Forthcoming Fixtures

City Stay Unbeaten in the League

City Win at Latics

WAFC Reserves 2 – 3 MCFC Reserves

City’s first reserve league game with Wigan in over two decades ended in a victory for the Sky Blues. City should have been comfortable winners but the referee tried his hardest to keep Wigan in the game with two penalty decisions, one of which was excellently saved by the returning Nicky Weaver, his first competitive game since his great cameo appearance against Middlesbrough at the end of last season. City’s goals came from yet again our man of the match, Stephen Ireland and the two others from Micah Richards and Robbie Fowler starting his rehabilitation from his back injury.

On a warm, sultry and damp night at Wigan’s Robin Park Arena, just adjacent to the JJB stadium City looked for their first away league victory of the season. City fielding their strongest and most expensive side in over a season had it all to do against a largely unknown Wigan side with only Matt Jackson as having any real premiership experience. So it was good to see that City took control of the match with Ireland and Antoine Sibierski pulling all the strings in midfield.

City should have taken the lead in the fourth minute when Sibierski played a neat ball over the top for Lee Croft to chase onto, he centred his cross well from the left, but Wright-Phillips made a mess of his finish and the ball was easily gathered.

City took the lead on eighteen minutes when Ireland picked up the ball in midfield and drove forward and played the ball over the top to allow Wright-Phillips to beat the off-side trap and run of the left and deliver a cross to the box where Ireland had continued his run and finished into the top corner with a fine right foot volley.

Three minutes later City doubled their lead when Sibierski played a lovely weighted ball for Fowler to run onto and again beat the off-side trap and Robbie did as he has done many a time throughout his career in that he has fooled the keeper into thinking he his going to shoot when in fact he plays a deft chip over the despairing keeper and bounces into the net.

Robbie nearly doubled his tally near the half hour mark when a Wright-Phillips run and cross was met by Robbie but Wigan’s keeper, Floyd Croll was able to save well to his left and produced City’s first corner of the match.

Five minutes later Lee Croft saw a great solo effort when he beat three defenders to edge his way into the box, but Croll pulled of a fine save to deny Lee and the ball went for another corner.

Then the referee allowed Wigan back into the game when Yasser Hussain was adjudged to have brought down Wigan’s Joe Waterhouse in the area after the referee had failed to stop play for a foul on Sibierski. Wigan’s Captain Phil Edwards stepped up to tack the penalty but Weaver pulled of a great save from a well struck effort.

Ireland then dispossessed a Wigan player near the edge of the box and ran in a tried to curl a shot in, but he was just wide.

Wigan then got a lucky break as the half drew to a close when a fine thunderous thirty yard strike from by Steve McMillan was well saved by Weaver but Sommeil failed to track Jonathan Smith and he was able to strike the re-bound past Weaver.

City again started brightly after the break and it was on fifty seven minutes when they restored their two goal cushion when after Ireland had made a great run down the right and cut the ball along the by-line and found Wright-Phillips in the box, but his effort was cleared of the line and Wigan drove away from goal, but were too casual in their passing and that allowed Wright Phillips to chip the ball over the top for Richards to chase onto and deflect his shot of Croll and bounce into the net.

Twenty minutes after the break saw a good deep cross from Hussain from the right but Robbie failed to hit the target with his close range volley and bizarrely the referee awarded the corner.

Five minute later saw the referee award another dubious penalty when Weaver clearly won the ball from a good run into the box from Andreas Johansson. This time Smith didn’t miss their penalty as he sent Weaver the wrong way with a powerful strike.

City continued to dominate play but failing to capitalise on chances created. Our best chance with three minutes to go fell to Wright-Phillips from sterling work again by Ireland who crossed in the box only to see Wright-Phillips’ shot blocked.

City now look to continue their unbeaten start to the season next Tuesday with the home visit of Birmingham City.


Wigan(4-4-2): Croll(GK), Wright, McMillan, Jackson, Edwards(capt.), Joyce, Middleton (Williams 81), Johansson, Waterhouse; Hazeldine (Stephan 59), Smith.
Unused subs:Saunders (GK), Heywood, Roberts.

CITY(4-4-2): Weaver(GK), Sun, Collins(capt.), Richards, Sommeil, Croft, Ireland, Hussein, Sibierski; Fowler(J D’Laryea 77), Wright-Phillips.Unused subs:Matthewson (GK), N. D’Laryea, Laird, Warrender

Att: 402.

Game Review: Well deserved victory with a good team display with many plus points of seeing Weaver and Fowler return and the continued fine form of Stephen Ireland who easily won my man of the match. Once his wrist is fully healed he surely will earn a place on the first team bench.

Robbie Fowler looked quite good considering it was his first game. His movement was good but he got too fancy with his flicks and lay-offs at times for this level of football. Yasser Hussain is another Chris Shuker - can look good at lower level football - but too small and slight of frame to make it in the prem - a waste of money as far as I am concerned