SEB Reynolds apologised to the 976-strong Old Bath Road following Rams’ 24-7 National One bonus-point win against Birmingham Moseley, but was pleased to pick up a seventh straight win to start the season.
In a tetchy, physical battle which featured four yellow cards and a red – Moseley could arguably have suffered another for a high shot on Harry Stone – the hosts took an early lead when Tomek Pozniak grabbed a sixth try in as many games following his summer signing.
Fraser Honey slotted the kick, and with Ryan Lomas riding a maul over the whitewash at the end of the first quarter, Rams led 12-0 at the break.
Sam Pointon was the first to be sin-binned before Tighe Maxwell-Whiteley was given his marching orders for a dangerous tackle on Honey, the hosts’ Morgan MacRae then yellow carded for a high tackle.
Zach Clow went over to give the hosts further breathing space, Honey, on his 200th National League appearance, adding the extras to pass 1,000 points.
Yet Moseley refused to go away and earned a penalty try which forced home skipper Max Hayman into the bin, Rams replying with a maul of their own which sent Will Safe to the dugout.
And with four minutes remaining, Robbie Stapley picked from the base of an increasingly dominant scrum to power over in clubhouse corner, the bonus secured as he posted a record-extending 103rd try for the club.
Reflecting on a hard-fought encounter, Reynolds said: “It wasn’t the most free-flowing and to all the spectators who came to watch, I apologise for that.
“But in terms of the purists’ game, it was a tense, physical, gritty one and from our guys a gutsy performance – I’m pleased with that.
“Birmingham are a dangerous side who’ve started the season strongly, but we showed we wouldn’t be bullied.
“The guys always front up physically against big sides – Moseley’s back five in the pack are sizable to say the least and they bring their own unique threats – but we dealt with that, played a precision game, and it was good.”
The stop-start nature of the game proved frustrating to the crowd at times, but the Director of Rugby continued: “You do have to try and build a relationship with the ref and if a team wants to try and slow the game down, it doesn’t bother us anymore.
“It’s up to the ref to manage that and help produce the kind of game people want to come and watch, but it’s just one of those things and we got the job done.”
Debutant scrum-half Jake Murray starred on loan from Harlequins, with Reynolds delighted by his display and of No. 10 Honey, the latter reaching a brace of personal milestones in the win.
He ended: “Jake was absolutely superb. You can’t underestimate the task he had in coming into a team in one week and learning everything – the balance for us was to let him play his natural game and not overload him with information, but his control was great and he was just first class.
“It was a really strong performance and hopefully he can keep doing that.
“For Fraser it’s a wonderful achievement and we’re so glad to have him here.
“He fits in here like a glove and the fact he commutes from Cornwall three times a week is incredible, but he manages it so well and never complains – he’s a model Ram and long may he be here.”
Rams head to Plymouth Albion next Saturday (3pm).
