What a field day for the heat
A thousand people in the street
Singing songs and carrying signs
Mostly saying, "Hooray for our side"
Paranoia strikes deep
Into your life it will creep
It starts when you're always afraid
Step out of line, the men come and take you away
Liam Gallagher - For What It's Worth
Okay, paranoia might be a slight exaggeration, but I don't remember chatting to too many supporters pre-season who fancied Cov finishing in the top half of the Championship. In fairness, no one spoke of the dread 'R' word either, but the general consensus was that this was to be a season of consolidation for Coventry and as such a season a finish close to mid-table cvould be seen as a successful one.
Alex Rae had brought together a young squad, one that lacked the kind of experience the likes of me had always assumed was a necessity if a club was to survive in the Championship for any length of time. The playing budget appeared to have been stripped to the bare bones, forcing AR to bring in relatively inexperienced players who might otherwise have expected to wait their turn at this level, as well as opting to promote several youngsters from the Academy to add to a squad that had lost key players in virtually all areas of the team.
And it's perhaps worth remembering some of those players who departed Cov at the end of last season. The likes of Boulton, Jeannot, Kpoku (admittedly with a season ln injury)), Dacres, Burrows, Barton, Fenner, Forsyth, Knox, Owen, Stevenson and Emery et al. All players who'd had experience of Championship rugby and above and who had helped make up the backbone of Cov sides in seasons past.
Small wonder then that the doubting Thomas', and I put myself very much at top and centre amongst that group, feared a long and often painful season in which we'd lose more games than we'd win and away from home we'd fair even less well - never Cov's strength over the years.
Yet here we are, just over half way through the season, lying a comfortable third and with AR and the players publicly talking of a possible second place finish behind champions in wating, Ealing Trailfinders.
And next up is Jersey at home on 14th Jan and a chance to further reduce the 8 point gap between the two sides.
I'm still struggling to understand how AR and the coaches have instilled such belief and confidence in a relatively inexperienced group of players in such a short space of time.
And it's not just the number of wins that has impressed me, no for me it's the quality of the performances that has been most striking. Coventry haven't just ground out victories, they've played a brand of rugby that has been exciting to watch, as good as anything that Rowland Winter's teams produced at their zenith. And it's worth stressing at this point that I was, and still am, a big RW fan (providing the reasons for his dismissal are never made public and I'm suddenly forced to change my opinion).
Much of the talk amongst supporters this season, or at least amongst those who chat pre and post match to the players and coaches, is of the bond that has been formed within the group. Everyone seems happier and more at ease than in previous seasons. This is also evident from the regular postings on social media that are emanating from the club these days, all adding to the feeling (and it is only a feeling tbf) that the players are enjoying themselves far more under Rae than under the previous regime. This openness and willingness to share clips of training (and to see the lighter side of life as a player at Coventry Rugby) is perhaps in itself indicative of a greater sense of freedom these days.
Pure conjecture I accept, but that's how it feels to an outsider looking in.
And maybe the reason is more obvious than it might at first seem. Rowland Winter's legacy is there for all to see. From day one of his arrival, he undertook a root and branch review of the club and over the first two or three seasons he transformed it into something approaching what it is now. He had an extraordinary vision, both of the modern game and of how the club needed to adapt to it in way that Phil Maynard never seemed to have. He brought in coaches and analysts who bought into his vision, whilst at the same time streamlining the club administration, supported of course by the board and Jon Sharp.
His was very much a Director of Rugby's approach. By his own admission, he was never the best of coaches and whilst he did initially take the role of Attack Coach (this is from memory), I think he quickly dropped that to adopt a more over-arching brief. His three year plan for promotion into the Championship was completed within two, such was his leadership at the club at that time.
But following serious knee injuries in his late teens, RW never played to the game to any great level and so maybe he lacked what Alex Rae possesses in bucket loads - experience on the pitch. Significantly, AR is Cov's Head Coach, not it's DoR and perhaps therein lies the real reason for Coventry's stunning start to this season. Having quickly established himself as Winter's successor in the latter half of last season, he had the players' immediate respect as he had proved himself for many seasons as a player with the likes of Northampton (with whom he won the league), Bedford, Saracens, Wasps and Jersey. When things get tough for Rae, he has those experiences to fall back on and despite all his strengths, the same wasn't true of RW. Maybe AR understands the players, and the pressures on them, a little better than RW did for this reason.
And perhaps in the end, RW lost the dressing room, and with it the respect of the players, because he never truly saw things from their viewpoint.
This is pure speculation on my part and I have no evidence to suggest this is the case, but it is an explanation, or least part explanation, of why things might have begun to fall apart in the final months/weeks of RW's tenure. Yes, like many, I've heard rumours of player welfare and so on, but even these fit into the above scenario to certain degree.
I guess we'll never know the true reason for RW's departure and it's probably right from the club's point of view that we don't. But, because we won't, supporters like me will always speculate...much to the annoyance of some I imagine.
Back to this season though. The stats speak for themselves:
Coventry have never been known as a club who fare well away from home, ask any of the loyal Cov fans who follow their team week in, week out the length and breadth of the country.
Over the years, I've had my fair few away day blues myself so to see Cov not only winning away from home this season. but also in some style is one of the most heart-warming aspects of the club's resurgence. Cov have scored more points on their travels than any other Championship side with the exception of Jersey Reds and ahead of (almost unbelievably) Ealing Trailfinders.
Who'd have thought, eh? It's the fact that Cov aren't just grinding out the win, they're blowing the opposition off the park, that makes this so excting.
They're creative and inventive and they're scoring more tries in the backs than the forwards these days. With a back line that is still relatively young, they're only going to get stronger provided the club can keep hold of them. And given their successes so far, that's no guarantee for sure.
The loss of Tony Fenner on the pitch was obviously a concern initially, although Pat Pellegrini's performances thus far (and more of this in a future post) have shown that he certainly isn't irreplaceable. His departure as a coach has been less problematic for me and the appointment of Ed Robinson appears to be something of a coup by all accounts.
Things certainly look a lot brighter than they did 12 months ago. Gone, temporarily at least, are the worries and fears on the playing front, although who knows what the Championship look like in a couple of years time.
The remainder of the season brings with it an air of anticipation amongst those who follow Cov these days. If Cov continue to display the same 'Raeball' approach to their rugby as the national cricket team has in Bazball to their game , then attendances at the BPA will continue to increase even in these troubled times.
I fully admit I showed less faith in Alex Rae and his squad back in August than they deserved, so here's an apology of sorts...
...For What It's Worth
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