HOT TAKE | Coventry City v Wrexham

0:00 So, we got 10 seconds left of 5 minutes.

0:02 Although that was a really protracted celebration.

0:06 And Wrexham need to keep going here.

0:07 There's Matty James.

0:08 That's a good ball down the left.

0:09 O'Brien, EARLY BALL IN.

0:10 KEIFFER MOORE, BIG CHANCE.

0:12 IS IT A FOUL?

0:13 IS IT?

0:13 NO, REF'S NOT GIVING IT.

0:14 WREXHAM AT ONE shouting convincingly for the penalty.

0:17 O'Brien is.

0:19 As Rushworth goes out at his feet.

0:22 AND THAT IS THE FINAL WHISTLE.

0:24 WREXHAM LOSE 3-1 TO THE CHAMPIONS COVENTRY.

0:27 I mean, frankly, it's a scoreline that flatters Coventry.

0:31 I would say Wrexham have really asked questions of them,

0:34 BUT THAT ADDED TIME GOAL HAS HURT Wrexham

0:38 and brought that goal difference back closer again with Hull.

0:43 Ironically, Hull lose the day before and we end up

0:46 in a worse situation than we were comparative to them.

0:50 Thomas-Asante opened the scoring.

0:52 Ollie Rathbone drilled in an equalizer in the 25th minute.

0:57 And with 10 minutes left, we were still level and looking decent value for it.

1:01 But, Viktor Torp drilled a great free kick in.

1:05 And then in the fourth minute of added time,

1:08 Ephron Mason-Clark one-on-one, slotted the ball home.

1:13 And well, we have ended up frustratingly conceding two

1:18 goals to our goal difference as well as a defeat.

1:21 We're still in sixth.

1:23 But, it's going to be a even more of a scrap on the last day now.

1:28 Well, it's not a 3-1 defeat for me that game.

1:31 Just such moments make such a difference and we have Smith through.

1:34 He hit the post and we just can't get into that lead.

1:38 And then Coventry from one free kick just take the game

1:41 away from Wrexham and then right at the end they score.

1:45 But, that's what champions do.

1:46 They find a way.

1:47 They've only lost two here at home.

1:49 But, it was a really good performance from Wrexham.

1:52 They've got to take the positives out of that and into the next week's game.

1:55 But, we're still in it.

1:56 We've taken it to the last game.

2:01 [cheering] Can we do it?

2:00 Can we get over that line?

2:02 Well, exactly that.

2:03 We're still IN IT.

2:04 WE'RE STILL THERE IN THAT SIXTH POSITION.

2:07 THE QUESTION IS, CAN WE BE THERE THIS time next week?

2:10 I certainly hope so.

2:12 But, as Andy says, I've got THEM ALL DOWN.

2:14 FULL OF HUGE CHANCES.

2:16 I'M INCLUDING THAT MULLIN AT THE END AS WELL.

2:18 Massive chances for Wrexham in that final third which maybe

2:22 on another day they take and it's a different outcome.

2:24 But, absolutely performance was there today.

2:26 The belief WAS THERE.

2:28 ALL THE ELEMENTS WERE THERE.

2:29 JUST NOT that final third.

2:31 And as Andy says, can only echo it again.

2:33 That's what champions do.

2:35 You know, they're It was there today maybe

2:38 for Wrexham to come and spoil the party, but Coventry haven't let that happen.

2:41 Very well worth WHAT THEY'VE DONE THIS SEASON.

2:44 ABSOLUTE CREDIT TO THAT CLUB.

2:46 BUT, WREXHAM, what an absolute day next Saturday's going to be.

2:52 [cheering] Those big occasions AT THE CAE RAS, we've enjoyed them.

2:54 We've loved them over THE PAST FEW YEARS.

2:56 And boy, is that going to be one on Saturday.

2:59 Well, absolutely, yeah.

3:00 But, we had chances like you say.

3:02 Thomasson hit the post.

3:04 We had moments where we threatened, where Rushworth was sharp.

3:10 But, ultimately, like you say, they've got that extra quality, haven't they?

3:13 They've got the quality of champions.

3:16 And they have Mason-Clark and Thomas-Asante who were just

3:20 constant threats and so impressive I thought throughout the game.

3:26 [music] Yeah, absolutely.

