Doncaster Knights 27 Moseley 24
Moseley will be wondering how on earth they failed to take more from this game than the losing bonus point they would have settled for before kick off. And with Otley getting nothing out of their defeat by Newbury, the pill will be doubly hard to swallow down in the relegation zone. The Knights started Cerith Rees at fly half and had an impressive looking side on paper that was looking to carry on from where they left off the previous high tempo attacking weekend. It just didn’t happen! They looked lacklustre from the start, saw their defence shredded on several occasions, but somehow managed a bonus point win. It is never easy at this stage of the season against teams fighting for their lives.
On a dry pitch made for running rugby, Moseley started full of pace and intent. Oliver Thomas cut a swathe through the home defence in the first minute; and Andy Binns’ follow up of his kick ahead was only thwarted by a desperate dive on the ball by Russ Earnshaw, who knocked on in the process to set up the attacking scrum from which scrum half Daniel Hunter smartly broke blind to score wide out on the right. Moseley continued to run the ball at the Knights, their backs looking threatening every time and fully testing one of the league’s best defences. It was no surprise when a second try arrived as early as the 11th minute. Swift handling created an overlap on the right and a deft offload by Tommy Hayes out of the tackle gave Nathan Bressington a stroll to the line. Thomas had converted both with ease from wide positions and a real shock was on the cards. It was reminiscent of the previous week when the Bees were gifted an early lead, but this time Moseley had earned theirs. Such was the Moseley confidence that a kick at goal was spurned after a scrum collapse, Thomas going to the corner; but somehow Jason Forster stole the ball within the ensuing maul and broke out to relieve the pressure. Back came Moseley, though, and great interplay between forwards and backs created another opportunity, advantage was played, and with a try looking certain, Bressington’s “scoring” pass to Richard Bignell went astray to give the home side a huge let off. The opening quarter had been all Moseley and they should have led by more than just the 14 points.
The Knights did finally begin to assert themselves as the second quarter passed. Hooker Ben Phillips worked a neat move off the front of a line out to make big yards, Binns was offside attempting an interception; and a quick penalty saw the ball moved swiftly left for Donovan Van Vuuren to score on the left. On the half hour, a powerful home maul made some 20 metres and a Forster try looked inevitable when Ben Buxton cynically disrupted it from the side and referee Phillips immediately awarded the penalty try. Gollings converted and the home side were somehow in the game. So much so that a third try arrived, just like last week, before the break to give them a surprise lead. Turnover ball was run at pace out of defence by Gollings, Van Vuuren took it into the Moseley ’22, and Netaini Talei in great support was just able to burst the last tackle and dive in to score. The Knights had an interval lead of 17-14 they hardly deserved.
Moseley were level again soon after the break when Thomas struck a tackle penalty; but Doncaster regained the lead with their fourth try almost immediately when replacement ten Mark Woodrow somehow stepped and danced his way through a bemused defence to score at the posts to make Gollings extras a formality, after Talei and Ngalu Tau had both driven close. In end to end fashion, Moseley took just three minutes to equalise once more. Taking full advantage of a stretched defence, Andy Binns sailed through the home centres as advantage was played to score at the posts, and Thomas was again on target with the extras. It was anyone’s’ game. The Knights still looked off colour, and Moseley pressed to be awarded three penalties in quick succession just after the hour. All were around the ten metre line, all in the usually deadly Thomas’s range and, amazingly, all three hit the uprights and Doncaster managed to scramble clear. With the one chance the Knights were offered, Gollings rubbed salt into the wounds by coolly slotting his kick from 40 metres and the Knights had a lead with 3 minutes to play that would be decisive. That penalty had more than a sniff of controversy to it, though: referee Phillips had played advantage for a Moseley scrum offside offence, Brad Hunt had made a searing break into the visitors’ ’22, and recycled ball saw the Knights drive close to the line where the ball was lost. With most of the crowd sure that advantage had been long over, the referee surprised everyone by going back the 40+ metres to award the penalty. It was a harsh call. In stoppage time, Moseley were given two chances. First they wasted an overlap, passing into touch; and when a Knights’ line out penalty was reversed for Dan Cook’s foul play reaction, Thomas spurned the easy three points on offer for a draw by going instead to the corner to try for a win, but to no avail as a determined defence held out. Moseley could, and should, have won this one.
Clive Griffith summed up the Knights performance in one word – “terrible”. He enjoyed Wales win a lot more! Next weekend the Knights have their first rest Saturday of the season before successive visits to Exeter and Rotherham. They will have to improve immeasurably to get anything out of those matches.
Doncaster: Gollings, Bailey, Hunt, Cannon, Van Vuuren, Rees (Woodrow 40), Jones, Bunting (Davies 47), Phillips (Boden 53), Tau, Kenworthy, Gross (D Cook 62), Earnshaw (Grainger 77), Forster, Talei (O Cook 65).
Moseley: Hayes (Macdonald 70), Bressington, Binns, Reay, O’Leary, Thomas, Hunter (Knight 71), Buxton, Caves (Bick 62), Moran, Arnold, Skelding (Stott 53), Mason, Bignell (Lightowler 70), Rodwell.
Referee: R Phillips (RFU)
Att: 837 |
