Coventry 20 London Welsh 27

Not a good day at the office for Coventry. After the narrow success over Moseley in the last home match, this time the game got away from them as a plucky and game Exiles side just about deserved the points.

London Welsh's travelling support and the players' unbridled joy at the final whistle epitomised what this win meant to the visitors.

The manner of the loss will be more disappointing for Cov. Playing into a very strong wind in the first half, their tactic of keeping the ball in the forwards' hands seemed to be paying dividends as the interval beckoned.

They only trailed 7-3. Ben Russell's penalty advantage on 17 minutes was cancelled out by visitors' scrum-half Robbie Shaw's darting try after a close-in line-out on 24 minutes, converted by fullback Sam Ulph.

But then Ulph's mazy run through the depleted Cov cover after 35 minutes plus his conversion made it a healthy 14-3 to the visitors.

However, winger George Dixon's pacy surge to the line just before the break and Russell's excellent touchline conversion made it just a 14-10 Welsh lead at the break.

That should have set Cov up for a morale-boosting win.

"We didn't play it at the pace or tempo I would have liked," said coach Mike Umaga.

"I was quite relieved that we came off the pitch only four points down. That was a 15-point wind, but when we turned around we didn't make it work for us. That was very disappointing."

Second-row Louis Tonkin's try on 57 minutes seemed to have set Cov on their way. The big lock steamrollered through the covering Ulph to score his maiden Cov try, and Russell's conversion from wide out left the hosts 20-14 in front.

But centre Duncan Hayward's killer try on 75 minutes, Ulph conversion to add to his earlier penalties on 62 and 70 minutes made it another unhappy afternoon for the Cov supporters.

Umaga summed up the final quarter: "We just didn't have the killer instinct," he said. "When we took the lead, we just didn't kill it off. We had some playes who think they are better than they are and we can't afford that."

COVENTRY: Dorrian, Dixon (Montague, 76) Sanders, Binham, Takarangi, Russell, Walls, Rimmer (Siviter, 70) Friswell, Brits, Tonkin, Nimmo, T Johnson, O'Connor (Clayton, 70), W Johnson (capt).

LONDON WELSH: Ulph, Strong, Cannon (Holgate, 73), Hayward, Arasa, Marks, Shaw, Millard (Williams, 73), Kwasnicki (Marsters, 19-36), Hannon (Marsters, 80), Quigley (capt), Clarke (Daish, 80), McNamee (Andrews, 80), Anayi, Griffith.

Referee: Tim Wigglesworth (RFU). ..SUPL: