Coventry Rugby 36 Ealing Trailfinders 63 - how I wish you were here...

Did they get you to trade your heroes for ghosts?

Hot ashes for trees, hot air for a cool breeze?

Cold comfort for change? Did you exchange

A walk-on part in the war for a lead role in a cage?

How I wish, how I wish you were here

We're just two lost souls swimming in a fishbowl, year after year

Running over the same old ground, what have we found?

The same old fears, wish you were here

Wish You Were Here - Pink Floyd

Last Monday's debriefing must have made for uncomfortable listening following Cov's worse display away from home for quite some time. Chinnor had worked us over good and proper and the lack of a real response from Cov had left many fearing the worst against an Ealing side that was already looking ominously like champions in waiting just three into the 2025/25 campaign.

Alex Rae had suggested in his post-match comments that the players would learn things about each other during the course of the week leading up to yesterday's game against Ealing and for most supporters who turned up yesterday, the performance as much as the result was of greatest importance. Just what had they learned and to what extent would it impact on the team's performance on the pitch?

For those who weren't at the game and only saw the score without reading a game report, the answer might seem like 'not much'. Shipping nine tries and over 60 points isn't exactly encouraging without some context, but I genuinely believe that yesterday showed significant progress for a Coventry side that has already played three of the top sides in the league in the first 4 games and against Chinnor, showed it is still adapting to the substantial player changes that occurred over the summer break.

It's been a really tough start to The Champ but what doesn't break you often makes you stronger and one would hope that even though we're away from home next weekend, against newly promoted Richmond the players will deliver a positive performance and secure a crucial win to rejuvenate the season for a squad that has been left somewhat battered and bruised over the past four games.

Whilst there has been criticism amongst some supporters regarding Cov's second half performances so far this season, Cov I felt played for the full 80 minutes yesterday, it was just that after the break Ealing scored a try very early on to take control of the game at 22-35 and from thereon in Cov were having to play on the back foot with much of the game played deep inside Cov's half.

Despite the scoreline, the match never seemed entirely one-sided, even though it was clear that Ealing are currently operating on a different level to anything we've seen in the second tier since Saracens were promoted in 2021. Interestingly, in one of those peculiar twists of fate, Sarries defeated Ealing 57-15 in the second leg of their Championship play-off final, adding to their 60-0 victory in the first leg.

Ealing is significantly superior to any other club in this league, and despite Cov's best efforts, they just couldn't match Ealing's ability to score from any position on the field - whether it was from close range, where their maul was at times unstoppable, in the mid-field, or out wide, Ealing excelled.

For me, this Cov performance was more impressive than the one that nearly led us to victory against Worcester in the opening game given the quality of the opposition, and it was far better than our performance against Bedford. We took the game to Ealing, especially in the first half, and at the break and even though we had been on the rack at times, we were still very much in the game at 22-28 down. As we thought it might though, Ealing depth of squad proved our undoing even though our own bench looked far more of a threat than it had in the previous couple of games. Scoring 5 tries against Ealing is no mean feat.

I'll come back to the game itself a little later.

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Aside from the results so far, another disappointing aspect of the season's start is the decrease in spectators attending the first two home games.

A game of 2764 against Bedford, always one of the best attended fixtures of any season, perhaps a good 1000 plus less than might have been expected, and against Ealing yesterday only 2631 made it through the turnstiles.

Ok, Coventry City were at home but last year (albeit it in December 2024) 4523 attended the same fixture and in March 2024, 3182. Perhaps the prospect of losing heavily to what many Champ supporters already believe to be the champions-elect would be enough to put off some of the less committed Cov fans, but these should have been two of the better attended games, surely?

When Coventry relies on generating its own revenue to sustain the club's on-field progress, a decline of this size is sure to affect its long-term capability to build a competitive squad at this level, not to mention aiming for a play-off position. Perhaps the Board anticipated a drop in attendances in their financial plans for the season, and I apologise for questioning it if that's true, but it has certainly surprised me.

After witnessing record attendances being set and surpassed frequently over the past few seasons, it now appears we're far from reaching even a crowd of over 4,000. If the results and performances remain inconsistent, this situation is likely to persist at least until Christmas and the New Year and by no means assured, even then.

I still believe that ClubberTV might be partially responsible for this. When the streaming deal was initially announced, it seemed like a fantastic opportunity for The Champ and the individual clubs to promote the game to a broader audience beyond those regularly attending. However, what if it's actually drawing those dedicated fans away from attending the games in person instead of attracting new audiences?

Might this be occurring here? A season-long ClubberTV pass is definitely less expensive than a season ticket, not to mention all the additional expenses like travel, refreshments, and merchandise that accompany attending the game in person. Could it yet be something of an own goal? (Or perhaps an intercepted pass given what happened at the BPA yesterday).

Or is it a case of:

We're just...lost souls swimming in a fishbowl, year after year

Running over the same old ground, what have we found?

