Date:06 Mar 2012
Kick-off:19:45
Venue:Ricoh Arena
Attendance:12,054

McDonald (79)
Ambrose - pen (3)

Goal!

Live Commentary

91mins Wilfried Zaha has shot on goal from just outside the penalty box which goes wide of the right-hand upright.

90mins Corner taken by Owen Garvan from the right by-line.

89mins Paul McShane produces a cross, Richard Keogh manages to make a clearance.

89mins Gary McSheffrey produces a cross, clearance made by Anthony Gardner.

87mins Corner taken by Owen Garvan, Headed effort from deep inside the area by Glenn Murray misses to the right of the goal.

86mins Dean Moxey fouled by Cyrus Christie, the ref awards a free kick. Direct free kick taken by Julian Speroni.

84mins Chris Martin goes off and Kwesi Appiah comes on. Jordan Clarke goes off and Cyrus Christie comes on.

83mins Martin Cranie crosses the ball, clearance by Anthony Gardner.

82mins Mile Jedinak crosses the ball.

81mins Carl Baker crosses the ball, Patrick McCarthy makes a clearance.

80mins Dean Moxey concedes a free kick for a foul on Carl Baker. Sammy Clingan takes the free kick.

79mins Gary McSheffrey fouled by Wilfried Zaha, the ref awards a free kick. Free kick taken by Martin Cranie.

79mins Goal scored by Cody McDonald from inside the penalty box to the bottom right corner of the goal. Coventry 1-1 Crystal Palace.

78mins Carl Baker takes a shot. Blocked by Anthony Gardner.

77mins Floated corner taken by Gary McSheffrey, Glenn Murray makes a clearance.

77mins Effort on goal by Gary McSheffrey from inside the penalty area goes harmlessly over the bar.

76mins Floated corner taken by Carl Baker from the right by-line, Mile Jedinak makes a clearance.

76mins The ball is sent over by Alex Nimely, Anthony Gardner gets a block in.

75mins Sammy Clingan sends in a cross, clearance by Patrick McCarthy.

74mins Gary McSheffrey decides to take a short corner.

75mins The ball is swung over by Gary McSheffrey.

74mins Martin Cranie takes a shot. Blocked by Wilfried Zaha.

73mins Dean Moxey produces a left-footed shot from just outside the box that goes wide left of the goal.

72mins Gary McSheffrey challenges Wilfried Zaha unfairly and gives away a free kick. The referee shows Gary McSheffrey a yellow card for unsporting behaviour. Patrick McCarthy takes the direct free kick.

72mins Centre by Alex Nimely, clearance by Patrick McCarthy.

71mins The ball is swung over by Dean Moxey, save by Joe Murphy.

70mins Glenn Murray gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on Richard Keogh. Direct free kick taken by Richard Keogh.

68mins Foul by Nathan Cameron on Anthony Gardner, free kick awarded. Nathan Cameron goes into the referee's book for unsporting behaviour. Dean Moxey is brought on as a substitute for Darren Ambrose. Julian Speroni takes the direct free kick.

66mins Paul McShane gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on Gary McSheffrey. Paul McShane receives a yellow card. Oliver Norwood has a direct shot on goal from the free kick, save by Julian Speroni.

64mins The referee blows for offside. Free kick taken by Julian Speroni.

63mins Free kick awarded for a foul by Cody McDonald on Paul McShane. Direct free kick taken by Darren Ambrose.

63mins A cross is delivered by Carl Baker, save made by Julian Speroni.

60mins Gary McSheffrey produces a cross, Alex Nimely produces a header from close range which goes wide of the left-hand post.

59mins The ball is sent over by Gary McSheffrey, clearance made by Anthony Gardner.

59mins Jordan Clarke delivers the ball.

57mins Alex Nimely takes a shot. Save by Julian Speroni.

56mins Sammy Clingan comes on in place of Gary Deegan. Cody McDonald comes on in place of Clive Platt.

56mins Free kick awarded for a foul by Carl Baker on Wilfried Zaha. Jonathan Parr takes the free kick.

