Although the move to Friday night football was beyond their control, Coventry City’s fast start against Stevenage meant the Sky Blues could put their feet up on Saturday afternoon and pump a fist at Tom Pope’s late goal for Port Vale which means Mansfield Town are three points behind City in the table having played a game more.
Lincoln moved above the Sky Blues on goal difference with a last-gasp goal of their own to defeat Colchester and the Imps travel the Ricoh on Tuesday in what is a game in hand for both teams and where a draw would not be the worst result for either.
City, Lincoln and Mansfield are all on the road on Saturday for the penultimate round of fixtures.
Huge credit again must go to Mark Robins and his team as they have recovered twice this year from spells of form that could have signalled the end of their season, the most recent being the Easter Monday horror show against Yeovil and subsequent defeat at Notts County.
The Ricoh also hosts Thursday’s Under-23 game against QPR, a 2pm kick-off for which admission is free.
Off the field the main news this week was that the club have secured a site for a new training facility as the potential sale of Ryton for housing inches closer.
In a statement on the official club website, CCFC confirmed: ‘Training facilities for the first team and under 23s will be significantly improved, providing an elite environment for players and staff for many years to come – including changing rooms, gym, kitchens, dining room, laundry, offices and other facilities.’
Even though the name of the new site has not been announced, for commercial reasons, the level of detail in the statement is a world away from the vague promises we have seen in the past regarding a new stadium.
It also hints at something more permanent, a legacy that will help to ensure the survival of the club in some form or another even as the uncertainty continues over our stay at the Ricoh Arena.
If you’re not following City on the road to Cheltenham next Saturday then there is local action at Leamington (against newly-promoted Salford City), Nuneaton, Bedworth United and Coventry Sphinx.
Sphinx are also in home action on Monday and Thursday while Coventry United are at home on Monday and Wednesday as they catch up with a weather-hit fixture schedule).