It was evident the game would be a tight contest from the start, as the first score didn’t come until just short of 20 minutes in. 

Both teams initially defended brilliantly, but it was Coventry who claimed the first points of the game when they pounced on a loose line out ball, and dotted it over the line. They added the conversion for a 7 point lead. 

We answered back within a minute as Telusa Veainu chipped the ball over the top of Coventry’s defence and gathered it to carry us up to the line. He is tackled just short but the support is there and Maliq Holden drives the ball over in the corner. 

Russell Bennett added the extras from the touchline to level the scores. 

Moments later, the Knights extended their lead as Jordan Olowofela gathered the ball brilliantly and offloaded to a supporting Ollie Fox. Fox delayed his pass to draw in Coventry’s defence before offloading to Zach Kerr. Kerr showed his pace to carry the remaining 20m and secure another five points. 

The hosts managed to level the scores again as their outside centre, Ryan Hutler ran a hard line to break the Knight’s defence. They added the extras to edge the lead. 

Coventry took one more try to retain their lead before the break. A kick over the top found its way to Cov hands, before they moved the ball quickly to open the gap and go over the line. The added conversion meant the half time score was 21-12. 

The second half started in Coventry’s favour as a scrum penalty was given their way and they took the three points. 

There were no scores for another 20 minutes, but some notable positives from the Knights. Archie Smeaton showed fantastic work rate as he chased down a loose line out ball, tackled the player and won a penalty at the breakdown. He and Morgan Strong made some dominant carries to maintain Doncaster’s momentum. 

Russell Bennett then used his boot to close the scores as he kicked over two penalties within a few minutes of each other, putting the Knights within a converted try. 

Zach Kerr placed a fantastic 50:22 to give the Knights possession in the attacking 22 and they continued to push.  After the forwards spent a handful of phases carrying just short of the line, the ball was moved quickly to Harry Davey, who showed great skill to dive over in the corner while narrowly avoiding the touchline. 

With one point in it, the tensions were high for the final moments of the game. With the clock in red, Coventry knocked on the ball and Doncaster had a scrum just inside our attacking half. The forwards scrummaged brilliantly and a dominant display awarded us a penalty. 

Unfortunately, the penalty kick went slightly wide, meaning Coventry just held on to their one point lead. Full time score, 24-23. 

Team Lineups

Replacements