Crawley Town V Coventry at Broadfield Stadium : Match Preview

12 April 2013 14:01
Crawley Town V Coventry - view commentary, squad, and statistics of the game live.


Crawley to assess trio

Crawley will check on the trio of Josh Simpson, Matt Sparrow and Mustapha Dumbuya ahead of Coventry's visit.

Skipper Simpson has missed the last two matches with an ankle injury and fellow midfielder Sparrow is struggling with a hamstring problem.

Full-back Dumbuya dropped to the bench at Sheffield United in midweek due to a slight calf knock.

Centre-half Kyle McFadzean is still a long-term absentee as he battles back to fitness after a virus.

Striker Paul Hayes is pushing for a start after coming on as a substitute and scoring Town's second goal in their 2-0 win at Bramall Lane.

There should also be a spot on the bench for defender Alex Malins, 18, who signed a one-year professional deal on Tuesday.

Steven Pressley is set to blood several youngsters and fringe players in his Coventry side.

The withdrawal of the Sky Blues' appeal against their 10-point deduction for going into administration means the Midlands club cannot now be promoted or relegated from League One this season.

And Pressley is going to use that opportunity to take a look at the likes of Conor Thomas, Jordan Clarke, Callum Ball, Jordan Willis, Danny Philliskirk and Josh Ruffels, among others, starting this weekend.

"We've got a number of players who have been on the periphery of things and champing at the bit to get an opportunity. Now is the perfect time to do that," said Pressley, who handed full-back Ryan Haynes his full first-team debut in last weekend's 1-1 draw against Brentford.

"We've had a number of players also who have been performing extremely well in the development side who will also get an opportunity. So I intend to use this remaining two-week period to fully assess the squad."

Defender Jordan Stewart returns from his one-match suspension, meaning strikers Leon Clarke (ankle) and Stephen Elliott (knee) are the only players unavailable.

Source: PA