Sky Blues axe Dowie

Manager sacked after defeat to Preston

By Lewis Rutledge   Last updated: 12th February 2008   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Sky Blues axe Dowie

Dowie: Sacked

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Iain Dowie has parted company with Coventry City after less than a year at the club.

Dowie has been relieved of his duties with immediate effect along with Bob Dowie and Tim Flowers.

The Sky Blues have been in miserable form of late, losing five of their last six games in the Championship.

They did crush Barnsley 4-0 at home last weekend but then lost 1-0 to struggling Preston on Saturday.

That proved to be the final straw for club bosses, who have decided a change is needed if Coventry are to move forward.

Coventry have slipped to 19th in the Championship table and are now just four points above the relegation zone.

Frankie Bunn and John Harbin will take charge of first-team affairs for Tuesday's clash with Cardiff.

Dowie was appointed Coventry boss on 19th February last year and made an encouraging start with a number of wins.

However, Coventry fell back to 17th place by the end of last season and have been unable to mount a push for promotion this term.

Comments (30)

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Mark Dunn (Coventry City fan) says...

Under Dowie we were losing game after game in the league, not even managing to draw. Over the last 3 months we have been the worst team in the championship and heading inexorably to League 1. Few clubs in the Championship have money and hence this is a lame, tired excuse. Drawing at home to Scunthorpe, thrashed by Blackpool, losing to Preston, etc., hardly reflected well of Dowie's management. We can't play Barnsley every week! The fact is the Board had no choice, if we are relegated it would be a disaster and the results under Dowie indicated that is exactly where we are heading. As I understand it, the takeover restructured the debt and did not pay it off, hence, relegation would be catastrophic. So what choice was there but to take decisive action?

Posted 13:00 12th February 2008

James Sweeney (Sunderland fan) says...

Dowie wasn't given enough time at Charlton, he was sacked... same at Coventry but he didnt have any money to spend. Ray Ranson wants his own man obviously. Dowie hopefully will get another job, I rate him as a manager.

Posted 21:40 11th February 2008

Craig Caver (Walsall fan) says...

I hope the Sky Blues get a manager soon and leave Richard Money where he is at Walsall, he is a loyal man and he has unfinished work to do here at Walsall. Anyway why would he want to go to Coventry?? Walsall could well be swapping places with them at the end of the season...

Posted 20:19 11th February 2008

Harry Simmons (Coventry City fan) says...

I can understand why the board feels they have to sack dowie but it is the wrong time right before an important cup tie which without dowie we would never have been in. Plus dowie had big effect on the club with wins over top premiership teams manchester united and blackburn rovers. We are in a low posotion but I think dowie could have got us back in the middle of the table.

Posted 19:49 11th February 2008

Nicholas Davies (Coventry City fan) says...

I think it is the right thing for the club to do, he hinted that if they did go into admin he would leave. I dont think his heart was there at the end of the job. But who can forget the brilliant cup runs we have had with him. Thankyou Mr Dowie and good luck with your next job

Posted 19:41 11th February 2008

Chip Barbre (Peterborough United fan) says...

Dowie is pants. He took Crystal Palace to the Premiership. A number of lousy managers have done that. Other than that, he's been a shambles. Why anyone continues to rate him is a mystery.

Posted 19:33 11th February 2008

Richard Brown (Coventry City fan) says...

Not really happy with the decision although their football off late has not been great. We've had two good cup runs and Dowie should have been given longer in the job, a winning team takes time. I would love to see Ranson bring in big Sam Allardyce!

Posted 19:31 11th February 2008

James Maule (Coventry City fan) says...

Being N.Irish of course i feel sad to see Dowie axed, he should have had to the end of the season at least to prove a point with the new owners. Ranson must have bigger things on his mind, the only problem i see now is.. who is a bigger manager than Dowie to take over? How long will the new manager last? Its such a sad situation. Its also sad to see football owned by money... nearly all the comments made are about not having money.. We didnt need money to beat Manchester Uniter or Blackburn.. so why couldnt we put that form over to the Championship? ....

Posted 19:09 11th February 2008

Jamie Burkacki (Coventry City fan) says...

Thirty three years as a sky blue ,this has got to be one of the strangest. What is going on as usuall the fans are kept in the dark where is our club going . Promises of the premiership,taken over by a money man promising to spend millions ,so far hes taken more in than hes spent out in the transfer window . A team that seems to play when they want to away at blackburn they looked very different to there championship form so dowie is sacked. Where now league 1 or is there another masterplan there going to come out with. Welcome to our world at the ricoh which team will turn up against WBA in the fa cup Its all or nothing this year . Come on coventry .P.S.good luck Dele

Posted 18:33 11th February 2008

Nitin Sharma says...

