Jack Rudoni's 94th-minute goal gave Coventry their fourth win in a row with a 2-1 victory over Stoke.

Haji Wright headed the Championship leaders ahead before Ben Gibson equalised on the stroke of half-time with what proved to be Stoke's only shot on target.

Rudoni capitalised on an error from the onrushing Tommy Simkin in added time to put Coventry eight points clear of second-placed Middlesbrough, who travel to Birmingham on Monday.

The last-gasp defeat meant Stoke, managed by former Coventry manager Mark Robins, have just one win in their last nine matches.

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Coventry were playing their first home game since the crucial 3-1 victory over Middlesbrough, in which Wright scored a hat-trick, and the American took just 12 minutes to get on the scoresheet.

Jay Dasilva whipped in a sublime cross which was nodded home by the Sky Blues top scorer, who claimed his 15th of the season.

Stoke were made to endure an onslaught for the rest of the first half.

The reverse fixture at the Bet365 Stadium was an early-season top-of-the-table clash as Coventry sat top and Stoke second, which was decided by an 86th-minute Ephron Mason-Clark overhead kick.

The winger caused Stoke problems down the left once again, firstly heading Romain Esse's cross at Simkin before forcing the Stoke stopper to push his fearsome effort past the post.

Mason-Clark's next effort from close range was blocked, before Frank Onyeka lifted the rebound over.

Wright's earlier goal had made it five in four outings, and Coventry's talisman saw his next effort rebuffed by the busy Simkin before crashing the follow-up effort off the outside of the post.

Stoke had barely threatened at the other end, yet the sucker punch came on the stroke of half-time.

Sorba Thomas whipped in a corner from the left which was glanced in at the near post by Gibson, who netted for the first time since December 2024.

Rudoni had found the net in both of Coventry's back-to-back victories over West Brom and Sheffield United, and nearly restored the Sky Blues' lead after the break.

Wright wriggled his way into the box and poked through to Rudoni, whose low effort was well saved by Simkin in the Stoke goal.

Victor Torp's ball over the top then set Wright one-on-one with Simkin, but the Stoke academy graduate was out quickly to smother at the American's feet.

Goalscorer Wright was replaced by Ellis Simms, who was picked out by a smart ball into the box from Dasilva, but blasted his effort over the bar.

Just as it looked like Coventry were going to be left to settle for a point, Brandon Thomas-Asante's ball forward was chased by Simms.

The onrushing Simkin could only block the ball into the path of Rudoni, whose first-time finish evaded the best efforts of Gibson to secure Coventry a vital three points.

The managers

Coventry's Frank Lampard:

"We were fantastic today. One of our best home performances from the first minute. We should have been two or three goals ahead at half-time for our play, but football sometimes kicks you where you don't want it to.

"They get a free-kick in their own half, launch it in the box, get their first corner and score and that's obviously disheartening.

"But the performance in the first half was brilliant. There was no answer to what we were doing for them.

"You just start to worry when the game goes on and we play that well and it's 1-1, but yeah, the character of the team to get it over the line in the end and get what we fully deserved was brilliant."

Stoke's Mark Robins:

"We didn't deserve anything for the way we were in the first half. We were poor. Having said that, we get back in the game through a bit of luck.

"From our point of view, we didn't get close enough to them so we had to alter things. That got us a bit more of a foothold in the game.

"Awful game, but it was a game where you've got to lift balls in behind them and run, get crosses in where you can, it just doesn't resemble anything that we do.

"We get to two minutes before the end of the game at 1-1 and to conjure up a defeat is an absolute joke, and that comes from a number of factors.

"Primarily, a young goalkeeper, but you've got experience in front of him who have to deal with it. He made brilliant saves, some really good decisions, but then occasionally gets one wrong, he needs help with that, he will learn.

"First half we didn't get near anybody, but second half we were a little bit better and you expect to see the game out at that stage but not us.

"We took part in the game second half. First half we were bystanders, didn't get near them, and they could have been two or three goals up.

"We make errors that no other team in the division makes."

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