3:27 You know, you're never out of a game

3:29 when you've got players like that on your pitch.

3:31 You know, they've got Sims that scored plenty of goals for them.

3:35 Do you know what I mean?

3:36 They're all in double figures, aren't they?

3:38 Asante.

3:39 They're all, you know,

3:40 four or five players where where goals can come from in your team,

3:43 you've always got a chance.

3:45 And to be fair to Coventry,

3:46 they've been brilliant this season and they thoroughly deserve to be champions.

3:50 Can Wrexham bounce back?

3:51 That's the thing.

3:52 I think they take so many positives out of that.

3:54 For me, the one-on-one with Smith,

3:57 he scores it, it's a completely different game.

4:00 We hit the post in the first half.

4:02 Couple of half chances.

4:04 Is it a penalty at the end?

4:05 It could have been a penalty at the end on Mullin as well.

4:08 But, you just look back at those key moments.

4:11 Games are won and lost on fine lines and we're finding

4:14 it very difficult at the moment to to get over those lines.

4:17 The The penalty shout, yeah.

4:19 I mean, I thought borderline.

4:21 Um I thought it was interesting Mullin didn't ask for it.

4:23 O'Brien was incensed,

4:26 but Mullin didn't ask for it and that's often a decent indicator, isn't it?

4:29 But, yeah, we just unfortunately for us weren't

4:33 able to get things going after the the changes.

4:36 Um well, totally understandable changes, but their second goal hurt us badly.

4:41 Until then, it did start to feel a bit

4:43 like one of those games we hoped for where yeah, it's a title celebration.

4:47 The crowd were making great noise.

4:48 It was not necessarily linked to the game.

4:50 And they were making little errors.

4:54 [music] Uh it did feel until that free kick like

4:57 we were going to get something out of this.

4:59 I totally agree and you know,

5:00 it goes back to what we were saying about that game management.

5:02 It felt like Wrexham were just really caught

5:05 in in that risk and reward in terms of you know,

5:08 in that moment when there were so many mistakes from that Coventry backline,

5:12 you were thinking, you know, three points are readily available at the moment.

5:16 But, you know, those substitutions which I agree looking towards,

5:20 you know, got another huge huge game.

5:22 And you don't want to run Mullin and Smith into the ground.

5:25 But, saying that, I think that Coventry backline would have probably been quite

5:30 happy to see them two going off because they were causing real problems,

5:33 especially with Luke O'Brien who I thought was brilliant WHEN HE CAME ON.

5:36 LINKING up with them two.

5:37 And we just [cheering] DIDN'T HAVE THAT SAME COHESION with Keiffer Moore

5:41 and Nathan Broadhead who I think will look back and be slightly

5:44 disappointed that they didn't maybe get something out of that game when

5:48 you look at a couple of chances for Keiffer Moore in particular.

5:51 And goals change games.

5:52 Do you know what I mean?

5:53 We've got the majority of the play in that second half.

5:55 I said it that we were I thought we were the better team in the second half.

5:57 And then one moment of quality, a free kick by the end of the goal,

6:00 lifts the stadium, lifts the players and they take the game away from you.

6:05 Yeah, absolutely so.

6:07 Yeah, Smith I thought was very good up front.

6:09 He's channeling his inner Andy Morrell.

6:12 He was just working those center backs.

6:14 They did not enjoy their afternoon against them at all.

6:17 I thought the midfield three deserve a lot of credit as well.

6:20 The way they worked with and without the ball.

6:23 We were brave I thought.

6:24 We were brave with the ball and willing to try and work the ball around it.

6:28 You know, the big contrast to the Birmingham match in that regard.

6:33 But, also in terms of we kept quite a high line

6:35 and we constricted space and stopped Coventry moving the ball around.

6:40 And And it was all about bravery just before that second goal for Coventry.

6:44 Parkinson was urging his team on saying, "Come on, we push,

6:47 we get the winner here." It was all very positive.

6:49 We just have to replicate that against a Middlesbrough

6:52 team who I've I've watched their last three matches.

6:54 I have no idea what I make of them.

6:56 At Ipswich, they were superb.

6:58 At home to Sheffield Wednesday, they stank the place out big style.

7:02 And then they scored five yesterday.

7:04 You know, you don't know which one will turn up.

