Sunday 19 February 2012

Jim's column 18.2.12



Andy Thorn’s Sky Blues came good on Tuesday night and deservedly won an entertaining encounter with Leeds United. For once the team lasted the distance and grabbed the winner from the penalty spot in added time. On four occasions this season (Palace (away), Burnley (home), Blackpool (away) and Ipswich (home)) City have lost the game in added time but on Tuesday the boot was firmly on the other foot. I had to look back a fair way to find the last time the Sky Blues managed this and it seems it was in November 2007 when Kevin Kyle needed a 92nd winner in a 2-1 victory at Loftus Road. There have been a few instances of City scoring a late goal for a point, but only one this season, Richard Wood’s late goal at Elland Road earlier this season, and only one last season, Lukas Jutkiewicz’s injury-time penalty at Watford to make it 2-2. Prior to Kyle’s late winner in 2007 one has to go back to the Highfield Road days and a very late Johnnie Jackson winner against West Brom in 2003! So Gary’s winner on Tuesday night was the latest home winner for many years.

Lots of readers wanted to know when a City player last scored two penalties in a game. It wasn’t that long ago – last April to be precise when Marlon King scored two from the spot in the 3-0 win at Fratton Park, City’s last away win. Prior to that Elliott Ward, now playing in the Premier League with Norwich, scored two penalties in a 5-1 win at Colchester in 2008.

Sadly City’s away form continues to cause concern with the defeat at Reading the eighth consecutive defeat on the road. This run equals the worst run since the club were relegated from the Premier League in 2001. Between December 2007 and March 2008 City lost the first eight away games of the SISU era as follows:

Dec
22
2007
a
Blackpool
L
0-4
Dec
26
2007
h
Crystal P
L
0-2
Dec
29
2007
h
Ipswich T
W
2-1
Jan
1
2008
a
Bristol City
L
1-2
Jan
12
2008
a
Leicester C
L
0-2
Jan
19
2008
h
Burnley
L
1-2
Jan
29
2008
a
Hull C
L
0-1
Feb
2
2008
h
Barnsley
W
4-0
Feb
9
2008
a
Preston NE
L
0-1
Feb
12
2008
h
Cardiff C
D
0-0
Feb
23
2008
h
Leicester C
W
2-0
Feb
26
2008
a
Burnley
L
0-2
Mar
1
2008
a
Scunthorpe U
L
1-2
Mar
5
2008
h
QPR
D
0-0
Mar
8
2008
h
Norwich C
W
1-0
Mar
11
2008
a
Sheff. Utd.
L
1-2

With Chris Coleman having replaced Iain Dowie after a brief reign of Frankie Bunn and John Harbin, City were sliding towards relegation when the run came to an end with a 0-0 at Southampton.

Several readers have pointed out that City have not kept a clean sheet away from home this season, and wondered if this was a record. On four previous occasions City have gone a whole season without an away clean sheet. The last time was in the relegation season of 2000-01 when, despite winning four games on the road (Southampton, Manchester City, Everton and Leicester) they conceded in every away game and couldn’t even muster a 0-0 draw. The other three occasions are very strange as they coincide with high-scoring seasons.

In 1931-32 and 1932-33 City netted 108 and 106 goals respectively but their success was founded on virtually unbeatable home form (17 wins out of 21 in the former season and 16 in the latter). The away form was poor in both campaigns with one win and 69 goals conceded in the former and three wins and 53 goals conceded in the latter. The other instance was in 1977-78 – probably City’s best season of the 34 spent in the top flight. Like the early 1930s though, success was based on good home form with 13 wins out of 21 and 48 home goals but they still managed five away wins but couldn’t stop the opposition scoring. I haven’t researched the highest number of clean sheets away from home in a season but suspect it was probably 1969-70 when they did not concede in 10 away games on their way to a sixth place finish under Noel Cantwell.

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