The Lower League week - Coventry's ten points and Northampton Town's bonfire of the memories

Leyton Orient demolished Carlisle

Opening day injuries

You work all summer to get ready for the opening day, working through the pain to prepare yourself mentally, athletically, technically and tactically. Then you get hospitalised on the first day of the season.

Cheltenham’s Jamie Cureton, racing onto a long pass that the Burton keeper failed to correctly predict, bundled a loose ball into the net to give his new side the lead 18 minutes into his debut. But Cureton was injured while scoring, pretty much as bittersweet as is possible. Reports say Cureton will be out for six weeks with a shoulder injury, so his team-mates as a whole will need to step up to replace the 37-year -old.

About quarter of an hour after Cureton’s injury, Leyton Orient were hosting Carlisle where Lee Miller rushed into Nathan Clarke on the touchline, knocking him to the floor. Miller was red-carded, though perhaps unluckily – the challenge was clumsy enough to merit a free kick, but not the worst foul in the world. The challenge did have a serious effect – Clarke needed a neck brace and an oxygen mask. He didn’t regain consciousness until he was in the hospital on the way to the hospital, but thankfully was discharged in time to be collected by the team bus.

Reports seem to agree that Clarke’s concussion was more a result of his head hitting the side of the pitch, impacting on gravel or what one report claims was concrete, round the playing area.

Orient Ley into Carlisle

Miller’s foul on Clarke came during a result I definitely hadn’t seen coming – Leyton Orient demolishing Carlisle 5-1 to go top of the League One table. During recent seasons, both clubs have been solid mid-table teams, having a few classy players with the kind of skill to prevent them being dragged into the relegation battle, but not quite enough consistency to push for the playoffs.

As much as the scoreline, what’s impressive was the range of goals – two headers from set pieces, a cross right onto the head of David Mooney, rounded off by a placed shot from 5’4? midfielder Lee Cox and a blast from the same man, which the linesman said just about crossed the line.

Of course, only Kevin Lisbie was on the scoresheet at the time of Lee Miller’s red card, so it’s no guarantee of a great season, but it can’t hurt. Amusingly, on Saturday, Twitter was abuzz with ‘Lisbians’ shouting about their tiny Cox…

It never ends for Coventry

Although both Coventry’s centre halves passed fitness tests, more bad news appeared on Saturday morning with the Daily Mail reporting that Joe Murphy, Leon Clarke and Carl Baker had been transfer-listed to save their combined £24,000 a week wages.

Between them, the trio are one of the division’s better keepers, probably the division’s most ruthless goalscorer, and a very talented creative attacker. If the trio were sold and not replaced (a serious possibility if the process for taking the club out of administration drags on, meaning the transfer embargo can’t be lifted until after the transfer window closes) there’d be strong odds of the Sky Blues finishing rock bottom of the league. This will have been what Coventry fans were thinking when they travelled to Crawley.

Coventry were two goals behind after 20 minutes, which either prompted or coincided with a pitch invasion. Though it’s hard to tell what’s true and what’s exaggeration, there were stories of punches being thrown, either at a steward, linesman or ballboy, and the suggestion that some of the fans were trying to earn the club a fine, under the assumption SISU would be the ones to pay it. Despite the deficit, the Sky Blues came fighting back, eventually equalising – the first goal being particularly dogged after several defensive blocks. However, having equalised in the 82nd minute, it was just two minutes before Mike Jones raced through Coventry’s inexperienced centre half to seal the win.

It’s the kind of tough luck Coventry don’t deserve after all they’ve been through. Fortunately for Sky Blues, Murphy has since denied the trio are leaving … so there’s that.

One hell of a Beattie-ing

A lot of people, myself included, have been sceptical about James Beattie’s prospects as Accrington’s manager, and his first game in charge, a 4-1 defeat to Newport, won’t have changed many minds. Having said that, Newport were impressive on their Football League debut. Particularly striking was Christian Jolley, with an assist for the second before cutting in from the right to blast the ball into the top corner. An acrobatic goal from League Two journeyman Chris Zebrowski will have been the icing on the cake.

Although a sunny day at Fratton Park was going according to plan when Portsmouth took the lead through a front post header from Patrick Agyemang, it didn’t end that way. Oxford had already come from behind by the time Johnny Ertl was sent off for a raised elbow, and went on to win 4-1. Both Potter and Smalley scored a brace, with neither Dave Kitson nor James Constable, who I’d expect to be a pretty formidable forward pair, required to open their accounts for the season.

Probably the biggest danger for Pompey this season is thinking that the tough work is done, and that they’re good enough to coast through the season, which they’re definitely not. I’d still expect them to at least challenge for the League Two title, and probably gain promotion – perhaps the heavy defeat is the kick up the backside they need.