SHEA Cornish ran in two tries against namesake opponents Cornish Pirates as Coventry RFC returned to action with an impressive 32-19 victory.
Cornish grabbed Coventry’s first and last tries of the game as Senitiki Nayalo and Will Talbot-Davies also touched down in a bonus point win in front of over 2,500 supporters at Butts Park Arena.
The result means Coventry sit fifth in the RFU Championship table after six matches.
However, Coventry fell behind early on when Alex Everett went over in the corner for an unconverted score after solid work from the Pirates pack.
The home side responded through Cornish’s first try when he collected Pellegrini’s floated pass after the latter’s 50:22 kick provided Coventry with good field position.
And Coventry extended their lead when Nayalo crashed over after James Tyas secured the ball at a lineout following strong work from the pack with Pellegrini adding his second conversion of the match.
However, the Pirates reduced the deficit to two points when Ruaridh Dawson scored following a goalline dropout and Arwel Robson added the extras.
Coventry hit back in style as Talbot-Davies touched down in the corner to finish a fine move off the back of a scrum, which included a superb offload from Louis Brown, as the home side took a 19-12 lead into the break.
And Coventry stretched their lead to 10 points when Talbot-Davies kicked a penalty from distance after Tyas worked tirelessly to win the ball at a turnover.
The home side scored their bonus point try when Cornish dotted down after some smart handling in the backline as Pellegrini successfully kicked the conversion.
Pirates responded when Max Norey went over after some patient play from the visiting forwards as Coventry’s lead was reduced to 10 points following a successful conversion attempt.
However, Coventry made sure of the win when Pat Pellegrini kicked a late penalty after the Pirates were caught offside.
Coventry are next in action away at Caldy on Saturday, October 29 with kick-off at 3pm at Paton Field.
