COVENTRY City pulled off a brilliant FA Cup triumph by Dumping
out Premier League outfit Blackburn Rovers in their
fifth round replay at the Ricoh Arena.
Striker Leon Best was the Sky Blues’ hero, heading
home Jordan Henderson’s cross just before the hour mark to set up an encounter against
the multi-millionaires of Chelsea.
City were easily the better side with each player
giving 100% as they battled for every inch of Ricoh pride.
Blackburn manager Sam Allardyce decided to make 11
changes from the team that went down 2-1 against Manchester United on Saturday, with the magic
of the FA Cup clearly not stirring the romance within the Rovers boss.
As it was, Coventry
were on top from start to finish and Chris Coleman’s battlers more than
deserved their reward of a place in the last eight. It is the Sky Blues’ best
cup run for 11 years.
Early on, Keiren Westwood was forced to make a save
from Carlos Villanueva, but that was just about it until the dying moments. The
home side - buoyed by massive support - did most of the attacking, with Ward
heading wide and Morrison a constant threat.
Blackburn keeper Jason Brown stood up to the
repeated test, but once rattled by a shot from Jordan Henderson it seemed only
a matter of time. Eventually Coventry’s
endeavours paid off as Best, still sporting a protective face mask over his
fractured cheek bone, headed past Brown.
And how the crowd celebrated. It’s been a long time
since the Ricoh roar reached that kind of volume.
Clearly frustrated, Big Sam Allardyce made a double
change with 20 minutes to go throwing on Roque Santa Cruz and Stephen Warnock
for the fatigued Keith Treacy and Villanueva.
City continued to be the better team and Morrison had
a shot blocked, before Blackburn’s Chris Samba
gave the twenty-odd thousand Sky Blues fans a proper scare as he headed their
last chance wide.
Coventry: Westwood, Wright, Ward, Turner,
Fox, Henderson,
Gunnarsson, Doyle, Eastwood (Simpson 87), Best, Morrison.
Subs Not
Used: Marshall, Hall, Beuzelin, Osbourne, Thornton, Cain.
Booked:
Gunnarsson, Ward, Westwood.
Blackburn:
Brown, Simpson, Samba, Khizanishvili (Givet 81), Olsson, Villanueva (Roque Santa Cruz 68), Mokoena,
Kerimoglu, Treacy (Warnock 68), McCarthy, Roberts.
Subs Not
Used: Robinson, Nelsen, Pedersen, Doran.
Booked:
Brown.
Referee:
Mike Riley (Yorkshire).
Attendance:
22,793.
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