Coventry City 2 Norwich City 2
Coventry City manager Micky Adams is no fool. He knew there was something very wrong at the club before his side wasted a two-goal lead at the weekend.
He was keen to point out on the day he took the job in January that it would be an uphill task to keep the Sky Blues in the Championship last season.
And though Adams accomplished his mission first time round, by his own admission, time is running out for him to do it two years running.
He has justifiably been criticised for his negative outlook on life at the Ricoh Arena. He calls it realism in the face of having his hands tied financially but the bare facts are looking him straight in the eye and as Adams has repeated so often - football is a results business.
It looked for a long while on Saturday like the Sky Blues boss would be rewarded for a positive team selection with a win that would ease some of the burden on his shoulders.
Instead of throwing in onloan Don Hutchison for his debut, he opted to play four strikers - albeit with two out of position on either wing - and everything went to plan for the first ten minutes.
Gary McSheffrey was rated a £3 million player by his manager last week and he looked worth every penny in the third minute when he skipped past three defenders before firing home with the aid of a deflection.
Then in-form striker Dele Adebola made it two as he raced clear following a mistake from ex-Coventry centreback Calum Davenport before firing through the legs of goalkeeper Robert Green.
The goals took Adebola and McSheffrey to seven apiece for the season and further enhanced the theory that their form will have a huge bearing on whether City can keep their heads above the drop zone again.
The two-goal lead should have also sealed all three points. But two is just enough for the Sky Blues who have a desperate habit of throwing away victories. This was the fourth time this season that they have scored twice and failed to win.
Davenport made up for his earlier error by heading home Adam Drury's cross at the back post before half-time and that set-up a tense second period.
Norwich dominated the second period but Robert Page and Adebola had chances to make the points safe for Adams's team before they conceded a sloppy equaliser with six minutes left.
Marton Fulop has failed to convince since he signed onloan from Tottenham in October, particularly because - like so many continental keepers - he opts to punch when a catch looks more favourable. And that was his undoing at the weekend when his punch from a cross barely reached the penalty spot and Norwich substitute Craig Fleming scrambled home.
The point still lifted Coventry out of the bottom three but the result still leaves Adams under severe scrutiny, especially since the Sky Blues board met immediately after the final whistle.
It all points to the fact that the next two games are crucial for City and for their manager. They take on fellow strugglers Plymouth and Millwall at the Ricoh Arena and only two victories will do.
McSheffrey said: "We are disappointed not to have got the win against Norwich - it felt like a defeat after the way we started the game. It means the next two matches are vital."
