It’s Coventry’s first promotion for 51 years!
Sometimes it takes grave disappointment and hardship to bring people together again.
Coventry’s time in the Premier League, which came to an end in 2001, is a distant memory. But maybe now the 38,000 supporters who created a party atmosphere at Wembley yesterday will start believing the sky Blues can get back to where they feel they belong.
Before yesterday, Coventry had not celebrated a promotion for 51 years. A five-minute period early in the second half here put that right. Jordan Willis and Jordan shipley cut exeter open, before Jack Grimmer added the gloss.
mark Robins also ended a long wait for a successful campaign. this was the Coventry boss’s first promotion in 11 years as a manager and it was reward for working tirelessly to rebuild a squad who were embarrassingly poor in League one last season.
the supporters’ frustration continues to be directed at Coventry’s owners, London-based hedge fund sisu. Joy seppala, Coventry’s owner and the face of sisu, was in the stands. the fans waited until she stood in the Royal Box to vent their anger.
she appeared on the big screens as Robins and his players celebrated. the reaction — a chorus of boos — was unmistakably hostile. there was a somewhat different reception for John sillett, the manager who guided Coventry to FA Cup glory in 1987. seppala must now try to build on this promotion and Robins wants the supporters to play their part.
‘it’s nice to have a promotion but it’s not about me, it’s about the players and the supporters and uniting a club that desperately needed it,’ said Robins.
‘it needed galvanising and that continues. it’s a major positive for everyone and we can run with it. that’s where the momentum comes from, that positivity. the supporters will be really happy and hopefully they will get their season tickets in larger numbers. that gives us more scope to compete at the top of League one.’
For exeter’s Paul tisdale, the longest-serving boss in the Football League, this was a double disappointment, on top of losing last year’s play-off final to Blackpool.
it could well be his last game at exeter, too, after nearly 12 years in charge. He is poised to take over at mK Dons.
Asked about his future, tisdale said: ‘We’ll have to see. exeter would like to keep me, i believe, and there’s an offer there for me. there’s six months on my contract but for all intents and purposes it’s the end of the situation and i have to decide how i go forward.’
this was not the send-off tisdale, nor steve Perryman, the club’s outgoing director of football, had wanted. they watched as their side were sliced open several times in the first half.
mark mcNulty and shipley had early chances for Coventry, but the exeter defence finally buckled five minutes into the second half.
Coventry captain michael Doyle set up central defender Willis, who turned his marker and found the top corner of Christy Pym’s goal.
sky blue smoke billowed and five minutes later the promotion party was in full swing. mcNulty was the creator this time. He passed to shipley, whose shot deflected into exeter’s net off Pierce sweeney.
the third goal was the best of the lot. Right back Grimmer cut in on his left foot and bent a shot beautifully into the far corner.
exeter substitute Kyle edwards scored in the 89th minute, but by then the game was up.