Moseley Captain Andy Reay
Moseley were quickly on the scoreboard with a well struck penalty following lethargic Bristol defending. Bristol then handed points to the hosts with a ludicrous piece of throwing at the lineout. Credit to Moseley for seizing the opportunity and launching a scything move that culminated in Trinder dotting down for a converted try and a score of 10 - 0 with seven minutes played.
Bristol seemed to stir from their collective slumber and Adrian Jarvis narrowed the gap with a penalty just five minutes later. In a manner that Bristol supporters have noted this season, Moseley swiftly hit back to restore the gap with a penalty almost from the restart. This presaged some sustained Bristol pressure as the forwards took play into the Moseley 22 and showed great patience in keeping hold of possession.
Moseley defended desperately but a series of penalty offences saw two players receive yellow cards on 17 and 19 minutes. Down to 13 a try was always likely and from a five metre scrum the remaining defence was sucked in and the ball popped out to Dan Norton to trot over in the corner. Another soon followed when Jason Spice freed up Tom Arscott on the opposite wing. Neither try was converted, leaving the score tied at 13-all.
Typically, Bristol gave away an easy penalty to allow Moseley to move back in front. Bristol struck back with a smartly taken try when Spice showed his experience by wrong footing the defence and passing out to Jarvis who, in turn, fed Luke Eves to blast over from 30 metres. 16 -18 to Bristol. Just before half time though it was Moseley's turn to score. A kick downfield looked to have been covered by the Bristol defence but poor handling coughed up the ball to May went over near the corner for a try that went unconverted but still meant a deserved 21 - 18 half time lead.
Bristol started the second half in similar style to the first and soon went further behind on 49 minutes following another Roberts' penalty. Bristol finally came to life with a quickly taken tap penalty that gave Tarscott just enough space to cross the line. Taking over the kicking duties he converted his try to give the narrowest of leads at 24 -25 after 66 minutes.
Bristol continued to give away penalties, and it was no surprise when Moseley retook the lead with a fine kick following a messy scrum. With just a minute left on the clock Roberts made the final score 30 - 25 with another penalty kick. A Pyrrhic for Moseley as results elsewhere meant that they remained in the ridiculous relegation play-off. A disappointing defeat for the league leaders as they go into the promotion play-off with an unwanted air of vulnerability.
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