Ian Henderson, who netted Rochdale’s late winner at the Ricoh Arena, has told Dale PlayerHD that he’s incredibly happy with the result.
When Henderson was brought down two minutes from time, he stepped up to take the spot-kick and earned Dale a deserved three points.
“The game plan from the start was to do what we did, so to come away with three points is magnificent against a really strong Coventry side," said Hendo.
“They’ve got threats all over the football pitch but our defenders nullified them and limited them to sparse amounts of attempts on goal.
“Fortunately I won the penalty and converted it, so I’m incredibly happy to walk away with the three points. You can probably tell with the smile on my face.”
He says stepping up to take the crucial spot-kick didn’t phase him.
“I don’t think it’s nerve wracking, although some people might do if they’re looking in from the outside. You practice your whole career for moments like that so you’ve got step up to plate and be brave enough to take the penalty.
“I’ve been penalty taker here for the last two years, so it was on my shoulders, as they say.
“But it isn’t about me, it was the whole team that won that game today with effortless running and running for each other.”
As well as the penalty, there was another talking point surrounding Henderson when he blocked Niall Canavan's header on the line at the post, denying Dale a goal in the second half.
Hendo admits he tried to get out of the away but there wasn’t much he could do.
“My leg felt like it was stuck in time – it just froze. I did try to get out of the way but my reaction speed was nowhere near quick enough at that moment.
“Maybe towards the back end of my career I’ll move back into defence. This time last year, I played right back here [at Coventry] in the second half, so who knows,” joked Henderson.
The full interview is on Dale PlayerHD.