WHAT a difference 45 minutes can make in football. By half-time at the Ricoh Arena it looked like stand-in Bury manager Peter Shirtliff had blown his chances of claiming the top job while Coventry boss Andy Thorn was on his way to a first win of the season.

Yet come the final whistle, the 633 Bury fans inside the stadium were hailing the Shakers caretaker as a tactical genius and the Sky Blues directors were preparing to end Thorn’s 16-month tenure at the club.

However, as tactically astute as Shirtliff looked after 90 minutes, he was still the man who set Bury up and sent them out for the first-half horror show.

It’s true the Shakers were their own worst enemies in the opening 45 minutes, in particular centre back Adam Lockwood, whose mistakes led to both goals.

His misplaced pass out of defence in the 18th minute was worked to midfielder Adam Barton, who still had plenty to do before firing his 30-yard drive past Trevor Carson.

Ten minutes later, Lockwood gave away an unnecessary free-kick in a central position on the edge of the Bury box, which Carl Baker somehow rifled into the bottom corner.

The attacking midfielder’s low shot called into question the positioning of Carson’s wall and looked set to ruin his big day after the former Sunderland stopper was made captain in the absence of the suspended Steven Schumacher.

It was his only mistake though in an otherwise commanding performance that was definitely needed as Coventry continued to carve open chances.

The Sky Blues’ Kevin Malaga looked a constant threat from corners and free kicks – the big French centre back headed a corner over in the second minute and had one cleared off the line five minutes later, either side of a great save from Carson to deny Coby McDonald.

Bury’s lopsided formation, with Peter Sweeney drifting in from the left and debutant Shane Byrne and Mark Carrington marking shadows in the centre, was no match for Coventry’s midfield diamond.

Stephen Jennings was pulling the strings for the Sky Blues from deep, but Shirtliff nullified his impact, replacing winger Craig Jones with Lateef Elford-Alliyu at the break, who sat just behind the Bury front two and kept Jennings busy.

Shirtliff also demonstrated his powers of motivation, sending the Bury players out early, and it worked.

After being lethargic and sloppy in possession in the first half, they suddenly looked full of energy and bite and it didn’t take long for that new approach to bear fruit.

When Richard Wood was adjudged to have climbed all over David Healy in the box 10 minutes after the restart, the Northern Ireland striker was up like a shot to claim the ball before stroking home the spot kick.

It was the 33-year-old’s final action of a satisfactory debut, with surely more to come from the predatory international once he regains match fitness.

Not that his place in the starting line-up can be assured after his replacement, Lenell John-Lewis, put in a storming 30-minute spell that could easily have won Bury all three points.

The substitute headed home Joe Skarz’s pin-point cross on 68-minutes and could, and probably should, have bagged a winner.

Marcus Marshall, who Shirtliff threw on for new signing Shane Byrne, set him free in the 79th minute after determined work to win the ball in midfield, but John-Lewis’s audacious lob sailed over.

Elford-Alliyu also wasted a number of good opportunities and it was left to captain Carson to ensure there was at least some reward for their efforts.

The impressive keeper pulled off an instinctive block from Gary McSheffrey’s snap-shot 10 minutes from time to keep the scores level and give the Bury fans - and Shirtliff - plenty to cheer about at the final whistle.

Coventry: Murphy, Brown, Malaga, Hussey, Jennings, Barton, Kilbane, Baker (McShefffrey), McDonald (Ball), Elliott.

Not used: Dunn, O’Donovan, Edjenguele, Willis, Daniels.

Bury: Carson 7, A Jones 6, Hughes 6, Lockwood 6, Skarz 7, C Jones 6 (Elford-Alliyu 6), Carrington 6, Byrne 6 (Marshall 7), Sweeney 7, Cullen 7, Healy 7 (John-Lewis 7).

Not used: Dibble, Picken, Bishop, Harrop.

Ref: Andrew Madley Att: 10,285 (633)