Having spent just over one season as tenants at Sixfields, Coventry City’s fortunes have improved since a rental dispute saw the club’s owners up sticks and move to Northampton.
Those owners remain in place and the breakdown in trust between them and supporters has yet to heal but the return to Coventry, the ambitious appointment of Tony Mowbray as manager and signings such as the recent loan deal for Joe Cole have given rise to hope of better days ahead.
And that provides a contrast to the Cobblers, seen as the model of a well-run club when they hosted the Sky Blues, given the recent tumult of off-field issues that have threatened the very existence of NTFC.
On the one hand, Saturday’s game is a chance to forget those woes for the large number of travelling fans set to make the short journey to Coventry and also take advantage of reduced prices for the match.
But it also provides the stage for those supporters to make their dissatisfaction clear.