Caldy 15 Coventry Rugby 43 - Raving mad: Cov spoil the party in second half blitz

It's my party and I'll cry if I want to

Cry if I want to

Cry if I want to

You would cry too if it happened to you

It's My Party - Lesley Gore

In the lead up to the Caldy game, one statistic above all others seemed to stand out - whilst Cov had scored 160 of their 278 points this season in the first half, Caldy had scored 153 of their 203 points in the second half (many thanks to Richard Stokes for providing this on the Unofficial Cov website).

So, with Caldy entering the break leading 15-10 this, together with home advantage, suggested that the home side likely held a slight edge. Cov would need to dig deep to overturn a scoreline that in truth reflected the flow of play in what had been a rather frustrating first half for any Cov supporters present in the crowd, of which there were a fair few.

Caldy's loyal followers on the other hand, fondly referred to as 'The Ravers' in rugby circles due to their historical penchant for off-field revelry, likely anticipated another night of celebration. However, hopes for any post-match festivities were swiftly dashed right after halftime. An invigorated Cov team scored 33 unanswered points, effectively neutralising any threat from Caldy. They showcased a display of controlled attacking rugby and a defence that stifled any offensive options from a Caldy side that struggled to contain a dominant Cov performance in the second half.

Cov appeared in every aspect to be what they are today: a fit, well-coached, and well-prepared professional club. In contrast, and I don't mean this in a negative way, Caldy had a more old-school physical appearance. Their pack looked significantly heavier (at least around the middle) and seemed less physically fit and, as early as half-time, they had already begun to look tired with the front row, in particular, blowing heavily.

The strength of Cov's bench was a big factor in Cov's ability to maintain such a high level of physicality - with the likes of Poole, Benz -Solomon, Hunt and Green adding plenty of power to the forwards and Maunder controlling the game from behind the scrum with a judicious mix of box kicks and quick fire passing that had Caldy constantly on the backfoot. Whilst he might lack a little of Barton's pace and intensity, at his best Maunder's ability to control a game is as good as any 9 in The Champ.

Cov had the benefit of a slight slope in the second half and they were able to keep the home side in their own half for much of that period and with Cov's control and discipline again very tight, Caldy had few opportunities to venture into our 22.

Indeed, I'm struggling to recall any notable attacking play from Caldy in the second half, other than a 35 metre run from the left wing (Carroll?) who had Cov scrambling back to chase him down; fortunately, it's the only time he found himself in any space but he certainly looked as if he could cause the opposition a shed load of problems should he be given a bit more space to work with.

It was a really impressive second 40 from Cov and with Ealing up next, it will give them plenty of confidence, although Ealing's resilience and physical presence are going to be on a completely different level to that of Caldy. And it should be noted, too, that despite the size of the win, Cov had to work hard to break down a resilient Caldy side that for much of that first half matched Cov up front, although offering little in the way of attacking options if further than 10 metres out from the Cov line.

For Cov supporters, the first half was something of a frustrating watch. Cov played with pace and intent but too often they were victims of their own desire to move the ball a little too quickly. Wayward passes or dropped catches meant that opportunities to attack were quickly wasted and whilst we struggled to find a degree of continuity, Caldy were patient and workmanlike, if not a little predictable. Their forwards, while possibly lacking the same level of agility around the field, were effective in open play and strong in the set piece giving Cov no quarter in the first half.

When we did get it right before half time, we looked like we had the beating of Caldy out wide with Jack Reeves looking sharp all afternoon (he reminds me a lot of Jack Nowell). Reeves has a very low centre of gravity and is an extremely difficult player to put down, being both very quick and extremely physical. Added to this, he has a tremendous left boot on him and his 50:22 was the catalyst for Bacon's sixth try on 68 minutes. Add Sullivan and McNab to the mix, along with Garret and Bavadra too, if required, and we have possibly the strongest set of wingers we've had for many a long season.

Even in the first half, I thought Tait and Strong were highly effective. Strong excelled in his usual role, challenging the opposition at every chance, gaining tough metres, and drawing in the defence to create quick ball opportunities, opening up space for subsequent phases. Tait is increasingly impressive to me; he's a strong, powerful runner and very reliable defensively. While he may not stand out as much as Allan Ferrie did last season, he is that type of player and is forming a strong partnership with Strong and Ball.

Once again, Rhys Fulford had another very encouraging game and had it not been for Reeves' eye-catching 4 tries, he would have been a strong call for Cov's man of the match. His work rate is exceptional for a second row and he's very mobile with it - as is Dan Green, too. He's another strong ball carrier and on Saturday in the first half he put in a very good defensive shift and later in the game he was unlucky that his charge down saw the ball bounce awkwardly, otherwise it could well have led to another Cov try.