7:05 You don't know whether the the midweek results means

7:08 they might want to rest their entire team as well.

7:10 But, it's we just need we need to keep ourselves constant at those levels again.

7:16 Yeah, absolutely.

7:16 That's Those will be the messages in the week I would have thought.

7:19 You know, just how positive, how many moments Wrexham created, their bravery.

7:23 You know, absolutely agree, Mark.

7:25 I I thought coming away to a place like

7:27 this with champions when the atmosphere was was so good,

7:30 especially to begin with.

7:31 You know, that's not necessarily easy to to really impose yourself.

7:34 But, Wrexham certainly did that.

7:36 Some really really big performances from those players today.

7:39 And you know, they'll be so disappointed to to not come away with anything.

7:42 But, that's got to flip.

7:43 That's There's got to be a switch

7:44 that that turns now and looks towards Saturday.

7:47 And And like you say, what sort of team are Middlesbrough going to put out?

7:50 We're we're not so sure.

7:51 But, let's focus on ourselves and let's just make sure we're

7:54 at at our absolute best and finish how we want to finish.

7:58 Yeah, absolutely.

8:00 Is it Andy multitasking?

8:01 Giving doing selfies at the, you know, Coventry legend fair dues.

8:05 Well, I think Middlesbrough will probably be looking

8:07 at seeing it who do they want to be playing?

8:09 Do you know what I mean?

8:09 You want to finish in form,

8:10 but who who do they probably want to pick and select out of their team?

8:14 They will want to finish as high as they can.

8:16 You probably want to miss Southampton if you can

8:18 if they're the ones that happen to miss out.

8:20 But, I think you just got to try and get it For us, it's just getting in there.

8:24 It's a three-way swing out, isn't it?

8:27 A win would be enough for ourselves.

8:30 But, it's got to be maybe a big win

8:32 cuz Hull could win big and then that takes over.

8:33 And Derby is still behind you putting pressure on.

8:35 So, a draw might not be good enough.

8:37 All to play for.

8:38 But, we like we said a few weeks ago,

8:40 if we can take it to the last game, [music] it's been an immense season.

8:43 And I think they take a lot of positives out

8:45 of today's performance and hopefully put them into the game next weekend.

8:49 I I absolutely.

8:50 And that's what we should finish on really.

8:52 Just to remind everyone, this really was an indication of how far we've come.

8:58 We are taking it into the last game.

9:00 We are Well, we're in the top six going into the last game for goodness sake.

9:04 It's better than just taking it into there.

9:06 And we've come to Coventry and given them serious problems.

9:10 Their home record is outstanding.

9:12 They smashed five past a really in-form Portsmouth side in the midweek.

9:17 This was a really good performance and this team has got the wherewithal to go

9:21 again against a Middlesbrough side we did

9:23 well against away from home I would argue.

9:26 Yeah, absolutely.

9:27 And you know, emphasis on on those fans as well.

9:31 By the way, full credit to every one of those Wrexham fans who came out today.

9:35 Hefty price of £45 not right at all.

9:39 Obviously, the club did really well in putting on the free buses.

9:41 But, fair dues to everyone of them that came out today and made

9:44 some really good noise as as forever as as those away fans do.

9:49 But, Saturday, BE NOISY, BE LOUD, BE PROUD,

9:52 BE EVERYTHING CUZ THAT will give this Wrexham team that extra percent.

9:56 And that's what they need.

9:57 It's just I just can't wait.

9:58 Is it Saturday yet?

9:59 I just I just need it to be Saturday.

10:01 Well, the bad news of commentary of course is there's

10:03 a 30 pound cap on away tickets in the Premier League.

10:07 So, they'll have to drop their prices by 33 and a half percent.

10:11 Maths, everybody.

10:12 Oh, I didn't have the camera on me when I See,

10:14 that I was desperately attempted to make a meme then.

10:17 Maths.

10:18 I don't know who would use that.

10:20 But, yes, absolutely.

10:21 It was a a gutsy performance from Wrexham, a performance of no little quality.

10:28 We made chances, but [music] the champions Coventry get to celebrate their party

10:33 in style with a final score of Coventry City 3, Wrexham 1.

10:39 We have been Andy Morrell, Neil Roberts, and Mark Griffiths from Wrexham AFC.