Telegraph Article No. 5 Season 09/10

I had vowed to try not take my football so seriously this season - sadly, it seems to many of our players have decided to do likewise. They are far better than we are seeing.

Presuming we lose to Newcastle, and fail to beat Peterboro at the Ricoh on Saturday, this will surely spell the end of Chris Coleman, and result in the inevitable 'it was our fault' comments from the players (Which seem to be starting already). This would deny us something I never expected to see again in my time as a Coventry City supporter: a manager that lasts two years or more!

Coleman classes the current crop of players as the best he has had since he came to the club, and I (Being in a very small minority!) agree with this, which means that something else must be causing the unacceptable performances and poor sequence of results we are witnessing (Which includes no win since the end of September).

I'm sure watching our displays leaves him absolutely fuming, but I would like to see more evidence of this on the touchline, rather than him just standing there looking like some sort of model for Littlewoods catalogue, chewing his gum, and looking like a rabbit in the headlights.

I believed Coleman's decision to bring in a well respected coach such as Steve Harrison would have a massively positive effect on the team this season, though there is little evidence of this so far. If anything, the performances have been worse since Steve Keen left.

We might be lacking leadership on the pitch (And off it!), but the one thing I would still expect from a side so young, and that is they would run and run throughout matches. I see little evidence of this, and Scunthorpe's players were yet another to add to the list of sides who 'want it more than us'.

Defensively, we have been inept all season, so I felt quite positive when we brought in Leon Barnett. His displays for Luton persuaded WBA to pay a decent sum of money for him, though looking at some of his displays so far, he would struggle to get back into Luton's starting XI, never mind WBA's!

That said, Luton must have a great squad if they have taken Ashley Cain on loan, and, like Coventry City, start with him on the bench. If he's good enough to get on the pitch in the Championship every so often, he's good enough to start in Division Five! I hope his spell there is a success, and sees him and his pace become more established in our first team, as pace is one of the things we badly lack.

When - not if - Kieran Westwood leaves the club in January, I for one won't blame him. Staying in such a poor side will do his reputation no good at all, and the dis-belief at some of what goes on in front of him is usually clear to see. Good luck to him wherever he goes.

If there are any positives to be taken recently, I would count the signing of Richard Wood as one of them. His signing ended an almost two-year chase, and while he might not yet look like the rock-solid Championship defender he should be, I believe he will prove to be an absolute bargain when he gets a decent defensive partner alongside him.