On a crisp autumn evening in front of a packed out RAG, the stage was set for the new season of Championship Rugby and a new dawn for London Scottish.

With high expectations for the Exiles, it was their opponents Coventry who crashed the party and dominated proceedings in West London. From the off the away side looked the stronger, while London Scottish made errors, Coventry were accurate and made their chances pay.

Two tries and a penalty in the first half gave the midlands-based side a 17-0 lead at the break without the home side really firing a shot.

Scottish did grab one back shortly after the break through a robust carry close to the line from Ntinga Mpiko on debut. However, Coventry would hit straight back with a couple of tries of their own to control the game and put it beyond any date.

A late flourish from London Scottish showed what they were capable of. Two tries from winger, Noah Ferdinand put some respectability on the score with the game finishing 45-19.

Ultimately, Scottish will see this as an early season outing which blew the cobwebs off but was littered with errors. To improve in this league the task is simple, be more accurate and be more disciplined. When those elements came together in the final 15 minutes they looked a side to be feared.

However, putting this together for eighty minutes is going to be the challenge against some very strong opposition this season.