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Paton Field is one of the more bucolic settings, alongside that of Dillingham Park of course, and it's one of those grounds that doesn't really reflect the level of rugby being played there. Again that might sound a little dismissive, but at Championship level, you kind of expect at least one major stand, a big club house and plenty of pitchside facilities for supporters. That's just not the case at Caldy.

Toilets are scarce, and aside from a few wooden benches, there's no seating area at all on the clubhouse side and just a very small trailer size stand on the far side that wouldn't be anywhere near big enough in adverse weather conditions. There's no floodlighting or notable outdoor lighting that I can recall, and it doesn't appear at all welcoming for anyone with a physical disability that affects their ability to walk more than a few steps.

Fortunately, for the last few years, the weather has been on our side, but if wet then the surrounding area around the pitch, particularly one end and the side opposite the clubhouse, could become treacherous underfoot. At my age I think I'd seriously have to consider traveling up to Caldy even now were heavy rain forecast.

I do recall it snowing there in April back in 2018, the year we were promoted to the Championship - indeed, it was the win at Caldy that officially sealed it.

However, what Paton Field certainly does have is its own unique atmosphere. Although the crowds have never been large whenever I've watched Cov play there (just 1,267 on Saturday), there's always a lot of noise. In fact, I felt there were a couple of instances when the volume of the home supporters in front of the clubhouse influenced the referee, although I'm sure that's happened at the NNS on the odd occasion!

This all looks set to change shortly though, with the local council having approved plans to build a new clubhouse and upgrade the facilities there to bring it in line with the modern era and also , hopefully, generate additional income opportunities for the club as well.

Such a build would change the nature of the club considerably, of course, and not necessarily for the best given that one of Caldy's charms is the way it has retained so much of its past, despite all its recent successes.

However, with the demands of all clubs in the top tiers of the game to be more self-sustainable, perhaps it is time to modernise; I just hope it's able to cling on to its integrity and not be forced to sell its soul to some outside backers that have little interest in the game itself.

A major attraction of visiting Paton Field is the match day food, which is consistently the finest among any club in The Champ - and you don't have to rely solely on my opinion. Young Josh, despite his youth, is already a veteran of Championship catering and has ranked Caldy at the top of the Unoffy Champ Food league for the last two seasons. If the competition was still active this year, Caldy would probably secure a third consecutive title, even with fewer than half of the grounds visited.

The chilli beef tacos went down a treat - just the right amount of zing to them and with plenty of fresh onions, tomato and cheese to complement them perfectly. For £8, they represented very good value for money in what is becoming a very competitive market this year.

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Tom Ball getting some additional strapping to his knee before the game on Saturday

The win, good as it was, did seem to come at a cost, though.

At least two players, Tom Ball and Tommy Mathews, seemed to be either carrying injuries or were injured during the game. Tom Ball looked to be struggling very early on with a leg injury having previously called over the physio just before kick off. In fairness, I'm surprised he lasted as long as the 47 minute as he looked to be in some discomfort throughout most of the first half.

Mathews stayed on the whole game but he, too, appeared to be struggling and at one point he apologised to the ref just before taking a conversion, saying he was 'in a lot of pain' - what he was apologising for wasn't clear but he certainly was wincing a little in that second half. Hopefully, it's something that will settle over the week but with Houston on international duty with Zimbabwe and no news coming out of the camp about the fitness of Josh Thomas, options at 10 against Ealing are limited to say the least.

It would be interesting to know what the game plan on Saturday was. Was it to keep Caldy quiet for the first half and then open up the game more as they tired and we brought on fresh legs off the bench or was it the case, as it looked to me, that we had intended to play an expansive game from the start but it just didn't click until after the break?

We certainly limited their attacking options from the start but it wasn't until Reeves crashed over for his third try on 45 minutes that we really took control. Once the quick offloads stuck and Cov was able to create panic in a very uncertain Caldy defence, that the floodgates seemed to open. We'd tried to do this in the first half at times but the accuracy just didn't seem to be there and, as a result, their forwards were more in the game than they should have been. The uncertainly Cov created second half with players making runs from all sorts of angles was just something Caldy couldn't cope with.

By the end of the game, the difference between the relative positions of the two teams in The Champ table was there for all to see. Caldy, one above the bottom team Hartpury on points, looked a side that might find this season their toughest yet in this league. Cov, on the other hand, showed just what an attacking force they are if they play to their strengths and show the kind of accuracy in attack that we saw for long periods in that second half.

Ealing on Sunday will be a completely different challenge. Several times in recent seasons we've matched, or even bettered them, for 60 minutes only for them to pull away in the final quarter. However, I honestly believe that this is a squad capable of beating Ealing if, and it is a big if, they can match them up front and give the backs the kind of ball and with the similar space and accuracy that we saw on Saturday.

It's a big ask...

...but I live in hope.

Up the Cov!

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At Paton Field on Saturday, Cov gate-crashed the party...