Houchen’s name is synonymous with Cup glory – his diving header during the Sky Blues’ famous 1987 triumph against Tottenham being firmly etched in final folklore.
Two seasons earlier, meanwhile, his 90th-minute penalty for York had dumped Arsenal out of the competition’s fourth round.
But the Middlesbrough-born forward was also on the receiving end of one of the tournament’s biggest shocks, as a 70th-minute sub when Coventry – still a top-flight team at that point – lost 2-1 at then Non-League hosts Sutton United in 1989.
Recalling that contest – just a month on from its 35-year anniversary – and the lessons the current Sky Blues can learn from it, Houchen told The FLP: “We’d trained on Sutton’s ground before we played the game, so we knew what to expect. The dressing rooms were really tight but a lot of us, including myself, had come up from the lower leagues, so we weren’t fazed by that. I remember (manager) John Sillett even saying to us, ‘Don’t be the idiots that everybody is writing and talking about tomorrow’.
This story is from the February 25, 2024 edition of The Football League Paper.
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This story is from the February 25, 2024 edition of The Football League Paper.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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