Nottingham 26 Coventry Rugby 52 - Cov robbin' the hood in 8 try blitz

Hold onto your hearts, if you can!

It's been the coldest year since records began

And now the sun is coming up again in no man's land

So let's go, into tomorrow

Together fighting

We're bows and arrows!

You and me on the front line

You and me, every time

It's always you and me, we're bows and arrows

Bows and Arrows - The Kaiser Chiefs

One of the biggest concerns pre-match was the likely condition of Nottingham's pitch given that just three months ago the whole ground had been submerged under several feet of water following unprecedented amounts of rainfall over Christmas and the New Year.

It was so severe that for a while it looked as if home games for the rest of the season could be in doubt and a 'JustGiving' account was set up to raise funds to help repair damage to the marquee and surrounding areas caused by the flooding in Lady Bay.

As examples of nominative determinism go, Lady Bay proved to be a good one back in January and early February.

Nottingham's ground in January

And yesterday...

Fast forward to Sunday and the pitch looked in remarkably good condition, despite all the recent rain, and it was surprisingly firm under foot. A good few people must have put in a good few hours to get the ground back to its current state - a truly remarkable turnaround.

Despite a fairly stiff breeze, conditions were near perfect and as a result spectators from both sides were treated to something of a try-fest, 12 in all with plenty of attacking rugby on display from both teams. Coventry thoroughly deserved the win but Nottingham showed great resilience. Having seemingly been out of the game at half-time, the Archers fought back to earn a try-bonus themselves, causing many of the travelling Cov supporters a few nerves in the process.

Coventry's dominance up front in the opening 40 minutes meant that even a resurgent second half display from the home side was never going to be enough. Coventry's scrum had Nottingham in complete disarray at the set piece and the two starting Nottingham props both suffered the ignominy of being replaced on 39 minutes.

Both of them.

I've certainly seemed planned changes made in the opening half, but I'm not sure I can recall such a panic response as that, not with a minute or two remaining until the half-time whistle.

It was a really odd call from the Nottingham coaches - faced with a scrum on their 5m line, the two props, including Jake Bridges who was himself a Cov player last season, were taken off presumably in the belief that the two replacement props would fare better. It wasn't to be. The scrum that followed duly collapsed, Cov were awarded a penalty try and Kai Owen (who also played a few games for Cov in 2021 whilst at Worcester) was sent to the sin bin.

I seldom, if ever, criticise players or coaches and it might well have been the correct decision to make purely in terms of the state of play at that particular moment in the game. However, I still stand by the fact that it was an 'odd call' in that it can't have done much for either prop's confidence levels given it was pretty much the last play of the half, especially in the light of what followed. It hardly suggested that the coaches had great confidence in them at that juncture.

There wasn't that much at stake to warrant it really and certainly everyone in the crowd around us, whether green and white or blue and white, felt it was a really tough on the Nottingham props.

Toby Trinder, who was propping against Jake Bridges had a few words with the former Cov Academy player after the game - goodness knows what he will have said to him.

Interestingly, we spent a few minutes watching Nottingham warm-up which was unusual for us as generally it's always about Cov and never about the opposition in the build-up to a game. We knew Jake was starting for them and we decided to get a look at him before kick-off. Interestingly, he was being singled out for encouragement by the rest of the forwards as they packed down and it was clear he was hyped up. There were lots of pats on the back and words of encouragement which made what unfolded in that opening 40 minutes all the more disappointing.

Sad really that in twelve months' time the thing I'll remember most about the game is not the fact that it was so open and entertaining, but rather the replacement of the two props with barely a minute left of the first half. I think it was made worse for me because of Jake B's previous involvement with Cov - he appeared a really likeable, honest player who'd progressed from the Academy. It was a such shame to see him have to leave the pitch in that manner.

No mention of the changes was made in Nottingham's post-match report, or even of the yellow for Kai Owen, which is odd, given they were huge moments in the unfolding of the game.

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It's a good set up at Nottingham.

Decent facilities, a basic but functional stand and because they only get relatively small crowds by Cov standards (around the 1300 mark yesterday, helped by a good number of Coventry supporters I might add!), it's devoid of the lengthy queues that so often are the cause of deep frustration at the BPA.

I was also impressed the club was already pushing the sale of season tickets for next season.

Sowing the seeds of interest this early, when supporters are still attending games and enjoying the atmosphere, makes far more sense than leaving it until after the season has ended and relying on Early Bird deals and the like.

Hopefully, Cov's planning something similar for the Bedford game on Saturday, or failing that then London Scottish on 3rd May - prices for next season must be known by now so why not start selling tickets when the club is on such a good run and pushing for its highest finish since the professional era began? It's the ideal time, surely?

The only downside to watching rugby at Nottingham is the view from the main stand. It has the look of a 'permanently temporary' stand, an oxymoron I know but it does lack the solidity afforded by most stands designed to be lasting structures...