What kinda foolishness is this?! WHO ELSE could do this job? Dowie turned around the form we were on last season after Micky Adams and we were undefeated for 5 games!!! This was done WITHOUT any new players!!! It's the players that aren't playing up to scratch... it's the board that sell our ONLY asset (McSheffery) at the time and then want to loan him back afterwards. Sack the CCFC Board of Directors NOT the ONLY hope we had as a football club of finally regaining Premiership football!!

Posted 18:06 11th February 2008

Paul Woods (Coventry City fan) says...

I'm in two minds whether or not it's a good decision. I like Iain Dowie, I like how much he's involved in the club, his training on matchdats for instance, but he isn't producing the results. Fair enough, we've been playing fairly well, but were still not winning. We need someone who can inject a winning vibe into the team. Who is available who can do that though? I DONT WANT SOUNESS.

Posted 18:01 11th February 2008

Chris Taylor (Coventry City fan) says...

I said at christmas Dowie would be gone by the end of Janaury. I think the decision is correct other than a few good cup results which the players will always get themselves and a few good league results, our form has been shocking espeacially our home form. The players that Dowie has brought in are players for the future and have not made the impact that we need now to get us out of the relegation battle we're in. As for a replacement I would like to see Chris Coleman with Nigel Pearson as his assistant.

Posted 17:58 11th February 2008

Matt Powell (Coventry City fan) says...

Dowie was not given the money he was promised when he arrived, saying that he did sign 9 new players during the summer, most of which are nowhere near good enough and his tactics lately have been somewhat baffling. Why don't we raid Walsall again, this time for their manager (who has done a great job). I wouldn't mind seeing Billy Davies here, but would not like Glenn Hoddle, Greame Souness or Steve McClaren.

Posted 17:53 11th February 2008

Jeff Garness (Nottingham Forest fan) says...

I think Coventry City should now try to appoint Colin Calderwood as manager,I have a feeling that Nottingham Forest would not stand in his way.

Posted 17:53 11th February 2008

Chris Chapman (Nottingham Forest fan) says...

Mark Bowerman if your board had accepted the money we offered for Leon Best, Coventry board would of had 1.5 million to get another striker, He is Nottm lad he has lost the heart to play for you lot, I think we might now get Best now dowie has left.

Posted 17:49 11th February 2008

Jon Nisbet (Ipswich Town fan) says...

Having been an avid Coventry fan since 1967, a regular season ticket holder and a loyal sky blue I can somewhat have some sympathy for Ian Dowie. Gone are the days when you had long serving managers, ie we had Noel Cantwell, Gordon Milne, and recently Gordon Strachan, But gone are the days of when football was a game, when players wore there shirts and played with pride and passion? Now it's everyman for himself, how much more can i earn, I will just put the shirt on and go through the motions why not iIam getting paid x amount aweek. Then there's television money, being made to play where and when television dictates? and if your'e a so callled run of the mill team unless it's against a top premier side, you hardly get a look in on television, thus reducing your share of the money. To add to that a poor support, which hardle brings any revenue for a club like Coventry, who untill recentley did not even own their own ground and you have a recepit for disaster.For once and for all now it's time the board/new owners backed the club financialy, bring in a new manager who meets these criteria, lets him do his job without pressing the panic button, get the players to play with passion, pride and as a team and not individuals, and then get the so called fickle, armchair supporters back to the ground and get behind this once great club. I was born in Coventry, lived there most my life and will support them for ever as it's in my blood. So lets hear it, play up sky blues.

Posted 17:26 11th February 2008

Andy Brown (Coventry City fan) says...

I have watched this club for 30 years and from the sale of Ian Wallace we have done nothing but sell players and undermine managers. Look at Strachen, we sold Huckerby, Robbie Keane and failed to renew Macca's contract and bought Heartson at Easter, instead of Christmas. Enough Said Lower league ambition.

Posted 17:16 11th February 2008

Amar Singh (Coventry City fan) says...

A replacement manager was always on the cards when the Ranson takeover went through, and with a genuine prospect of relagation in the offing the time for change is now before it is too late. I have little sympathy for Dowie, his behaviour at other clubs he has mangaed has not exactly been exemplary!

Posted 16:56 11th February 2008

Chris Mcintosh (Coventry City fan) says...

This had to happen sooner or later, it seems to me we would of had slip in to league 1 before people would admit dowie wasn`t the man for the job. Maybe this leaves the door open for who ever takes the top job to get hold of this cash we have be promised and get signing... Play up sky blues!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted 16:50 11th February 2008

Ciaran Smith says...

Dowie was doing amazingly at the start he got coventry to sixth at one point, and he beat manu and blackburn! What is going through the mind of the coventry board!

Posted 16:39 11th February 2008
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