The same old fears, wish you were here

...with Cov fans becoming rather disillusioned with all the false dawns promised by the RFU and planned changes to the BPA that emerge every now and again from an enthusiastic Board only for everything to go quiet for another 12 months or so as the Council, or the investors, or whoever, slow the progress down to a snail's pace.

The same old ground and the same old fears...

I chose 'Wish You Were Here' to accompany this post for two reasons. On a superficial level, obviously it would be great to see a return to the sorts of attendances the BPA has enjoyed over the previous couple of seasons both for the atmosphere they create and for the financial benefits they bring.

Secondly, the song focuses on a specific type of disconnection, and despite arguments otherwise, the recent drop in attendance indicates that the fans, who were in the hundreds last season but are not attending the BPA this season, feel some form of detachment from the club. This could be due to basic costs, alternative ways to watch the game, a preferred way to spend a Saturday afternoon, or simply Cov's somewhat disappointing start to the season.

Whatever the reason;

I wish you were here...

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This weekend, there won't be an Unofficial Champ Food Watch because gastronome Josh has already reviewed the burger and chips in the Bedford post. However, he was somewhat disappointed upon arriving at the BPA to find that the Greek van had been replaced by a Noodle Bar.

As you can see from the photo above, the portion was a (un)healthy mountain of food! For just £12, you got noodles, 2 spring rolls, and a can of Fanta—a deal so good it could make your wallet do a happy dance compared to past offerings. I'm not sure she was over the moon about the food itself though, but hey, for those looking to cheat on their burger with something a little different, it might just hit the spot.

I had a quick chat with the guy running the burger van. He proudly pointed out the snazzy new banner above his outlet featuring the Cov Rugby badge. He was clearly pleased with it, and I have to admit, it’s a nice touch considering he’s only going to show it off once every couple of weeks.

He was expecting a crowd of over 3000, hoping for a 15% take up. With fewer folks showing up than he anticipated, I guess that’s a bit of a bummer for his bottom line too.

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As the game approached, the atmosphere was a little muted really and the stand certainly didn't feel anything like full.

Cov once again started quickly and Pete Sullivan's opening try after just 4 minutes was just reward for Cov's willingness to attack from the word go. However, within 6 minutes Ealing were on equal terms and just a minute later Suva Ma'asi was forced off following an unsuccessful HIA, ensuring an earlier than expected first appearance for ex-Academy youngster, Murray Davidson.

Had Jordon Poole been available, Davidson wouldn't have featured I guess, and to play 70 plus minutes against the best side in the league was a heck of an introduction for him, but he never once looked out of his depth, at least no more so than the other Cov forwards. Early days still, but Cov's decision to offer him a professional contract over the summer looks to be have been a very shrewd one indeed. He threw well to the lineout and whilst our scrum was under immense pressure all afternoon, the fault certainly didn't appear to lie with him.

One of big differences between us and Ealing was in the collisions - Ealing were faster and hit harder and eventually it took its toll. Yes, Cov will be criticised for conceding 35 second half points but Ealing were relentless and with a bench as good as theirs, there was just no let up. Another injury to the luckless Morgan Adderly-Jones meant Api Bavadra had a longer opportunity to show what he has to offer and again he proved he has the physical presence and agility to break the toughest of defences. he's certainly an exciting player to watch.

As he did when he came on against Chinnor, he was a real handful and by the end of the game he looked to have made a strong case for a start alongside Oli Morris before too long, With his 7s background it might be that Alex Rae doesn't feel he's quite ready for that leap quite yet, but he does seem to create problems for defenders and has the physicality to break the gain line.

That said, hopefully, AJ's injury isn't an occurrence of the one we suffered at Sixways another concussion would presumably mean an even longer layoff.

Pete Sullivan took his chances well and surely did enough to win the sponsors' MofM award - 4 tries against Ealing is unlikely to be repeated this season in The Champ and whilst Tom Ball's 100th appearance in a Cov shirt deserves plenty of plaudits, I'm not sure the MofM award should be one of them.

Cov's discipline remains a concern; another two yellows didn't help our cause; it's been a recurring theme so far this season.

We missed Sam Maunder yesterday, as we did Jordon Poole, and whilst Josh Barton had a good game for the most part, his box kicking was inconsistent at times, giving the Ealing receivers a little too much time. Tom Miles came on and it was rather unfortunate that an early kick of his was charged down, leading directly to an Ealing score. However, he again looked tidy and adds momentum and pace to the play; I hope we continue to see him given a chance, even when both scrum halves above him in the pecking order are fit and available.

Sometimes, you just have to put your hands up and accept there's not a lot else you could have done - Ealing were the better side by a distance. However, this was the reaction we were looking for after last week's loss to Chinnor. I'm confident that the coaches and players will build on this performance in the coming days and head to the RAG with the confidence that they can secure all 5 points.

Up the Cov!

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