Coventry Rugby 35 Exeter XV 40 - Wake Me Up When September Ends

Here comes the rain again

Falling from the stars

Drenched in my pain again

Becoming who we are

As my memory rests

But never forgets what I lost

Wake me up when September ends

Summer has come and passed

The innocent can never last

Wake me up when September ends

Wake Me Up When September Ends - Green Day

I missed the first two pre-season friendlies, so it wouldn't be fair for me to judge the strength of the squad Alex Rae assembled for the 2025/26 season solely based on yesterday's performance against a fairly young and relatively inexperienced Exeter team.

As I recall, this time last year, expectations were high.

Even with the departure of players like Rigg, Wand, Pellegrini, Chudley (players who would surely be automatic contenders for a place in the pantheon of Cov greats to have played at the BPA), Cov's best finish in the professional era had led many supporters, myself included, to believe that despite the arrival of several new players in the summer of 2024, momentum would continue with the club offering season long competition with Ealing for the top slot.

After what was a very bright start that did nothing to dampen those hopes, Cov's season fell away from December onwards and in the end a fifth-place finish was probably a fair assessment of our season as a whole.

With so many players leaving at the end of last season, I think all but the most optimistic of fans believe that Cov will be vying for a top two finish in April next year. Despite the club's assertion that it had made 'a string of high-profile new signings' over the summer, few names registered with me other than Morgan Strong and Aristot Benz-Salomon (and neither of those I'd count as high-profile). This, together with the departure of some seasoned Championship players with a proven track record at this level, well hopes are probably a little more realistic this time round.

Before the first of the pre-season friendlies, I maintained I would be happy with a place in the play-offs.

Based purely then on what I saw yesterday, that belief remains unchanged.

To finish fourth would be at the higher end of my expectations, below sixth would have to register as a poor season (especially as I believe Cov is one of just 5 fully professional clubs in The Champ this season?).

With Donny, Bedford and Pirates having recruited strongly and with Worcester and Ealing obviously having the two strongest squads in the league by a country mile, even a fourth-place finish at this stage in the season looks to be a tough ask.

The players Rae has recruited, many of whom lack experience at this level, might well prove to be shrewd selections. However, there will inevitably be a transitional phase, a period during which the squad needs to bond, the coaches need to determine the best combinations, and the players adjust to the pace and tempo of The Champ. While pre-season will help achieve much of this, it won't be until four or five games into the season that we'll truly understand the potential of this group of players.

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I am certain the players and coaches would strongly oppose much of what is mentioned above. I hope they are approaching this season, as is the case in all seasons, with the mindset of 'we're in it to win it'...

...but I also hope they appreciate that for supporters like myself, who have watched Cov grapple with the pre-season hype for decades (originating as much from the stands as from the club, I must add), a more measured approach to the season's goals is perhaps understandable.

Beyond predictions for on-field performance this season, Cov deserves significant praise for achieving many of the goals that fans usually set beyond the rugby itself. For instance, having both home and away replica kits available in the club shop well before the first Championship game is, in itself, a notable accomplishment.

Frequently, this hasn't been the case, and perhaps equally impressive is that both kits seem to have been well-received by supporters. In past seasons, one kit (often the away strip) typically sparked some division among fans, but this year, opinions appear to be positive on both. Initially, I was uncertain about the away strip when I saw it onCov's socials, but up close, it works well, and I'm confident it will be popular with many, especially amongst the scores of travelling faithful.

Tickets were also available for collection yesterday, something that hasn't always been the case and with supporters able to sign up for either email alerts or follow the club's news via its various social media platforms, communication between club and supporters has never been better. It's not perfect by any means (there were no text updates from the U23 game for example), but it is so much better than it was.

The use of WhatsApp should mean that those less familiar with the likes of Instagram and X should at least have access to this and thereby receive far more Cov news than previously. Sound move from Cov, that one.

One small gripe - the club priced the pre-season games very reasonably at just £5 for adults and free to those U16. I think that's really fair. However, you then have to add on an extra £2 as a booking fee - an extra 40% of the total cost of an adult ticket.

I guess the amount is determined by the company Cov uses to administrate the ticket sales but even so, they will have been aware of the cost when they signed the contract. It does seem a lot for what in effect is just a simple electronic transaction, one which will be made thousands of times over the course of a season (and Cov won't be the only club using the software either).

As I said, not necessarily the club's fault, but it is a rip-off.

I was never a great fan of Food Heroes for a number of reasons so the return of a choice of food pitch-side food options is welcome too. Pre-season games haven't always been especially well catered for (pun intended), so to have a couple of external food vans there was good to see, (together with a coffee and ice-cream vans, too. Yay!).

