So the dream is all over
The euphoria has died down
Supposed champions of Europe
More like Circus Ring Clowns

For the first seven minutes
They looked up for the fight
They had a couple of chances
Was it to be their night?

Then Barca got the ball
And attacked down the flanks
Man Yoo's defence was too static
The looked akin to short planks

An Anderson mistake left an opening
Could they carry it through?
They're a team full of winners
1 - 0 it's Samuel Eto'o

Barca seized the momentum
Passes found team-mates feet
Man Yoo visibly wilted
Was it due to the heat?

Fergie altered the set up
Ignoring practical advice
But it made little difference
It was Men against Mice

There was still time for a second
Another perfectly weighted pass
With the champions elect
Providing a true Master Class

So its back home to Devon
Somerset, London, Lands End
Back to Essex and Surrey
To their wives and girlfriends

And the moral of this tale
As they all drown they're sorrows
Is support your own local team
They'll still want you tomorrow

Don't upset your Ultras!

That's the rule most clubs stick to, as they cautiously play down the influence of their most outspoken fans. In reality, certain sets of supporters can have more influence over the running of the club than is ever openly admitted. Barcelona know what I'm talking about.

Do my beloved Sky Blues have Ultras? In a way, yes. If you substitute the knives and criminal records for a lit cigarette and 3-month ban from Jumpin' Jacks. But they're just as passionate, mind, and, I'm told, mostly congregate in block 14 of the Ricoh.

Imagine the fuss when the club announced the closure of that block next season. And fuss has turned to a campaign as their mild vexation has seethingly foamed into anger. This has manifested itself in a Facebook group.

But that is it: they'll have to move seats, a few yards to the right. What on earth is all the fuss about? Am I missing something here? Is there more to this riddle than my naivety will allow me to see?

Now before I go any further, let's remember that this block generates a beautiful and inspiring atmosphere. Singing, dancing, the odd topless large-bellied hero, and some uncharacteristically witty banter with opposition fans. Block 14, we love you.

But now you're block 15, squeezed in with the others for a better atmosphere, and to save some money. Money, which is keeping this talented team together so that we can watch an FA Cup quarter final every now and then.

Look at Southampton. Long have they followed a similar path to ours, and now it looks like they're about to diverge into a black hole of doom. Oh, how that could have been us. Not only should we move seats when asked, if Mr Ranson requested that I shine his shoes one matchday, I'd give them a jolly good seeing to, then I'd crouch down in front of him and offer my back for their comfort over the next 90 minutes.

We don't own our seats. We merely rent them for an afternoon. Crikey, the football club doesn't even own those seats! Better pay our council tax or we could get turfed out altogether!

WHILE most of Coventry City's squad are enjoying a late-season break over the next fortnight, Aron Gunnarsson will be logging a new milestone in his exciting young career.

The midfielder is due to step out in front of a passionate Hampden Park crowd on April 1 as Iceland take on Scotland in a World Cup qualifier - another prime opportunity to demonstrate the development that has stunned the Sky Blues management team this season.

Boss Chris Coleman admits that he expected the 19-year-old to be a squad player this season while he found his feet in English football.

But having turned in some impressively muscular midfield displays, proven his versatility by filling in at right-back and unveiled the attacking potential of his prodigious long throw, Gunnarsson is now regarded as one of the Ricoh Arena's crown jewels.

He has also become a cult hero with the fans - that status reaching stratospheric heights during the midweek trip to Bristol City when he and mum Jona joined the Sky Blue Army in the Ashton Gate stands.

And his importance to the club's future was underlined when - along with Kieren Westwood, Scott Dann and Danny Fox - he was offered a long-term contract extension designed to fend off interest from Premier League predators after the usual speculation about possible suitors emerging.

But Gunnarsson insists he won't be trying to exploit that situation with some hard-ball negotiating.

DAVID Bell capitalised on a howler from Doncaster's Neil Sullivan to score his first goal for Coventry and give them victory in their Coca-Cola Championship match at the Ricoh Arena.

Coventry had looked the better side in the opening stages. With 20 minutes gone, Sullivan came rushing out of his goal to clear Keiren Westwood's goal-kick - only for it to go straight to Bell, who finished superbly from 45 yards.

See all our action pictures from the game here....

It was no more than Coventry deserved.

Stephen Wright saw a shot hit the post minutes later, and at the other end Westwood made a good save from John Spicer as Doncaster pressed forward before the break.

Westwood had to be alert to deny Dean Shiels early in the second half, but Coventry held on to record their first victory in five matches and move nine points clear of the bottom three.

The defeat was Doncaster's third in a row without scoring and left them with work to do to secure their Championship status for next season.

The home side almost went in front with two minutes gone when Aron Gunnarsson headed into the path of Jordan Henderson, who cut the ball across for Freddy Eastwood. But his shot skimmed the top of the bar.

Doncaster quickly found their rhythm, and Wilson was allowed to stride forward unchallenged before unleashing a long-range effort which Westwood did well to turn around the post.

Only Coventry fans could go from emphatic chants of We're all going to Wem-ber-ley and unabashed prognostications of reaching the play-offs to mumurs and grumblings of the lurid realms of relegation.

In just seven days.

Have we really changed that much in just three games? Have our Wembley-bound heroes been cosmically spellbound by some sorcerous means, doomed to a fate of (even) lower league football?

Of course not. We were, as we should have been, beaten by a world-class Premiership team, and have lost a couple of tricky league games that have left us... well, pretty much where we've been all season.

So, no need to panic then. Talk of the play-offs was inevitable, but premature. Not because of the points needed to reach one of those fabled berths, but just the sheer number of teams between us and the hallowed top six. So now that we can put a lid on all that play-off nonsense for this year, the talk switches to our other favourite topic: relegation.

Ben Turner has reassured us this week that "we don't need to worry about relegation and all that". Well that's a relief. Although one can't help think that his reassurance was not borne out of objective assessment, but more to gain impunity in the eyes of his fans after his little weekend faux pas.

I know Ben was being fouled, but if he'd only ducked instead of... oh, never mind.

Even Keiren "Who-says-you-can't-save-in-a-recession?" Westwood has shown his flappable side. Well, his feet have. Maybe he should pretend he's hurt his leg and let a defender do all the kicking. A role as pinch-kicker at set-pieces might have been ear-marked for Marcus when a contract extension was put before him. It's keeping David Beckham in the job.

As much as I'd like to dramaticise the last few weeks of the season with talk of potential voyages to the extremities of our division, I'm afraid there will be no such adventures. It's the steady waters of mid-table from here on in, a fate that I will share in welcoming after the traumas of last year.

There's always the sideshow attraction of seeing just how many friends Aron Gunnarsson can get on Facebook. Currently about 4,200 more than me.