Matchday Memories: On This Day 1998 – Paul Hall Scores Sky Blue Shrimpers Success!
Taking a break from Premier League matters on this day (16th September 1998) the Sky Blues, managed by Gordon Strachan had a second round League (Worthington) Cup tie to play. Entering the competition at this stage CCFC’s opponents were Southend United. The tie was over two legs with City drawn at home for this fist leg. In front of a crowd of modest 6,631 the Sky Blues struggled to win the game at Highfield Road by the only goal of the game scored in the 64th minute by Paul Hall (his only first team goal of this season). This result ended an eight hour Sky Blue goal drought! Six days later they went down to Essex and settled matters with a 4-0 demolition of the Shrimpers at Roots Hall thanks to goals from (now CCFC’s first team coach) George Boateng (six minutes) plus Dion Dublin (27), Noel Whelan (45) and Trond-Egil Soltvedt (83) – all three now CCFPA members, the Norwegian only quite recently!
The Sky Blues departed the Worthington Cup in the next round, 2-0 losers at Luton Town! All the match details you could possibly want come from the excerpt below taken from the Coventry Telegraph’s glossy magazine review of the 1998-99 season.
Of the sixteen Sky Blue players in the matchday squad and their ‘gaffer’ only three have not yet joined this Association, Gary Breen, George Boateng and Phillipe Clement. We would love to rectify that whenever they wish to join us!
Thanks to CCFPA’s Mike Young for sourcing the images.