Coventry Sphinx 3-1 Racing Club Warwick
Stuart Guest
Coventry Sphinx produced a perfect response to a poor previous performance and were rewarded with a 3-1 home win against Racing Club Warwick in a lunchtime Boxing Day kick-off.
They banked three much needed points in the Pitching In Northern Premier League Midlands thanks to a goal from Harry Wakefield on his home debut and a quick-fire double from top scorer Kyle Carey as they overcame a setback in the first minute of the second half.
Joint managers John Woodward and Shaun Thomas opted for a back three made up of Jamie Draper, Louis Guest and Kyle Burke, with Joe Pursey and Jordan Hayward playing as wing backs outside Jack Downes and captain Callum Woodward in midfield.
Wakefield and Carey played in attack with Alex Lock to form a trio that caused problems throughout for the Warwick defence and eventually weighed in with three goals to win the match to the delight of the supporters.
The visitors shaded the first few minutes but only had a speculative shot over the top to show for it before Sphinx took the initiative and remained in the ascendancy throughout the game.
Woodward tried a cheeky clipped effort in the tenth minute but if you chip Racers goalkeeper Sam Lomax on his line, you're likely to clear the crossbar too.
Wakefield took possession in the right channel after a sharp ball in behind from Downes in midfield. He fired low across Lomax and the goalkeeper got his fingertips to it to ensure the ball went safely wide of his post.
Carey struck a left-footed shot wide from 20 yards in the 14th minute and Sphinx were on top when a long injury delay interrupted the half. We wish Warwick's Max McNulty a speedy recovery.
McNulty’s withdrawal meant an appearance off the bench for Tolani Omotola, who joined starter Andre Williams as another Racer who started the 2024/25 season at Sphinx Drive.
The home team picked up where they left off after the game was restarted and took the lead with 24 minutes played.
Determined work in the midfield eventually led to Downes sending a fantastic pass out to the right for Carey. The forward brought the ball down and drove towards goal, then sent a neat pass to the back post. Wakefield arrived to tuck in his first Sphinx goal.
Sphinx looked confident after going in front and played some of their sharpest possession football for weeks. Warwick didn't test Woods in the first half and the hosts reached half time with a slender advantage.
The Racers were quicker out of the blocks in the second half and caught Sphinx cold with an equalising goal, the second in two games they’ve conceded in the first minute of the second period.
Only 15 seconds or so had been played when Williams got in on goal and found a tidy finish beyond Woods and into the bottom corner.
The key to this game was Sphinx's reaction after being pegged back. At Shepshed Dynamo, they were found wanting. Against Warwick, they kept on going. They went back in front six minutes later.
Woodward threaded a terrific pass through for Carey, who broke the offside trap, strode towards goal and slipped the ball through the legs of Lomax to make it 2-1 and undo the damage of a slow start to the second half.
Wakefield drove in a shot from a narrow angle, a well struck effort but an easy grab for Lomas as fog started to gather again as it had in the middle of the first half.
The task facing the Racers was made doubly difficult on the hour. Tenacious work from Hayward culminated in a powerful shot on target that was blocked by Warwick's Cameron Ebbutt with the use of a hand.
Ebbutt was sent off by referee Simon Kavanagh and Sphinx were awarded a penalty. Carey made no mistake, slotting the ball low to Lomax’s left to double Sphinx's lead and leave the visitors with it all to do.
Sphinx dominated the play against ten men and looked capable of scoring again but it was Woods who had to make a sharp save in the 74th minute, touching a looping shot onto the bar at full extension.
But Warwick were stretched and the home team were eager to take advantage. Wakefield was off-balance when his left-footed shot was saved by Lomax with quarter of an hour remaining.
Woodward and Thomas handed a Sphinx debut off the bench to new signing Luke Shearer and he drew a tremendous save from Lomax inside the final ten minutes.
Sphinx had a three-on-one in transition and fellow substitute Finlay Shorrock did extremely well to get into a dangerous position and pick out the new man's run. He caught the shot sweetly but Lomax got down well to deny him.
Iddriss Fuseini also came on in the second half and had Sphinx's last two chances. In the 87th minute he zipped a shot wide from outside the box. Two minutes later, with Sphinx now in a four-on-one situation, he hit one into the side netting.
Despite conceding in the first minute of the second half for the second time in five days, Sphinx put together an excellent second half and enjoyed a relatively comfortable afternoon against the Racers, taking their chances when they came to give themselves an advantage to protect.
Warwick battled on with ten men but found Woods equal to the only attempt they had to add to their first goal. Sphinx made the shorthanded visitors look vulnerable on the break but couldn’t add a fourth to put some gloss on the win.
This was a vital win for the home team, who had endured a couple of difficult weeks and needed to put themselves out of reach for the teams below them as they kicked off later in the day.
After ending 2024 with a win, they’ll be back in action on New Year’s Day, when they visit Bedworth United for a 1.00pm kick-off at the Oval.
Sphinx team
Woods, Draper, Hayward (Shearer), Downes, Guest, Burke, Pursey, Woodward (Fuseini), Wakefield (Kelly), Carey, Lock (Shorrock). Unused sub: Zito