After a fans' forum with the powers-that-be, Coventry FanZoner Angie Freel is happy - but wants to entice fans back to the Ricoh.
Coventry in good hands, but it's time to talk with your feet!
After a fans' forum with Ray Ranson and Chris Coleman, Coventry FanZone blogger Angie Freel feels the club is in good hands, but wants the stayaways to be enticed back to the Ricoh Arena...
Coventry City put in a great second-half performance at the Ricoh on Saturday stealing a point from Middlesbrough in the last 30 seconds of extra time.
The Sky Blues however, have dropped one place to 13th and out of the top half of the table.
Despite playing OK at times through the first half, Coventry were not in control of the game and unsurprisingly went in 2-0 down at the break.
Coleman's half-time talk certainly inspired the Sky Blues as they came out battling, showing they were not going to accept the game was dead and buried.
The team's mental strength and determination got them back in the game. A goal from Clinton Morrison and one from Leon Best meant the Sky Blues deservingly took a share of the points.
Jack Cork again stood out as a quality player and impressed further in the second half when Coleman changed the formation playing him in one of his preferred positions as centre half.
Although wedidn't play pretty football at times and were often forced to play long balls up the pitch, it was a real team effort and all can be praised for digging deep and grinding out the draw.
Addressed
On Friday, CCFC held a Fans' Forum with Chris Coleman and Ray Ranson at the Ricoh Arena. Obviously, posed with a few tricky questions about the financial state of the club they did skirt around some issues it was probably not suitable for them to answer.
Despite this, I was left feeling that they are nice blokes and that the club is in good hands. We are obviously losing money every year which is one issue that needs to be addressed, but they know that.
When asked if they were in the process of buying a 50 per cent share of the stadium Ranson said that they weren't even at negotiation point but it is an option they do want to take up, with funds again being the issue of why they haven't.
Many topics were covered at the forum but nothing the duo are not aware of. Coleman and Ranson wouldn't get where they are now if they didn't know to look for which players are going free, what money-making schemes are available and despite what was said, Ranson will know how much the 50 per cent share of the Ricoh costs and will have a plan in place of how and when he is going to attempt to buy it.
He's not going to tell the fans though and risk the backlash if the plan has to change. A few fans do need to give them a bit more credit. There is next to nothing a fan could think of that they haven't already.
Worrying
Another issue that has been bothering me is negative press. It does wonders for putting people off the football and certain 'fan' writers do have a lot to answer for.
I understand people want to know what is going on with the club and worrying issues should be discussed, but to highlight every conspiracy theory and reiterate everything that is negative is only doing more harm than good. People who are reading their articles are not going to start coming to the game.
I understand why people don't come to games. There is more to life than football. People can't afford it even if they did want to and others have commitments.
There is no written rule that people have a duty to go so I don't think bad-mouthing Coventry fans who don't go is the way forward. However, I do believe as fans we should be responsible for not putting people off.
If everyone who turned up on Saturday encouraged a friend or relative to come, we would nearly have a full stadium. Not likely to happen but we can try and what better game to start with than Leicester! Don't knock people for not coming, but don't put them off either.
As Ranson highlighted at the forum, it is our club and we will be here long after Ranson and Coleman are gone. Unfortunately, it is down to numbers and profits these days. The more of us there, the better we will be as a club financially and as a team performance wise. The club have got to come up with some more incentives but as fans we can help too.
Thanks Ray and Chris for everything you have done so far, we are improving and as long as we can continue to keep that up, even if it is at a slow pace, I and many others are happy. PUSB!
What can the Sky Blues do to get the fans back through the turnstiles? Are you as happy with Ray Ranson as Angie is? Join in the FanZone debate by filling in the feedback form below...
