Boss Kieran McKenna hailed the Blues’ 2-0 victory over leaders Coventry City at the CBS Arena as a “really good performance” which showed “real growth in the team”.

Jack Clarke and Wes Burns netted in the second half to see Town to their first double of the season and inflict the Sky Blues’ first home defeat of the campaign.

The Blues, who remain unbeaten away against Coventry since August 2009, are something of a bogey team for the Midlanders having won the last five games between the teams.

“I think it was a really good performance, I think that was clear,” McKenna said. “A first half of real confidence, real composure, really took the game on, controlled the game, had some really good chances and there was loads to enjoy about the performance.

“It showed real growth in the team and we were missing some important players as well. That was a big positive.

“We knew then that the whole game wouldn’t be like that. You know when you play away against a team this strong and with the home record they have that you’re going to have a period of pressure and set plays, and you’re going to have to stay strong on that.

“We managed to do that in the second half and I think we got the goals that clearly the performance deserved. A good performance, a good win.”

Was there any fear at half-time that having dominated without scoring might prove costly?

“Fear’s the wrong word because if we were afraid we probably wouldn’t have gone on to do it, but you have to accept that that’s the reality of the situation,” McKenna continued.

“We didn’t get the goal and you know Coventry are going to come out and you’ve got to be ready for it. We knew we were going to have to block some shots, maybe make some saves and be strong.

“But also we knew that there were spaces there in the first half and if we could do enough of the right things and keep defending well, then we’d have our opportunities.

“It was just being ready for that second half and the boys knew what they needed to do and, of course, everyone was really happy when the first goal goes in and from there we were in a great spot.”

McKenna had praise for Jack Clarke, who scored one and created the other: “He played really well, there were lots of players who did, but Jack certainly played very well and seems to enjoy playing here.

“He’s a really talented player we know that and he worked really hard tonight off the ball as well and a really good performance.”

Asked what beating the league leaders twice in a month can do for the Blues’ season, McKenna said: “Well, the six points are appreciated, of course, against a good team. I think the performance against both games, but probably especially tonight, renews the belief in the players.

“I see a group of players that’s working hard to improve and are making steps forward and I think the group feels that as well. But, of course, results and results against good teams helps with that.

“But other than that, the reality is, it’s just another three points tonight and I’ve said it lots of times, the challenges of this division for us as a team, a staff, as a whole club are really, really different.

“They’re really different tonight, they’re really different from last time round and I don’t see tonight’s game being any more [significant], it’s the same three points on Thursday night in a completely different context against an Oxford team who are going to come and I’m pretty sure try and make the game really, really hard for us.

“A team who have just beaten Southampton, beat us in December and that’s a completely different challenge as a group of staff, players and as a club, to be honest. We need to be good in those situations as well and the reality of what that’s going to be.

“I think it was a really good win, a really good performance, shows good growth in the team, but we have two more really, really tough games with a completely different context coming up this week and we’ve got to fight for the points in the best way that we can.”

McKenna has spoken about the new squad assembled over the summer going through experiences together and he says that difficult ones as well as positive ones such as this evening’s have an impact.

“Of course, these are good ones, but if you had [Coventry manager] Frank [Lampard] sat here and asked him what the biggest experience was for his team, he’d probably say losing the play-off semi-final that they deserved to win.

“It’s not just good experiences, you have to go through bad experiences as well and you have to then stay calm as a staff, as a group, the players need to see that you’re going to stay calm, you’re going to stick to your process. When things go wrong you’re going to stick together. Work to find solutions to get better.

“I think all the experiences are valid. Tonight’s a good one, a positive to go through, but, honestly, the bad experiences in terms of trying to grow a team, grow a group, the bad experiences are sometimes are just as valuable.”

Quizzed on whether the Blues will be looking to strengthen in January, he added: “I think every club are. I’ve said a few times, my focus has on been the group here, we’ve had so much change over the last few transfer windows, it’s been a big challenge to manage that.

“I still think we’re in that process and lots of players are still finding their feet that we haven’t seen the best of yet. But if we can improve the group in different ways, then we’ll look to do that.”

Photo: TWTD