COVENTRY did their very best to waste a 19-point lead at the break but eventually overcame Loughborough Students to claim their first win of the 2014/15 season.
A poor second half performance almost cost the blue & whites a win but they managed to hold out for a narrow 30-27 win on the day when hooker Matt Price made his 100th senior appearance.
Coventry did not make the best of starts in the bright sunshine as centre Rhys Owen ended a superb move by the hosts but Sharp was unable to land the conversion.
But the hosts soon responded through a Cliffie Hodgson penalty and then within four minutes they were in front.
George Oliver opened up the home defence and Matt Jones found touch inside the home 22 before Coventry stole possession back and Brett Daynes ploughed over the line for Hodgson to convert.
Scott Morgan’s Coventry side took control of proceedings and should have stretched their 10-7 lead further when Dan Rundle and Rob Knox made up a lot of ground before a low pass to Will Hurrell saw the wing man knock on in a scoring position.
The pressure continued and turned into Coventry’s favour when first Harry Rudkin and then James Freeman were sin binned.
This allowed Hodgson to add another penalty and replacement Knox scored which was converted by Hodgson to give the hosts a 20-5 lead.
Just before the break Sharp hit a penalty in reply to leave the visitors 12 points behind and with it all to do in the second period.
That challenge was made all the harder shortly after the break when replacement Jordan Onojaife crashed over the line for Coventry’s third try of the match and again Hodgson made no mistake with the resultant conversion.
That was as good as it got for the hosts as Loughborough managed to turn the game on its head and all shape from disappeared from Coventry’s game.
Tries from replacement centre Jack Wardle and a fine team effort which was finished by Ed Taylor, the second of which was converted by Taylor, got Loughborough back to within seven points.
Rundle was shown a yellow card for an offside infringement but ten minutes time Hodgson scored another penalty to ease the nerves.
Loughborough though were certainly not finished. Three minutes into added on time the Coventry forwards were driven back towards their own line and the referee awarded the visitors a penalty try for collapsing which Sharp converted.
Wayne Evans received a yellow card in the build up to the try but thankfully there was not enough time for a further score.
