American comedienne and writer Jane Wagner describes reality as the leading cause of stress amongst those in touch with it.She also goes on to extol how delusions of grandeur make her feel better about herself to the point they are a necessary survival tool.In the last four weeks reality has certainly caused considerable stress at Billesley Common as the pre-and-early season optimism that Moseley could punch above their financial weight has been exposed as misplaced.Performances against Leeds, London Scottish and - to a slightly lesser extent, Rotherham have been as sobering as any cold shower and Moseley reach the midway point of their league season needing a break rather than a trip to the Scottish Borders and a Christmas 'friendly' with Northampton.With a squad cut to ribbons by injuries, without a league win at home all season and without a victory anywhere since September 28, these are indeed stressful times for coaches Kevin Maggs and Dave Hilton.In most sports - and in rugby's RFU Championship in particular, nothing talks quite as loud or as often as money and the reality is that Moseley are where they should be according to their budget. Near the bottom of the table and once again battling to stay in the division.But pounds and pence aren't the only cause of Moseley's recent travails, once again in most sports, and in rugby in particular, as the saying goes if Maggs didn't have bad luck he'd have none at all.Take for example the perfect storm that assailed his side on Saturday. Tied at 3-3 in the first half Moseley were pressing on Rotherham's line and looked to be on the brink of kicking in the door when Titans' Palepoi Nonu refused to roll away from a ruck.Moseley performed a little tap-dance on the Kiwi's ribs to encourage the removal of his vast frame and where referee Steve Lee could have awarded Moseley a penalty and issued a yellow card for killing the ball, instead he gave the infringement to Rotherham, who in one phase went the length of the pitch to score the five points that proved the difference. It was a marginal call that had massive ramifications.One also only has to remember the red card Sean Davey brandished at Anthony Carter in the second game against Nottingham and the 50-50s that went against Moseley in the scrum at Doncaster and Scottish, to accept they have been on the wrong end more times than the right.And nowhere has that misfortune represented itself more than on the injury front. Before any season it is important your captain, tighthead, leading back rower, and star backs are all in place. Moseley have lost Mike Powell, Craig Voisey, Neil Mason, Charlie Hayter and Greg King either at regular junctures or for extended periods.Indeed they saw five players go off injured last weekend and it is not difficult to argue a case that Mose would have nicked the win from Rotherham with Ben Pienaar, Addison Lockley, Hayter and King on the pitch, never mind Voisey and Powell. Moseley simply don't have the strength in depth to replace them like-for-like.But then the suspicion also remains that Maggs is paying in spades for recruiting so many young and unproven forwards in the summer. Financially his hands are tied, there is simply not the money to have two experienced tightheads in his squad, yet where Mose were last season able to turn to Marshall Gadd and Colin Quigley when Voisey broke his arm, this year it's been Stef Thorp, Chas Meddick and whichever Northampton prospect is available.Let's be clear, none of these are bad players, indeed some will go on to be very good players, but none are physically imposing and too many 20 and 21-year-olds in a pack is not the right balance.One wonders whether Ian Smith's squad-building approach of starting in the tight five and building backwards wasn't the secret behind Moseley's stickability.Quigley was a frustrating case last season but no-one can deny he turned it on when it mattered most and could play anywhere across the front row. That leads to an inevitable comparison with last season's squad - Maggs' first as Moseley head coach.Yes some of those players were irksome beyond belief and yes some coasted for long periods of the season but when the play-offs came round they turned it on in a very big way and Mose were effectively safe inside a fortnight.No one can accuse the current squad of coasting, indeed that is perhaps their most admirable quality, no matter what the score, what the situation, they fight themselves to a standstill.One wonders if they can keep it up all the way to April and even if they do it raises further questions. Does that mean the side is as already operating at 100 per cent and is as good as it's going to get? Or will results turn because the law of averages dictates they must? That has something to do with the opposition and mercifully the second half of the season looks slightly less daunting than the first. With six home games - not that they've been especially fruitful so far - and five away that ratio is at least in their favour. So too is the fact Doncaster and Jersey have to come to Billesley Common.Mose will also be smacking their lips at the prospect of Scottish, Leeds, Bedford and the bunnies from Bristol turning up in Birmingham and it would be surprising if at least two of those four were not sent homeward tae think again.But what Moseley must not be allowed to believe is that victories in the British & Irish Cup have anything more than minor relevance, indeed one could argue their record over the last couple of years is so good because the size of their squad means they have to play more first-team players than their opponents.Not that a win at Gala would do any harm and it would certainly go some of the way to proving another of Wagner's contentions - that reality is nothing but a collective hunch. And hunches aren't often right.Read
