City avoid Bees’ sting to keep promotion hopes alive

Saturday’s win over Barnet didn’t sound like a classic by any means, but I couldn’t care less as we picked up another important set of three points. City are now just outside the play-offs having scored less than Lincoln City and our season is alive and kicking once again following a minor blip last month.

At the business end of the season, all that matters is that results are churned out. Of course, a dazzling display and pristine football would be fantastic, but sometimes you can’t have it both ways – especially in League Two. In previous campaigns we have played some tidy stuff and failed to win games, so I know what I’d prefer.

Seeing Jonson Clarke-Harris find the net once more is encouraging, and he has undoubtedly added an extra ounce of threat for us going forward. It seems as if the partnership with Marc McNulty is blossoming, but we still need to score more goals to put teams to the sword.

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Clean sheets are acting as a foundation for us though and the Sky Blues still boast the meanest defence in the division, but our resolve will be tested when top scorers, Luton Town, travel to the Ricoh Arena on Tuesday. Lee Burge made an incredible save at the weekend and he is likely to be a busy man. They are no longer top of the pile, but they will be determined to regain their place on the perch.

James Collins, a City fan, has already netted 17 goals for the Hatters in all competitions this season and he will be determined to add to that tally. We all know how dangerous he can be, but Danny Hylton has registered the same amount of strikes in what is a pretty remarkable free-scoring team. Nathan Jones’ side have scored 76 times in the league, compared to City’s 39 – a record that makes us the lowest scorers in the top half.

Our central midfield pairing of Michael Doyle and Liam Kelly doesn’t seem to be too popular with some people, but it is a difficult balancing act. Do we take one of those out and add extra creativity in the hope that it leads to goals, or do we focus on shutting out the opposition and having them two shielding our back four?

It’s a difficult decision to make, but since they have been reunited in the centre, we have rekindled some form – coincidence? Probably not. Against some teams at home it would be great to see Tom Bayliss shift back into a more central role, a position where he looks more comfortable, but that is in the hands of Mark Robins.

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Whilst Doyle and Kelly aren’t the easiest on the eye, they break up play expertly and that is vital, particularly against teams who will come at us. Even with them in there as a solid base, there should be enough in our side to hurt teams. Kyel Reid has shown what he is capable of since he has been welcomed back into the fold, Bayliss usually looks lively and our forward line boasts pace and power. We just need to utilise them more.

Remarkably, City haven’t scored more than once in the last seven fixtures in all competitions. We must improve on that statistic, but the fact we managed to win ugly on Saturday shows we can pick up points even when we are not at our best. I am looking forward to making the trip to the Ricoh on Tuesday night – fingers crossed the lads can make it three victories in succession!

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