Date: 8th August 2021
Stadium: Coventry Building Society Arena
Ground number of current 92: 15
Match: Coventry City v Nottingham Forest
Competition: EFL Championship
Attendance: 20,843
Ticket Cost: £30.00
Final Score: Coventry City 2-1 Nottingham Forest
So, this was it. Time to make the plan a reality. Having trawled and trawled the fixture lists and procrastinated for long enough, I decided I wanted to start in Coventry. For starters, the tie looked like a juicy one. Add to that the fact that capacity crowds were returning to the Championship for the first time this weekend, and Coventry were returning to their home city for the first time in over 2 years, and this, for me had the ingredients of an exciting day out.
As I left the house and got in the car for this journey, it felt surreal that I would be inside a football stadium again, but also very good. And the journey itself was somewhat “run of the mill” a nice, clear Sunday afternoon journey about 90 miles north without much in the way of challenges. That was to come…
Car Park E, my ticket said. Car Park E…
Well, there were very clear signs by the stadium itself, imposing in stature overshadowing a West Midlands Roundabout, for the car parks. All of them. A, B, C and D…
“BUT WHERE IS CAR PARK E?” I hear you shout. “I will tell you,” I hear myself reply.
The answer is short and simple… Tesco! That’s right. After a hands free conversation with the mothership, who was tapping away on an iPad in frantic search of this enigmatic parking spot, this was the conclusion reached.
So, as instructed, I parked obediently in the back of said Tesco Car Park, right next to a lot of signs about parking restrictions, displayed my receipt nervously and edged towards the ground on foot with more trepidation than previously expected.
And there they were. The fans. Decked in Sky Blue and back where they had wanted to be for so long, having had a longer journey there than the fans of many a club, they were finally there, excitement and hope in their voices. This is what I, and so many had missed. This was what I wanted from my 92!
And so into the ground, a painless exercise conducted very well by friendly stewards, and my eyes fell upon the pie stand. That may have been where I decided that this was a definitive way to judge the quality of a stadium. And the Coventry pie wasn’t a bad one. Perfectly edible, if a little on the pricey side, and enjoyed amid chants from the coventry faithful, reunited and in full voice one more.
And so to the pitch, an impressive sight. It looked well maintained and bright. To my left, the away crowd, resplendent in the red of Nottingham Forest and one again very, very vocal. The build up was pleasant. People just seemed happy to be back, and after a few choruses of Sweet Caroline, sung with gusto by the assembled, the teams emerged on a warm, bright and sunny August afternoon. Our stage was set!
Many losses have been incurred over this sad period and, for Coventry, one that needed remembering by all was the legendary George Curtis. Sadly the minute of silence was booed by the away crowd. My respect to the Coventry fans who realised the silence was not going to hold and replaced it with chants of “There’s only one George Curtis” which reverberated around the stadium, drowning out the boos.
The game itself started strongly for the visitors, and the loudness of the Coventry fans subsided. Forest deservedly took the lead in the latter stages of the first half and half time arrived with the score at 0-1.
The second half started similarly to how the first ended, with Forest in the ascendancy. But this was Coventry’s homecoming party. Surely, the equaliser would come…
And come it did! It took 80 minutes of football but the Forest fans were temporarily muted as those in Sky Blue roared with delight as the stadium rocked! And they weren’t finish yet…
Deep into stoppage time, Coventry did it! The turn around was complete and the Forest fans promptly evacuated.
And that’s how it ended. 2-1 to the hosts. A fair result given the second half. Cue for me, the return to Tesco, where I was reassured that many fans had parked there! 90 minutes to drive home followed 60 minutes exiting the car park, but what a fantastic start to my journey. Next stop, Reading!
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