FRANK Lampard has immense pride in his Coventry City players following the club’s cruel play-off semi-final defeat against Sunderland.
The Sky Blues were seconds away from taking the tie to penalties at the Stadium of Light after Ephron Mason-Clark’s second-half goal sent the game to extra time.
However, Sunderland defender Daniel Ballard stooped to head in unmarked at a corner in the 122nd minute to break Coventry hearts and deny City a trip to Wembley.
Despite the cruel nature of the defeat, Lampard had nothing but praise for his players and is proud of how far the club has come since his appointment as head coach in November.
Lampard told Sky Sports: “It’s the biggest example [of football being cruel] I’ve been involved in.
“Congratulations to Sunderland, they go to the final but I’ve got immense pride in my players over the two games.
“The players have given everything, we’ve come from 17th in the league in December, the players have been brilliant in the second half of the season.
“The players don’t deserve it [to lose], I’ve been around a lot, I’ve taken whacks and had success so I can be a bit more balanced but the players don’t deserve that.
“I’m so disappointed for the club, the fans, the owner and the players.
“Once the dust settles, I can’t be disappointed with the way they played, they take on information and they’re together.
“It’s cruel but I can’t think of anything but pride for the season.”
Coventry went into the second leg needing to overturn a one-goal deficit following a late 2-1 defeat in the first leg at the Coventry Building Society Arena.
And the Sky Blues deservedly levelled the tie on aggregate on 76 minutes when Mason-Clark steered home Milan van Ewijk’s cross from eight-yards out.
City pushed for a winner in extra time only for Ballard to score with virtually the final touch to end Coventry’s season in the cruelest fashion.
And Lampard heaped further praise on his players for the dominant nature of their performance across the two legs.
Lampard added: “We dominated at home, we dominated huge periods of this game, it was wave after wave of control and attack.
“We came here with absolute bravery to play the way we play, they had to concede to us because of the way we played.
“We took frenetic out of it, the balance of the team, they continued to play, I can’t ask for anymore.
“We wanted to go to Wembley but sometimes the gods conspire against you in certain ways, that’s football.
“We want to get better and we want the squad to get stronger, the players have shown what they can do it, the fans deserve it.”
