Chris Bertram welcomes a rekindled rivalry
It’s not getting any easier. Birmingham Moseley huffed and puffed but could not blow Rams’ house down. A match where both sides discipline was poor, and the referee had to make copious use of his cards, went the way of the home side. They were certainly the better team on the day, but Moseley will rue the amount of time they had to play with depleted numbers, as well as the handling errors and set-piece failures that allowed Rams to take five points from the contest. The coaches will certainly be reviewing every aspect of the performance and taking remedial action in preparation for the next challenge.
That challenge comes in the form of Rotherham Titans, a club we have not seen for several seasons. They were relegated to National 2 following the Covid-shortened season of 2019-20, and might have considered themselves unlucky given that placings were determined by average points per match played at a time when they were showing better form. Moseley escaped by the skin of their teeth on that occasion, but Rotherham seem to have taken it on the chin and fought their way back to National 1 via strong performances on the pitch, finishing ahead of Leeds last season.
They have clearly prepared well for life in the higher league, and like Moseley have won five of their seven matches to date. They have claimed third place in the league by virtue of more bonus points, but fourth-placed Moseley will be intending to use the advantage of Fortress Billesley to overtake them. Last weekend both teams lost, with Titans going down slightly surprisingly at home to Bishops Stortford, a team that Moseley have already beaten this season. Their other loss was away at Sale FC at the end of September.
In a lengthy head-to-head series, Rotherham lead by a margin of 27-13, perhaps a reflection of many matches taking place in the years when Moseley were in some difficulties. More recent encounters have been tight affairs, going with home advantage; Roth won at Clifton Lane in January 2020 by 2 points, avenging a 5 point defeat at Billesley in the previous October. If current form is anything to go by, a similarly close match may well be the outcome.
Roth’s players to watch include back row Callum Burstin, their leading try scorer with six, lock John Okafor with four and full back Ronnie Randt also with four. Centre Lloyd Hayes has been the main goal kicker, he has 99 points including two tries. Former Moseley interest is present in the form of flanker Laurence Cowen-Leak, most recently with Hull RUFC.
With Moseley’s only score last weekend being a penalty try, nothing has changed in the team’s stats. Wingers Aquile Smith and Tuoyo Egodo will be keen to improve their tallies so expect the ball to reach them as often as possible. But a lengthy injury list has meant reduced effectiveness in some areas; the probable return of some players this weekend may help matters.
This is a crucial game. Win, and we take over third position in the table. Lose, and a number of teams are handily placed to overtake us. Recent away losses might suggest a wobble in form, but Billesley Common has been our stronghold to date. With that in mind, the team will be determined to put on the strongest performance possible, and give the dedicated home faithful every reason to issue the passionate cry:
“Come on Moseley”
