Scenes of jubilation from the Coventry players contrasted with despair from Bristol City's who were scattered lying on the pitch looking forlorn at the full-time whistle.
To come so far in a season only to lose out on a trophy with a terribly lucky, or unlucky, deflected effort after clawing their way back into the contest was nothing short of cruel.
The young City players received standing ovations from those 2,000-odd fans who had made the effort to give them one final push - with scenes of shoes in the air at one point - but it just wasn't meant to be.
