Narrow defeat leaves Stratford feeling deflated

TOM Rance and his Stratford side were left feeling ‘deflated’ after their unbeaten start to the season ended at Moseley Oak on Saturday.

The Black and Whites lost out to a late try against the pre-season title favourites in a tight game at Billesley Common.

“Two passes here or there and it would have been a different result," said director of rugby Rance.

“We did some things better than in previous weeks, but we were also tested in certain areas for the first time this season.

“The whole team felt deflated after the game."

The contest started slowly, with both sides struggling to get a strangehold on the game. The first half was a bit of a non-event and the game did not suit Stratford’s style of play, with it being confined to the middle half for much of the time.

Some strong runs tested Moseley, but too often the final pass was spilled or missed.

The second half saw the introduction of Dave Pritchard, who made inroads into their defence time and time again.

Two penalties from Nath Geekie kept Stratford in touch, but a try five minutes from time from Ben Gearing clinched a 13-6 victory.

Rance added: “A losing bonus point is probably a fair take from the game. We learnt a lot from it and we’ll regroup for this weekend.”

Stratford’s second string also suffered a narrow loss, going down 15-10 at Banbury. Matt Allen and Aaron Neal got the tries for the Black and Whites.