Coventry City: Frank Lampard’s team have confidence, momentum and belief

They say never fall in love with a loan player.

But there is not enough cold water in the Arctic Ocean to douse the flames of affection Coventry fans feel for Carl Rushworth.

In 11 games for the Sky Blues, the 24-year-old Brighton goalkeeper has kept six clean sheets, including five in succession.

That sealed his place in club history as he clocked up a record 613 minutes without conceding. But for a 90th-minute consolation for Portsmouth on Tuesday, that run would still be intact.

However, the efforts of Rushworth and his team-mates at Fratton Park ensured he went past Horace Pearson’s old record of 608 minutes – a mark that has stood since 1934.

For Lampard, Rushworth’s excellence has not been a surprise.

“His confidence has grown since he has been here, but I always knew when we brought him in he’s a very talented goalkeeper, and I’m really pleased for him with that record. He deserves it, it is a great achievement,” he told BBC CWR.

“More than ever in the modern game, you defend from the front, but sometimes you have to acknowledge the individual achievement of that, and that’s amazing to be at the club for such a short period and to do that.”

Rushworth has a way to go to reach the EFL record of 29 clean sheets in a season, set by James Trafford for Burnley last term, but his personal best of 16 during a campaign with Lincoln City in 2022-23 is in range, as is Coventry’s all-time record of 18 from 1958-59.