COVENTRY MESSAGE BOARD

Matt Clarke's header opened the scoring for Derby in the first half



Derby boosted their hopes of Championship survival after goals from Matt Clarke and Marcus Harness saw them beat in-form Coventry at a raucous Pride Park.

Clarke opened the scoring against the run of play after latching on to a Harness cross from the right after 23 minutes.

Having set up the first, Harness then scored the second with a neat finish at the start of the second half, guiding the ball into the bottom corner.

The result means Derby are one point behind Stoke above the relegation zone, and came after a run of nine wins in 10 for Frank Lampard's Coventry.

It also gave John Eustace his second straight win as Derby boss, having lost his first four in charge, and means the Rams have won consecutive matches for the first time since September.

It was the Sky Blues who started the stronger, with Ellis Simms and Victor Torp forcing saves out of goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom.

But the hosts broke the deadlock after a well-placed ball from Harness found Clarke, who headed in from close range.

Derby then secured victory at the start of the second half, as the ball landed in the penalty area in front of Ipswich loanee Harness, who calmly placed his shot into the bottom right-hand corner.

Coventry offered little after that, and defeat ended a winning run which has seen them rise from Championship strugglers to play-off contenders.

They keep their place in the top six, despite Bristol City's draw at Sheffield United, while Derby will wait on the result of Stoke against Blackburn on Wednesday.

A Potters win would re-establish their four-point cushion over Derby above the relegation zone, ahead of their crucial clash against fellow strugglers Plymouth on Saturday.

Coventry manager Frank Lampard told BBC CWR:

"We couldn't keep winning as much as we have done, as much as we would like to.

"We played a team that was fighting, was quite direct and was focused on set-pieces. We got one wrong and gave them a goal, and something to hold on to having had major control of the game.

"The players tried to win the game, but they were just lacking a bit of conviction at the top end of the pitch, and that can happen.

"If that does happen, you don't want to be conceding those type of goals, which we had been pretty good at since I have come in."