Mark Robins points to two key moments as Coventry City drop into bottom three
Mark Robins pointed to two key moments that cost Coventry City the full three points at Queens Park Rangers where his side had to settle for a point.
Although Haji Wright gave the Sky Blues an early lead at Loftus Road, the home side battled back and scored an equaliser just after the hour when goalkeeper Oliver Dovin should have made the save. And then late on in the match Ellis Simms went for goal and was denied by a save when Norman Bassette was clean through in space to his right.
“I think it was a game where there were two teams lacking a bit of belief and confidence,” said the City manager, speaking after the 1-1 draw in West London that resulted in the Sky Blues dropping into the bottom three.
“We started off really brightly, which belies what I have just said, and got our goal from a counter attack. It took us two or three attempts to get it in the back of the net but we did and that gave us a little bit of confidence and belief for a short spell. But you have got to have that intensity and belief, and also the quality to keep the ball and we kept giving it away too often.
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“They did as well and it was like you have it, we have it and when you slip and over-reach... We found some really good spaces which gave us a foothold, or should have given us a foothold but just giving the ball away too often meant that we couldn’t do that. And that comes with maybe the noise going on and fact that we have not won enough games – all of those games that affect players in general, but young players especially.”
Asked about QPR’s equaliser, he said: “It was a poor goal to concede. The goalkeeper should have saved it, there’s no doubt about it. You can’t concede a goal like that. And the fact that we had other chances, and the chance at the end with Ellis (Simms). We were just saying, if you have a teammate in a better position than you then you square it to them. Both of them, you know on Saturday against Preston and tonight, and those are the decision making things that cost you.
“Strikers want to score, I know because I was one, but if someone is in a better position to score a goal then you pass it and then that changes the dynamic and the narrative, the points total and all of those things. So decision making on the ball, but if he’s going to shoot then he has got to score. It’s as simple as that, if someone’s in a better position than you then pass it.”