Town: Jasbir Singh, Leon Miles, Aaron Gibson, Jason Wood (Richards, 56), Harry Hooman, James Meredith (capt), Steve Davey, Tom Moss, Andre Grey, Jan Coulston (Heenan,74) Kalum Evitts

Substitutes: Jake Ellis, Dave Maguire, Sam Heenan, Wayne Farmer, Will Richards

Martin Wild reports from the new stadium

Town's reserve side has more than a youthful look to it as they face Coventry City in their final home game in the Pontin's League. Tomorrow night's vital first team fixture at Morecambe, means only James Meredith and Tom Moss survive from the team that ran out comfortable winners two weeks ago against West Bromwich.

It was the visitors who carried the early threat and Chris Birchall switched play with a magnificent crossfield ball into the path of Ellery Cairo. The winger easily went past Aaaron Gibson, and having managed to get into a goalscoring position, he elected to try and find a team mate, but no City player was in a position to capitalise on the opportunity. Liam Davies curled a sweet left-footed effort just wide of Jasbir Singh's right hand upright and with seasoned campaigners Arjan De Zeeuw and Michael Hughes amongst their ranks, Coventry had certainly settled into the early exchanges better than their hosts.

But Town almost grabbed the lead on fourteen minutes when Daniel Ireland in the City goal had to go full length to push away Kalum Evitts' powerful strike.

Singh made an even better save five minutes later when Cairo's right wing cross was met by Chris Birchall's powerful header. The youth team skipper denied the number ten with a save right out of the top drawer when a goal seemed certain.

Meredith was cautioned for a foul on Lee Hildreth just inside the centre circle as Coventry threatened a break, and from the resultant free-kick Hildreth almost made Town pay when he latched onto Davies' pullback from the byline. Despite being only six yards out though, his effort carried little venom and Singh was able to smother.

On the half hour Shrews went behind. Not for the first time Davies wreaked havoc on the left and his pass inside to Birchall was despatched beyond Singh to give the visitors a deserved lead.

Certainly the two wide men Cairo and Davies were proving a real handful for Town's youngsters and they could have fallen further behind moments later when the goalscorer was denied this time by Singh who blocked Birchall's effort with his legs.

Coventry extended their lead just before the interval when the impressive Hildreth created an opening for Matthew West. The centre forward cracked the ball into the top corner to virtually end any hope the youngsters had of getting anything from the game. It had been a backs-to-the-wall first half for Town, and with better finishing City would have been even further out of reach as the half-time whistle sounded.

HT: 0-2

Any hopes that Salop had of getting back into the game were effectively quashed when the Sky Blues scored a third - and what a cracker it was! Gary Borrowdale found himself in space after a marauding run and his 25 yard screamer flew past a helpless Singh via the post to make it three-nil. Each and every one of his team mates went across to congratulate the left back and he was well worthy of such fulsome praise as he is unlikely to score a better one throughout the remainder of his career.

De Zeeuw rattled a post with a bullet header from Cairo's free-kick as City threatened to run riot but this was a men against boys contest in a literal sense. Town's youthful team had been given the proverbial runaround for 70 minutes and in the second half in particular, they had been camped almost entirely in their own half.

There was no shame in losing to a side who contained nine players with first team experience but thankfully, Coventry declared at three to keep the score to a respectable 3-0.

FT: 0-3

After the game Town manager Paul Simpson was pleased with his young sides efforts on the night: "We are down to the bare bones at the moment with the game at Morecambe and we only have 16 outfield players fit at the moment.We decided to put the young lads out as there is no point in trying to rearrange these games so we put the young lads in and I thought it was a very good night and education for them.

"They were playing a hell of a strong Coventry side with probably over a thousand appearances between them at Premiership and Championship level, as well as International, our team had three of U16's, one pro and a couple of second years with the rest made up of first team scholars and you can't really ask any more of them.

"I said to our lads that they probably learnt more in those 90-minutes than they may have done in whole of their careers so far.

"The lads went out there and did things properly and tried to enjoy the game and we can't ask for anymore."