Watford vs Coventry City. Sky Bet Championship.
Vicarage RoadAttendance19,441.
Report and free match highlights from the Sky Bet Championship clash between Watford and Coventry City at Vicarage Road on Saturday | Watford 1-1 Coventry Tom Dele-Bashiru strikes for Hornets to cancel out Ellis Simms's Sky Blues opener.
Saturday 14 September 2024 18:39, UK
Watford and Coventry drew 1-1 in their Championship clash, which was an entertaining game at Vicarage Road that perhaps deserved more goals.
It was an awful start for the home side, who for the third game in a row fell behind after less than four minutes of the contest. On this occasion, Ellis Simms was allowed free space from a Jack Rudoni corner, to direct his header off a post and into the net.
The visitors appeared in a hurry to add to the scoresheet, although Watford themselves should have equalised after 10 minutes - a Ryan Andrews delivery across the area fell to an unmarked Giorgi Chakvetadze but his first-time effort was put past a post.
Ephron Mason-Clark sent a close-range effort after 27 minutes over the bar, while Moussa Sissoko fired wide a minute later.
Josh Eccles should have done better moments later with his follow-up on a loose ball off Daniel Bachmann, after the Watford shot-stopper denied the on-rushing Simms, but he failed to keep his effort on target.
The failure to add a second goal almost proved costly for Coventry, who saw Vakoun Bayo head wide with four minutes of the half remaining.
Watford still needed to show they could come back, and they started the second half in a more positive frame of mind.
A warning to the Coventry back line came seven minutes after the restart, when a deep Chakvetadze cross found Mattie Pollock at the back, however his header was matched by Oliver Dovin.
The visiting goalkeeper was significantly busier in the second half than the first, and two minutes later was forced to tip over an effort from Yasser Larouci, before denying Sissoko just before the hour mark.
However, Dovin was finally beaten after 67 minutes, when Chakvetadze crossed from the left flank into the path of Tom Dele-Bashiru, who made no mistake from six yards out.
Watford looked far stronger and potent in their play, although they were almost undone after 74 minutes when a Haji Wright header came off a post following a Mason-Clark cross.
The day of the impressive Chakvetadze ended on a sour note when the Georgian was taken off on a stretcher after a lengthy delay with under 10 minutes of normal time remaining.
With 13 minutes of injury time awarded by referee Bobby Madley, there was sufficient time for either side to leave Vicarage Road with the three points.
The home side looked on balance to have more chance of earning a victory, although in the final big moment of the game Rudoni forced Bachmann to pull off a fine save after controlling well in the area.
Watford's Tom Cleverley:
"When conceding early happens once, it can happen, if it happens twice you start seeing a pattern and you start an inquest.
"When it happens three times we have to review it. So we will review our preparation and we have the mindset of coming out like a bullet out of a gun.
"I don't want to make it a thing with the players, because you don't want them to become fearful at the start of games.
"A game of two halves is exactly how I summed it up in the dressing room, it was a stereotypical Championship game.
"It was probably a fair result, and both managers will see it as a point gained than one lost."
Coventry's Mark Robins:
"From minute one we were really good, Watford is a good team and a different animal from last year.
"They're running, they're working hard and have got some real quality.
"We managed to really get on top of the game, played some really good football, we took the hardest chance of them all.
"We can only blame ourselves for not getting three points, it should have been over by half-time.
"They always had the chance to get back into it.
"If you can't win, don't lose. We were magnificent, we can be disappointed we didn't get four or five."