55mins Glenn Murray takes a shot. Save by Joe Murphy.

55mins Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Chris Martin by Nathan Cameron. Darren Ambrose restarts play with the free kick.

54mins The ball is sent over by Jordan Clarke.

54mins Jonathan Parr produces a cross, save made by Joe Murphy.

53mins Paul McShane fouled by Alex Nimely, the ref awards a free kick. Darren Ambrose takes the free kick.

52mins Carl Baker gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on Wilfried Zaha. Glenn Murray comes on in place of Jermaine Easter. Julian Speroni restarts play with the free kick.

52mins Floated corner taken by Carl Baker from the right by-line.

51mins Floated corner taken from the left by-line by Gary McSheffrey.

51mins Gary McSheffrey sends in a cross, Darren Ambrose gets a block in.

51mins Mile Jedinak concedes a free kick for a foul on Gary Deegan. Oliver Norwood takes the free kick.

49mins The ball is crossed by Jordan Clarke, Paul McShane manages to make a clearance.

47mins The ball is sent over by Carl Baker, clearance made by Anthony Gardner.

45mins Alex Nimely produces a right-footed shot from just outside the penalty box that misses to the left of the goal.

46mins The ball is swung over by Jordan Clarke, clearance by Anthony Gardner.

46mins Darren Ambrose sends in a cross, save by Joe Murphy.

44mins Foul by Anthony Gardner on Clive Platt, free kick awarded. Direct strike on goal from the free kick comes in from Gary McSheffrey.

43mins Centre by Gary McSheffrey, Anthony Gardner fouled by Clive Platt, the ref awards a free kick. Free kick taken by Julian Speroni.

42mins Unfair challenge on Chris Martin by Richard Keogh results in a free kick. Direct free kick taken by Darren Ambrose.

42mins The ball is swung over by Gary McSheffrey.

41mins Gary McSheffrey sends in a cross, clearance by Anthony Gardner.

39mins The referee gives a free kick against Carl Baker for handball. Free kick crossed right-footed by Darren Ambrose.

38mins Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Jonathan Parr by Clive Platt. Julian Speroni restarts play with the free kick.

37mins Centre by Carl Baker, Paul McShane makes a clearance.

36mins Outswinging corner taken from the right by-line by Darren Ambrose, Effort on goal by Chris Martin from inside the box misses to the right of the target.

35mins Effort on goal by Mile Jedinak from 20 yards. Save by Joe Murphy.

34mins Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Mile Jedinak by Jordan Clarke. Jordan Clarke goes into the referee's book. Darren Ambrose crosses the ball in from the free kick, Oliver Norwood makes a clearance.

34mins Gary McSheffrey crosses the ball, Alex Nimely has a headed effort at goal from deep inside the area missing to the right of the target.

33mins Centre by Carl Baker, Jonathan Parr gets a block in. Outswinging corner taken by Carl Baker.

33mins The ball is delivered by Alex Nimely, Patrick McCarthy gets a block in. Floated corner taken by Carl Baker.

32mins Alex Nimely takes a shot. Save made by Julian Speroni.

31mins Gary McSheffrey produces a cross, Julian Speroni makes a save.

30mins Inswinging corner taken right-footed by Darren Ambrose from the left by-line.

29mins Free kick awarded for a foul by Nathan Cameron on Jermaine Easter. Direct strike on goal from the free kick comes in from Darren Ambrose.

23mins Corner taken left-footed by Gary McSheffrey from the left by-line, clearance by Paul McShane.

23mins The ball is delivered by Jordan Clarke, Paul McShane manages to make a clearance.

22mins Effort on goal by Jermaine Easter from just inside the area clears the crossbar.

20mins Darren Ambrose crosses the ball, clearance by Jordan Clarke.

20mins Unfair challenge on Darren Ambrose by Gary McSheffrey results in a free kick. Paul McShane restarts play with the free kick.

18mins Jordan Clarke crosses the ball. Gary McSheffrey takes a shot. Save by Julian Speroni.

17mins The ball is delivered by Darren Ambrose, Joe Murphy makes a comfortable save.

