By Paul Smith 
Led by a brace of Jordon Poole scores Coventry launched the second half of their Championship season with a 43-33 home win over Cambridge.
The Blue-and-Whites looked rusty at times following their five-week lay-off but despite this outscored their injury-hit visitors by seven tries to five to register a welcome bonus-point success and complete a seasonal double over the ‘Blood-and-Sand’.
Cov claimed a ‘nap hand’ of first-half tries through Poole’s double, debutant Jake Henry, Oli Morris and Josh Barton to which Cambridge responded through Will Glister and Iestyn Rees.
Ryan Hutler’s ninth score of the season plus a late effort from Suva Ma’asi topped up Cov’s account after the break but thanks to Glister’s second score, an Archie Vanes touchdown and a closing-seconds effort from former BPA favourite Pete White it was the visitors who ‘won’ the second half.
Cambridge made the worst possible start by losing hooker Morgan Veness to the sin bin for illegally stopping a Cov attack from an offside position.
And from the ensuing lineout the hosts promptly shunted skipper Poole over for his fifth try of the season.
After Tommy Mathews added an angled conversion Cambridge countered dangerously through full back Joe Tarrant but missed a good scoring opportunity when his inside pass went to ground.
However, when the visitors then took possession through a number of phases, Louis Grimoldby’s precise cross-kick picked out on-loan Northampton winger Glister who claimed a simple score which his no.10 upgraded with a fine kick.
Coventry’s lead was quickly restored when Hutler’s 50-22 pushed the hosts deep into Cambridge territory from where debutant Henry claimed his maiden try in blue-and-white in support of Daf Tiueti’s powerful break.
And Cov’s inside centre quickly created his club’s third score with a midfield break that this time left Morris with a clear run to the line.
Alex Rae’s team had the bonus point on the board early in the second quarter thanks to an action replay of their opening try, again touched down by hooker Poole and converted by Mathews.
The visitors looked dangerous on the break and after they again forced an attacking lineout deep in home territory their forwards eventually drove no.8 Rees under the posts for a score that Grimoldby improved.
Cov twice went close to extending their lead only for Hutler then Barton to be respectively recalled by the referee’s whistle for a push and a forward pass.
But the home side’s dominance of the opening 40 minutes was underlined when Barton took Mathews’ inside pass to register a fifth try – which his half-back partner also converted.
This left Cov holding a 17-point interval advantage but this was almost immediately reduced by five when a sloppy kick off reception routine allowed the visitors to send Glister to the corner for his second score.
A bullocking Billy Nairau run then created space for Mathews to send top try-scorer Hutler over for a score that Cov’s no.10 also converted.
But Cambridge refused to lie down and when they took play into Cov’s 22 replacement hooker Vanes forced his way under the posts for a bonus-point score which Grimoldby improved.
As the match went into the fourth quarter the home side held a ten-point advantage but Cambridge continued to threaten as both sides made a raft of replacements.
Muxh to the enjoyment of a 3048 home crowd, their team made the win points secure nine minutes from time by driving fit-again Ma’asi over from a close-range lineout for a try that Mathews converted.
Enough time remained for veteran no.9 White to dive over from close range after his forwards softened up the home defence with a sequence of powerful carries, but it was Coventry who took the five points on a day when top-half rivals Ealing, Bedford and Nottingham all suffered defeats.
Coventry: Hutler (Robson 56); Opoku, Morris, Tiueti, Henry; Mathews, Barton (Lane 52); Trinder (Warren 65), Poole (Biggs 63), Nairau (Salt 50); Tyas (Anstey 63), Nayalo; Ball, Hinkley (Green 40), Owen (Ma’asi 55)
Cambridge: Tarrant; Green (Baker 50), Hema, Betteridge (Williams 65), Glister; Grimoldby, Dawson (White 50); Ellwood (Nearchou 50), Veness (Vanes 50), Walker (Bridges 50); Bretag-Norris, Sylvester; Adams, Gaffan (Friend 74), Rees
Replacements: Skelcey
Referee: Dan Jones
Half-Time: Coventry Rugby 31-14 Cambridge
Attendance: 3048
Scorers:
Coventry:
Tries: Poole (2) (22), Henry (12), Morris (17), Barton (40), Hutler (48), Ma’asi (71)
Conversions: Mathews (2) (22) (40) (71)
Penalties:
Cambridge:
Tries: Glister (7) (41), Rees (27), Vanes (58), White (80)
Conversions: Grimoldby (7) (27) (58) (80)
Penalties:
