Coventry had the early advantage but goals from Carpenter, Ryan and Anderson saw good effort from Town
Town: Connor Wearing, George Carpenter, Sam Westray, Charlie Musselwhite (Kaiman Anderson), Dominic Smith, Warren Holmes (c ), Scott Ryan, David Easthope (Jack Richards), Sam Molyneux, Deion Evans, Jack Gwilliams ( Matthew Jones)
Subs: Lewis Phillips, Dillan Stephenson
Goals: Carpenter, Ryan, Anderson
Coventry City: Shane Fagan, Ivor Lawton, Ryan Haynes, Jack Finch, Tarik Azille-Moore, Ricky Fletcher (c ), Ben Maund, Leon Lobjoit, Courtney Baker-Richardson, Louis Garner, Lewis Rankin
Subs: Alex Gott, Jordan Smith, Jemal Wiseman, Eli Bako, Jordan Forrester
Ref: D Avent
Assistants: G McFarlane & R Evans
Attendance: 396
It was a pretty level opening 15 minutes with both sides having periods of possession and pressure with some decent openings around goal. Coventry just about shaded the chances with some decent efforts on the Town goal but the visitors had their chances with Molyneux going close with a good shot.
Coventry had a good chance to take the lead on the 20 minute mark when good play down the left saw Haynes in on the Town goal with only Wearing to beat, the Town keeper stayed on his feet and got down smartly at the right moment to get in an important block to deny Coventry the lead.
Town were working well and doing the hard work to stop Coventry playing at times and this in turn was allowing the visitors create some good openings themselves. There were some neat moves from Town that looked like they could break down the home defence but at the final moment the pass or decision was just missing.
It was the home side who got their noses in front on 33 minutes and it was from a corner, the ball was swung across and Wearing came to punch, he didn't fully connect and the ball dropped to Finch on the edge of the box who drove in a good shot that just beat the Town man on the line.
As half-time approached Town were starting to exert a little bit more pressure round the Coventry goal. Good work from Gwilliams saw Town win a corner, this was put into the box and then came to Scott Ryan on the edge of the box who fizzed in a lovely low shot that flew just wide of the mark. Moments later the ball again came to Ryan 25 yards out from goal, he hit a nice snap shot that was goal bound but unfortunately took a deflection.
Town's job was made tougher just before the half-time break when a Town break broke down on the edge of the box, Coventry hit on the counter attack with Rankin on the ball, he kept his run going with the Town defence backing off and then drove in a shot from outside the Town box that beat Wearing's dive.
Town got a boost 2 minutes after the restart when the ball came to Gwilliams on the edge of the Coventry box, he had his back to goal but did well to spin his marker then get in behind the defence, he then drove a lovely inviting ball back across the face of the Cov goal and there was George Carpenter to calmly tap the ball home and make it 2-1.
Town continued to apply the pressure but as with the first goal they looked vulnerable from set-pieces and Coventry got another goal from a corner, again the ball came across and Wearing didn't connect fully, it dropped at the backpost but the Town marking wasn't there and the Coventry played drilled in a low shot that Wearing just failed to stop on the line.
Coventry added to their lead with a ball over the top allowing the Baker-Richardson a run in on goal, Wearing did well to stay on his feet and got down to pull off a great block when Baker-Richardson shot but unfortunately for Town the ball then fell into the path of Holmes who could only deflect the ball into the empty net.
Town weren't down though and went straight back up the other end from the restart and grabbed a goal back, this one from Scott Ryan who hit in a sweet shot from outside the box that Coventry keeper Fagan couldn't deal with to make it 4-2.
The visitors were continuing to push and look for the break to get them back into the game, there was a lot of pressure from the visitors but not too much to trouble the Coventry goal other than a couple of long range efforts, and a very decent turn and shot from Sam Westray.
Town's pressing paid off just before the 90 minutes mark and gave them hope going into the injury time, young substitute Kaiman Anderson showed good skill and composure on the left hand side to calmly slot the ball under Fagan from the angle after he'd found space in behind the Coventry defence to make it 4-3.
Full-time: 3-4