16mins The ball is delivered by Carl Baker, Clive Platt takes a shot. Save by Julian Speroni.

16mins The ball is crossed by Darren Ambrose, clearance made by Richard Keogh.

14mins The assistant referee signals for offside against Gary McSheffrey. Free kick taken by Julian Speroni.

13mins Floated corner taken from the right by-line by Carl Baker.

13mins Richard Keogh takes a shot. Save made by Julian Speroni.

11mins A cross is delivered by Gary McSheffrey, save by Julian Speroni.

10mins The ball is crossed by Paul McShane.

8mins Foul by Nathan Cameron on Chris Martin, free kick awarded. Patrick McCarthy takes the free kick.

8mins The ball is swung over by Gary McSheffrey, Anthony Gardner manages to make a clearance.

6mins The ball is crossed by Jonathan Parr, clearance by Martin Cranie.

5mins Clive Platt is caught offside. Free kick taken by Patrick McCarthy.

5mins Jonathan Parr produces a cross, clearance by Nathan Cameron.

4mins The ball is crossed by Chris Martin.

4mins Darren Ambrose crosses the ball.

1mins Nathan Cameron concedes a Penalty for a foul on Chris Martin. Penalty taken right-footed by Darren Ambrose and scored. Coventry 0-1 Crystal Palace.Chris Martin provided the assist for the goal.

4mins The ball is swung over by Gary McSheffrey.

1mins A cross is delivered by Carl Baker, Julian Speroni makes a save.

Alex Nimely fouled by Anthony Gardner, the ref awards a free kick. Gary McSheffrey produces a strike on goal direct from the free kick.

Match Preview

Thorn poised for return to dugout Manager Andy Thorn is set to be back in the dugout as Coventry entertain Crystal Palace. Thorn was City's major absentee for Saturday's 2-0 M69 derby defeat at Leicester having been laid low with a virus, with assistant manager Steve Harrison taking charge. But Thorn is expected to be back in control of team affairs at the Ricoh Arena as the Sky Blues look to boost their survival hopes. City are likely to boast pretty much the same squad of players as they did at the weekend. Sammy Clingan, Cody McDonald and Nathan Cameron continued their comebacks on the bench but there was no place for fellow returning duo Chris Hussey and Conor Thomas. Defenders Richard Wood (knee) and Hermann Hreidarsson (shoulder) continue to miss out. Kashigo Dikgacoi should return to the Crystal Palace squad. The midfielder was rested for Saturday's 1-0 win over Peterborough as he only arrived back from international duty with South Africa 24 hours earlier. Nathaniel Clyne remains a doubt with the knee injury which has kept him out of the last two matches so Paul McShane is set to continue at right-back. Left-back Dean Moxey returned as a substitute against Posh after three months out with a knee injury and should be involved again. Striker Glenn Murray also came off the bench on Saturday and will push Chris Martin and Jermaine Easter for a place in attack should boss Dougie Freedman opt to make changes.

Formation:442Manager: Andy Thorn

Coventry

Formation: 4411Manager: Dougie Freedman

Crystal Palace

Joe Murphy
Jordan Clarke
Richard Keogh
Nathan Cameron
Martin Cranie
Carl Baker
Gary Deegan
Oliver Norwood
Gary McSheffrey
Alex Nimely
Clive Platt
SUBS
Chris Dunn
Sammy Clingan
Cody McDonald
Cyrus Christie
Conor Thomas

Home

Away

Julian Speroni
Paul McShane
Anthony Gardner
Patrick McCarthy
Jonathan Parr
Wilfried Zaha
Owen Garvan
Mile Jedinak
Darren Ambrose
Jermaine Easter
Chris Martin
SUBS
Lewis Price
Glenn Murray
Dean Moxey
Stuart O'Keefe
Kwesi Appiah