Apologies for the quality of the photos above (unless it's a case point and click, I'm clueless), but they do illustrate the point. The aluminium 'stanchions' impede the view and for someone used to the openness of the main stand at the BPA, it made watching the game far less enjoyable, so much so that we quickly left our seats and stood over on the opposite side where there were some temporary terraces (only 4 or five rows high) which afforded far better visibility.

For those home supporters used to sitting in the stand on a regular basis it probably isn't an issue but it's not the best of designs in terms of watching a sporting activity.

We arrived at Lady Bay about 90 minutes before kick-off which afforded Josh enough time to partake of a burger and chips. At £13.50 it's becoming quite an expensive meal these days, but for him it's an essential part of the match day experience and it's something I'd never begrudge him. It's something that has over the years, quite literally, fuelled his love of the game and of Saturday afternoons watching Cov in particularly. Money well spent on my part. I have to own up here and admit I enjoyed a portion of chips, too - the result of muscle memory from previous visits to Lady Bay in seasons past. (To be honest it's the best excuse I could come up with, I'd already had a roll on the coach on the way up!)

As always, we put in a few laps of the pitch, soaking up the atmosphere the closer it got to 3.00 pm. Watching the Cov players warm up is always interesting, all have their own idiosyncrasies in the minutes before the squad comes together for the final run 30 minutes before the game, some preferring to be alone, others content to warm up working alongside each other.

Watching James Tyas using his elasticated resistance cord is always fun - it's something he feels is improving his sprinting over short distances (it certainly seems to be having a positive effect given his break last weekend against Cambridge where he left a couple of defenders standing). It also seems to be something that Tom Hitchcock is an advocate of, as the photo above illustrates.

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One of the most disappointing aspects to the game was the number of injuries Cov suffered. Suva Ma'asi appeared to dislocate a thumb (popping it back in himself by all accounts), Tiki Nayalo had what looked to be a nasty bang to the head and James Tyas seemed to be in considerably discomfort as he was led off the pitch towards the end of the game. And that's just the ones we were aware of.

Ma'asi could well be available next week, but a six-day recovery period for Tyas and Nayalo looks unlikely; both would be big losses ahead of the Bedford game. It was a tough, physical encounter, especially amongst the forwards in the first half, but it didn't appear any more so than most Championship games this season - just a question of the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, I guess, which is all the more ironic given were playing the Archers.

Still, in Poole, Owen and Anstley there are quality players to come in so we're not in a difficult position really, although we could be a bit light on the bench.

Chester Owen looks to be improving with every game. the first of his two tries yesterday was a real barnstormer, reminiscent of a rampaging Ryan Burrows, barrelling his way through a couple of defenders from 25 metres out and showing a good turn of speed in the process.

As mentioned earlier, Cov dominated the first half with the forwards making life extremely difficult for Nottingham at the scrum in particular. Their pack was mullered on a couple of occasions and with the penalty count at the scrums increasing, it looked as if it was going to be a long afternoon. Nottingham were not without their moments though, with their fly half causing Cov plenty of problems with a couple of dinks into open space behind the Coventry backs.

Up 7-26 at half time, the break appeared to work in Nottingham's favour. Down to 14 they were quick to open the scoring and although they conceded two quick tries, once back to a full complement of players the scrum began to look more solid and indeed caused Cov some difficulties. Nottingham hit their best patch in that third quarter, pulling the score back to 26-38 and creating enough space to remind us of just how threatening a side they can be with ball in hand - those who were at the BPA to see Nottingham's second half fight back in the Premiership Cup will bear witness to that.

Cov, though, finished the stronger of the two teams and pulled away again with Venner and Pellegrini crossing the line in the final 10 minutes. (Pellegrini accumulated 20 points to consolidate his place at the top of the 'Championship Top Point Scorer' table). It seems that the rumour that Tobi Wilson is on his way to Ealing is gaining momentum which might explain why Evan Mitchell started at fullback for the second week running. I hadn't realised that Mitchell has played at 15 before so it could be that the club want to give him game time there in readiness for next season, along with Louis James when fit.

Cov's handling when a little awry in the final stages of the game, understandable given the pace it was played at and in truth both teams had opportunities to add to their totals. Cov deserved the win and the margin didn't flatter them to be fair.

Winning away against Nottingham, well there had to be a 'robbin' the 'hood' pun in there somewhere. Apologies.

Momentum is definitely with Cov right now and when Bedford come to town next Saturday, confidence will be sky high which is more than can be said of Bedford after their demoralising defeat at the hands of their derby rivals Ampthill, who beat them at Goldington Road at the weekend. I'm sure the coaches' words will still be ringing in the players' ears as they run out onto the BPA in six days' time...

Finally, a big thanks to the CRSC for organising all the away day transport for Cov supporters this and every season for the past few years. Although it's all seamless on the day, these things never happen without a lot of time and energy having been expended first and it feels appropriate, after the final away day of the season, to recognise this publicly - certainly I would be able to post on away games without the efforts of Phil R, Steve, Paul and Frank (whose surname I don't know).

So let's go, into tomorrow

Together fighting

We're bows and arrows!

You and me on the front line

You and me, every time

It's always you and me, we're bows and arrows

Up the Cov!

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