Hoolahan admits it was no pen

Jonathan Redhead

New Norwich City winger Wes Hoolahan refused to be too downhearted, despite seeing his debut ruined by defeat.

The summer signing from Blackpool was at the heart of most of City's best moves, especially in the first half, when he was a major influence on the game. However, like his team-mates, the 26-year-old could not conjure a goal for the Canaries as Leon McKenzie's late strike clinched all three points for the Sky Blues.

But Hoolahan, one of seven City players making their debuts at the Ricoh Arena, said there were enough signs for City's fans to be confident about the rest of the season.

"It's going to take time for the players to gel, but I think we played well together, you know, passed the ball well and created a lot of chances," said the Dubliner. "It bodes well for the future. I thought the front two linked well with me and Crofty (Lee Croft) and we were all doing it really, and hopefully we can have more of that and score more goals.

"The manager says he wants us to pass the ball around as obviously we've not got a big target man or anything up front like that, so we have to play off each other and pass the ball. I think we deserved a point at least."

The diminutive star, who could face his former club at Carrow Road on Saturday, looked like he might have found a way back into the game for Norwich in the second half when he was sent tumbling in the area with 12 minutes to go, sparking appeals for a penalty.

But Hoolahan admitted he did not think he was fouled - and also felt that Coventry's earlier spot kick was also "dubious".

"We've created a lot of chances and I think the penalty was dubious - we'll leave it at that," he said. "I was through, but I don't know if I got pushed or not. I think the two of them, to be fair, weren't penalties."