch as the players battle for the three points.
“I guarantee we will get a reaction,” said Robins, who takes comfort from the fact that the last time his players pulled up short – in last month’s woeful 2-0 defeat at Blackpool – there was a marked improvement in the following game against Gillingham, in which they drew 1-1 but did more than enough to win the game.
“The game against Blackpool was a poor game.
“This wasn’t a poor game. It was three moments and one or two that didn’t turn into goals.
“A lot of the stuff that we did was pleasing, but off the back of a defeat it’s difficult to say.
“But we will keep going in the same direction, keep moving forward and look forward to the next game.
“And we have got to make sure we get their heads in the right place this week.”
Robins demands better from the Sky Blues, saying Saturday’s three-goal capitulation in the space of the first 23 minutes bore no resemblance to one of his teams.
“Their minds went for a ten-minute period and it cost us the game, and that isn’t like us,” he said.
“You don’t do what we did, which was capitulate.
“That’s nothing like one of my teams.
“Every now and again you see it because it’s individuals who have got that in them.
“But they are better than that and have a stronger mindset and character than that.”
The City manager admits he and his players have to take criticism from the fans who support what he sees as still a ‘big’ club.
“I think that because we take a big following to away games, and this is part of it, playing for a big club, you have to be able to deal with the criticism when it comes,” he said. “Because if you don’t win games and don’t play in the way the supporters expect you are going to get stick. “Certainly, I’m going to get stick, so they have got to be able to deal with it and deal with it properly.” He added: “The fans turned up. They come to the away games and they want to see the team win. “They get disappointed and angry if it doesn’t go our way but it’s not always going to go our way. “We have no god given right to win games. “Criticism is part of it and they have to take that when it comes. They got a lot of plaudits last season and had some already this season because of the way they have started and the way we are trying to play.
“I think our supporters appreciate that.
“What we have to realise is that sometimes when playing that way we are giving teams an opportunity, not because of the way we are playing but because of the mindset of one or two individuals.
“They have got to be stronger, it’s as simple as that, but we’ll keep doing the same things, keep playing.
“No changes will be made in terms of the way we’re going about things. We have just got to be a little bit more solid.” THE barrister leading the independent review into football’s child sex abuse scandal has been forced to admit that it will be delayed by at least six months.
Clive Sheldon QC and his team started the review in December 2016 and he had hoped to finish his work this month and hand it over to the Football Association. This, however, depended on the completion of three criminal trials against former coaches.
Unfortunately, one of those, involving ex-Southampton coach Bob Higgins, collapsed and is heading for a retrial, while former Crewe and Manchester City coach Barry Bennell may face further charges following his fourth conviction earlier this year.
In a statement, Sheldon said: “Due to the ongoing criminal investigations and prosecutions it has not been possible for all those who want to speak to the review to be able to do so. Whilst I had hoped and expected to complete my review this autumn, I believe that this extension will ensure that many more individuals who want to engage with the review will be able to do so.”
Sheldon has not specified how long the delay will be, but it is understood it may even be as long as a year, given the complexity of the Bennell and Higgins cases.