Missed kicks undermine a dominant display

28

Sedgley
Park

V

27

Birmingham
Moseley

by Jon Meadows

Sedgley kicked off away from the club house end to the visitors 22, the ball safely gathered. A box kick up field and good pressure forced a knock on and a scrum to Mosley from which they were awarded a free kick. A quick tap and go they gained ground into home territory and so started a prolonged period of superior possession and steady advance up field through a number of penalties. Despite a couple of 5 metre catch and drives Moseley were unable to break through until a clever chip over the top was gathered by Aquile Smith to touch down behind the posts, Tighe Maxwell-Whiteley with a simple conversion.

Sedgley started to give a better account of themselves, but were unable to make much impression on the game. Indeed it was Moseley who were given a chance to extend the lead with a mid-range penalty from a fairly central area. Opting for the posts the ball was pushed to the left of the uprights. At the time it seemed not to matter as Moseley maintained the upper hand. More patient build up play was rewarded when Sam Clarke found room down the right wing to squeeze in the corner, a difficult conversion pushed across the face of the posts.

Somewhat against the run of play Sedgley found themselves with a lineout about 15 metres out. The ball bounced of a Moseley arm towards the try line and with the hosts flooding through they were camped in the five metre channel, Austin Downham burrowed through on the stroke of half time, Oliver Glasse obliging with the conversion. A five point lead at the break seemed scant reward for the visitors efforts.

From the restart Moseley continued to pressurise the home defence. More patient build up was interrupted by Tigers’ Rhys Henderson who intercepted a rather telegraphed pass. He raced clear from his own 22 down the right hand side. Despite being caught short of the line Sam Thorpe was on hand to score under the posts – Glasse converting to take the lead.

The hosts were beginning to get in the game and missed a medium range penalty of their own, before Ben Pogson finished a 5 metre scrum on the right going down the blindside to score in the right hand corner, another difficult conversion going wide.

The game was becoming a more even contest with Mosely perhaps still the better. They were pressurising their hosts in the back field when a pass along their 10 metres was intercepted by Smith who scampered into the corner, another conversion attempt left a begging.

The hosts continued to ramp up their performance and had a lineout about 6 metres out. Adjudged not straight the referee gave Moseley the scrum. Maybe or maybe not, with enforced changes to the Moseley pack, especially in the second row, they were adjudged to have collapsed. A tap & go saw the hosts once more to the line and it was not long before Albert Bradshaw found a way through, Glasse again successful

The restart was to the 22, kicked back to the halfway and gathered only for Moseley to loose the ball in contact. A punt into a vacant area of the visitors 22 bounced kindly for home winger Albert Bradshaw to run in unimpeded, another simple kick giving the hosts a slender six point lead.

As we have seen from this group before, Moseley refused to bow their heads at a time of adversity. Despite a scrambled scrum in terms of personnel they retained the upper hand and used this to apply pressure. From a 5 metre lineout they secured the ball for a slow drive, Will Safe with a pick and go to score. With just three minutes left a very kickable conversion to take the lead was pulled to the left, much to the agony of players and supporters alike.

They still had work to do. With the scoreboard indicating time was up Sedgley were up to the Moseley line again. Being close to the posts there was a real danger of a losing bonus point disappearing as well. The ball did cross the line but the referee adjudged it to be held up and blew for full time.

The despondency on the faces of the players was palpable. Adam Balding pointed to a five minute blip in the second half that gifted the opposition 14 points. He could not fault the determination of the players, but sadly with the missed opportunities from the tee it was not enough.