Source: FOOTYMAD
Boothroyd reflects on a point at Hull
City fail to score for the first time this season Coventry City manager Aidy Boothroyd came away from The KC Stadium pleased with a point and with the application of his players, but he was disappointed that his side did not manage to score. Coventry City went into Saturday's game at Hull as the only Championship side to have scored in every game they have played this season, but they also kept only their second clean sheet of the season as well. Boothroyd was pleased with both the clean sheet and the performance of his players. “I knew it was the kiss of death as soon as I mentioned it,” said a rueful Boothroyd. We would have loved to have won the game playing sexy football, but at the start of the season you look at Hull away as a tough fixture." "They’re a club just out of the Premier Division who have got some good players, international players who are worth a lot of money and a good manager. “They play a diamond, we went with our usual 4-4-2, looking to get the ball wide into areas we thought could hurt them and in the first half we were the better side and created the better chances. We had a lot of defending to do in the second half but you expect that when you’re up against the likes of Jimmy Bullard, Richard Garcia and Nick Barmby." "We had to weather the storm for 20-odd minutes but the good thing is that we took a couple of punches and then came back with two or three or our own. We didn’t do enough for a win, but we dug in to get what we deserved and it was good to get back to keeping a clean sheet because that’s going to be really important. "Successful teams are built on successful defences and we were good on that score. The two best chances of the game were Danny Ward’s header in the first half and the handball that Daniel Ayala got away with in the second – that was a clear penalty for me. “Danny should be putting chances like that away but he’s here for a reason and as he gets fitter, stronger, used to what I expect from him, he’s going to be a real asset to us.” Marlon King missed out on a return to one of his former clubs. He suffered a dead leg in last week and as Boothroyd explained, “I just didn’t want to risk him at the stage he’s at. I felt we had a really good chance of scoring from set plays which is why I decided to stick with what we had and keep the big guys on up front.” Gary McSheffrey, despite grabbing the winner last week spent the entire game on the bench. “We came here with the intention of getting three points, that wasn’t to be, but we have to look at the big picture. We’ve had three tough games in the course of a week and come away with four points. I would have preferred it to be nine or seven but if you can win your home games and get points away, you generally do all right.”
