By Coventry Rugby 
By Alex Didlick
Back on home turf and eager to put last week’s disappointment at Sixways behind them, Coventry delivered a thrilling performance at the Butts Park Arena. In a breathless encounter full of pace, power and heart, the Dogs edged Bedford Blues 35–30 to mark their first win of the new Champ Rugby campaign.
It was a frantic opening five minutes as both sides looked to assert themselves on the game. After last weekend’s officiating drama, the Coventry faithful were in full voice, keeping a close eye on the referee’s every move. That didn’t stop him from awarding three quick penalties against the hosts, inviting early Bedford pressure deep into the Coventry 22.
Yet the Blues couldn’t capitalise. Instead, Coventry turned defence into attack in devastating style. Off the back of an overthrown lineout by Bedford’s Herman in the ninth minute, the Dogs countered brilliantly. Surging the length of the pitch through the hands of Morris, Sullivan and finally Tom Bacon – in his first outing at the BPA – the fullback made light work of the Blues defence to finish superbly.
Cov looked to stretch their lead soon after, as a clever grubber kick from Sam Maunder nearly released Oli Morris, only for some excellent cover defence from Louis James to deny the score.
In an action-packed first quarter, Bedford’s persistence finally paid off. Coventry’s Jack Shine was penalised for a knock-on, and former Cov man Will Maisey slotted the penalty to open the Blues’ account, 7–3.
The maul battle was rampant in a congested opening 20 minutes, but it looked as though Coventry were starting to get the hang of it. After being held up in the red zone minutes earlier, this time around the forwards were rewarded with a penalty. Thomas calmly split the uprights to restore Coventry’s seven-point cushion.
In a game of kick tennis, Coventry again gifted Bedford points in an inviting position. Sam Maunder’s misdirected kick created a mix-up leading to a penalty for obstruction. Three more points were converted by Maisey, with Cov frustrated to be pinned back to 10–6.
The penalty count continued to hurt the Dogs, and Bedford soon took full advantage. A well-worked maul saw Heffernan crash over on 27 minutes, before a slick series of passes allowed second-row Finch to stretch the away side’s lead to 18–10 heading towards the break.
But Coventry responded in style. A dominant scrum on the Bedford 22 laid the foundations, and after sharp interplay through the backs, Peter Sullivan finished expertly in the corner to close the gap to one. The half ended 18–17 – a fitting reflection of an end-to-end battle at the BPA.
The second half started in the worst possible fashion for Coventry, with a head-on-head collision reducing them to 14 men for 20 minutes. Scrum-half Sam Maunder was the unfortunate party.
Undeterred, the hosts fought back resiliently. Skipper Jordon Poole broke the line to put them deep into Bedford territory. From another dominant scrum, replacement nine Josh Barton spotted space down the blindside, darting away before offloading to Morgan Strong, who powered over for the try. Thomas converted to restore the lead at 22–18.
Even with a man down, Coventry looked the sharper side. Oli Morris looked to be home and dry, but the referee had already called the ball back. No matter – the Dogs went again, and Josh Thomas threw himself over the line after powerful carries from the forwards.
Bedford needed something to reignite themselves in the contest, and Dean Adamson provided just that in the 56th minute. After electing to take a lineout, he chipped ahead before regathering to score an excellent solo try.
Moments later, Tom Bacon – who looks to have endless time in the backfield – was taken down in the 62nd minute while clearing his lines, gifting Thomas another shot at goal. He made no mistake, pushing Cov further ahead at 32–25.
With time ticking away, the BPA crowd urged their side to see it home, but Bedford had other ideas. A suspect forward pass went unnoticed in a late Blues attack, ending with Rory Ward diving over to make it 32–30 after the missed conversion.
As the clock wound down, Cov showed their steel. Another driving maul earned a penalty, and Thomas coolly converted to push the lead to five. The restart was well handled, and the ball was kicked out – sealing a thrilling 35–30 victory.
A hard-fought home opener full of grit, flashes of brilliance, and plenty of lessons to build on.
Player of the match- Morgan Strong
Attendance- 2764
Conversions:
Josh Thomas- 6/7
Will Maisey- 4//6
Try scorers:
Coventry RFC- Tom Bacon (9’), Peter Sullivan (39’), Morgan Strong (46’), Josh Thomas (54’)
Bedford Blues- Oisin Hefferman (29’), Nicholas Finch (34’), Dean Adamson
Coventry Rugby:
Aristot Benz-Salomon, Jordon Poole ©, Matt Johnson, Jack Shine, Senitiki Nayalo , Chester Owen, Tom Ball, Morgan Strong, Sam Maunder, Josh Thomas, Peter Sullivan, Dafydd Rhys-Tuieti, Oli Morris, David Opoku-Fordjour, Tom Bacon
Finishers:
Suva Ma’asi, Toby Trinder, Eliot Salt, Dan Green, Allan Ferrie, Josh Barton, Ewan Baker, Mackenzie Graham
Bedford Blues
Jamie Jack, Tommy Herman, Oisin Heffernan, Archie Benson, Rory Ward, Fyn Brown, Nicholas Finch, Tui Uru, Alex Day ©, Will Maisey, Dean Adamson, Lucas Titherington, George Worth, Ryan Hutler, Louis James
Finishers:
James Fish, Ollie Scola, Monty Royston, Ilan Evans, Kayde Sylvester, James Lennon, Tom Price, Michael Le Bourgeois