For those who have contacted me concerned about the possible demise of the Champ Food Watch this year, fear not. It will make its return with Coventry's visit to Six Ways in the first week of October. My grandson has agreed to continue his assessment of the food offered at all the Champ grounds this season - Josh is a true gourmet and connoisseur of good cuisine; a person with a discerning palate, one fast becoming a leading expert in this field.

Yesterday, he tried the hot dog, feeling somewhat let down by the burger at the Academy game the previous night. He noted that while the bun was fresh, the onions were slightly undercooked for his taste, and the sausage was somewhat lacking in flavour, though it was satisfactory. The fries were also quite standard, not standing out from typical fare of this kind. Priced at £13 (including a bottle of water), it was likely on the higher end of what is acceptable, and if it had been part of the official Food Watch assessments, it would have received an average score of 6/10. This might seem reasonable now, but compared to the options at Chinnor, Caldy, and Cambridge last season, it would rank lower mid-table at best.

A tough adjudicator is Josh.

It was a sizeable crowd yesterday. I've not heard a figure quoted as yet but even though Exeter is a Prem outfit, with the club also putting out a strong first team against Bath this weekend, it was never going to include any of the big names that might have added a few hundred to the total attendance.

The game was entertaining, primarily due to the physicality of the two sides, each filled with players eager to catch the attention of coaches who have not yet selected their initial competitive lineups for the season. It was neither free-flowing nor open, but as a prequel to what the club might expect to face at Sixways in a couple of weeks, it was arguably just the kind of workout Rae would have wanted.

There were certainly plenty of positives to come out of the game. The forwards did well for the most part, with the scrum looking very solid and causing Exeter a number of problems at times. Whilst we have all the props/hookers available, we have two first choice front rows which should ensure Rae is able to rotate players whilst there are no injuries.

Our lineout functioned well. other than one in which we failed to compete on our own throw. Against a very large and gnarly opposition 4 and 5, we struggled to disrupt their throw and in Alfie Bell (at 4), Cov had to contend with a second rower who will likely be as physical and feisty as any they're likely to encounter this season. Nuneaton born, Bell made himself a constant nuisance and brought a level of physicality to the game that we don't often see at this level.

Whilst the two sides were pretty evenly matched for the most part, once Exeter got close to our line, their forwards proved virtually unstoppable and although defensively Coventry coped extremely well with most of the attacking threat that Exeter had to offer, we did struggle to stop their rolling maul.

There was little room for either set of backs to work with and even Will Rigg struggled to make an impact other than in the final few minutes. Cov's defensive line held strong and in Oli Morris and Morgan Adderley-Jones, Cov has a centre pairing that is capable of shutting out most Champ backlines. We didn't have an opportunity to see much in the way of attacking options yesterday, but Peter Sullivan looked a big unit and, with some space to run into, he might well cause some damage.

It looks like Josh Thomas will be given the 10 shirt initially, but Tommy Mathews looked sharp when he came on and made a couple of important tackles, too. Thomas looked assured and has a sweet left foot, although he wasn't able to get the backline going yesterday; it just wasn't that sort of game. Creativity was at a minimum really, with Maunder's little dink through to give Adderley-Jones Cov's first try of the afternoon one of the few highlights on that score.

There are definitely options at 10, as there appear to be across the squad, other than perhaps out wide where Api Bavadra played out of position due to the omission of David Opoku-Fordjour.

Surely, we'll need to bring in another winger, or at least dip into the on-loan/dual reg market? Taio Varndell was given 15 minutes or so at the end, but it's asking a lot of him to provide cover for the whole season. He's sure to be targeted by opposition coaches, as he was when he came on yesterday.

Morgan Strong worked tirelessly and was always willing to carry the ball, although he wasn't allowed much room by the opposition backrow that worked just as hard. He's not got the physical presence of, say, a Ryan Burrows, but he's of a similar mould. Tough, physical and no-nonsense. He looks a leader in the making at Cov and it will be interesting to see how he's used in that capacity.

Dan Green was one player who stood out for me yesterday. He made significant progress towards the end of last season, and it looks like he's spent considerable time in the gym over the summer, losing some weight while gaining muscle. Facing tough opponents, he was covered a lot of ground, scored a try, and was very vocal. At just 20 years old, he certainly has a bright future, and I wouldn't be surprised if several clubs show interest in him in the coming months.

Whilst the result was disappointing, Cov's refusal to buckle under the physical nature of Exeter's game and their ability to front up to the challenge they faced was encouraging. Whilst Joron Poole suffered a shiner, I'm hoping that despite the bruising nature of the encounter, there were no serious injuries that would discount any players from selection for the Worcester game in a two weeks' time. If there are, they weren't obvious.

September has now all but ended, the pre-season friendlies now over. The innocence can never last...

...going to be a tough season this one, and it doesn't get much tougher than the trip to Worcester for the season's opener.

Should be a belter.

Up the Cov.

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It's the end of September. Time to wake up and face the music.