Match Report

McDonald denies Eagles Cody McDonald climbed off the bench to secure a point for npower Championship strugglers Coventry in a 1-1 draw against Crystal Palace. Palace were hanging on to an early penalty from Darren Ambrose but McDonald, who has struggled with injuries since joining from Norwich in August, fired his second Sky Blues goal with 11 minutes remaining. The Sky Blues had won their last two home games to give themselves hope of beating the drop - but they got off to the worst possible start. With just a minute and a half on the clock, Jermaine Easter collected a long clearance from Julian Speroni and played in Chris Martin, who turned Nathan Cameron and was sent tumbling to the floor. City's players protested furiously and referee Mark Brown had a long chat with his assistant before confirming the spot-kick. Despite the delay, midfielder Ambrose kept his cool to beat home keeper Joe Murphy for his seventh goal of the season. Coventry had plenty of chances to haul themselves level in the first half but were thwarted by Palace keeper Speroni. They went straight onto the attack and Richard Keogh played a neat one-two with Clive Platt before forcing a smart save from the Argentinian. Gary McSheffrey then had the ball in the net after being played in by Gary Deegan but the offside flag had been raised. Speroni continued to show why he has been named Palace's player of the year three times, pushing away Platt's snap-shot shot before also denying McSheffrey. Coventry were almost caught out at the other end when Cameron's weak header let in Easter but the striker's shot flew over the crossbar. Murphy also saved from Mile Jedinak and Martin sliced his shot from Ambrose's corner as Palace threatened before the interval. City were almost caught out after the break by a quickly-taken Palace free-kick but Murphy saved well from Martin. Then a mix-up between Keogh and Murphy nearly let in Glenn Murray but the ball rolled out for a goal-kick. The luckless McSheffrey had the ball in the net for a second time in the 70th minute after a goalmouth scramble but referee Brown blew for a Palace free-kick. Coventry defender Martin Cranie worked himself a shooting chance but his effort was deflected wide, and from the corner McSheffrey's shot was blocked and Palace smuggled the ball away. And the equaliser finally came in the 79th minute when Palace failed to clear a corner and the ball rolled to McDonald, who's low shot found the corner of Speroni's net. City piled forward in the closing minutes but could not find a winner but could a winner and remain in trouble in the bottom three.

Form Guide

LLWLWL Coventry VS Crystal Palace DDDWDW

Last Meetings

Crystal Palace 2 - 1 Coventry 16/08/2011 Coventry 2 - 1 Crystal Palace 12/02/2011 Crystal Palace 2 - 0 Coventry 13/11/2010 Crystal Palace 0 - 1 Coventry 20/02/2010 Coventry 1 - 1 Crystal Palace 21/11/2009 Crystal Palace 1 - 1 Coventry 07/04/2009

Top Scorers

Coventry C Platt 3 G McSheffrey 3 G Deegan 3 C Baker 1 S Clingan 1 R Wood 1 A Nimely 1 C McDonald 1 C Thomas 1 Crystal Palace J Easter 4 G Murray 4 C Martin 4 W Zaha 4 S Scannell 3 D Ambrose 2 P McCarthy 2 KE Dikgacoi 2 J Parr 2 M Jedinak 1

Goals

Coventry Total goals 77 Goals per game 29 2 (For) 3 (Against) Period 0-10 mins (For) 4 (Against) Period 11-20 mins 2 (For) 4 (Against) Period 21-30 mins 4 (For) 4 (Against) Period 31-40 mins 3 (For) 3 (Against) Period 41-50 mins 7 (For) 7 (Against) Period 51-60 mins 3 (For) 7 (Against) Period 61-70 mins 4 (For) 6 (Against) Period 71-80 mins 4 (For) 10 (Against) Period 81-90 mins Crystal Palace Total goals 82 Goals per game 34 3 (For) 3 (Against) Period 0-10 mins 4 (For) 2 (Against) Period 11-20 mins 4 (For) Period 21-30 mins 3 (For) 2 (Against) Period 31-40 mins 2 (For) 2 (Against) Period 41-50 mins 3 (For) 2 (Against) Period 51-60 mins 5 (For) 4 (Against) Period 61-70 mins 3 (For) 11 (Against) Period 71-80 mins 7 (For) 4 (Against) Period 81-90 mins