A few months ago this was a match Moseley would have lost. Indeed a few months ago this was a match Moseley did lose, in almost mirror image fashion.

The last time the Men from The Duchy appeared at Billesley Common, in December 2009, they overturned a 19-point deficit and snatched a victory with the last play of the game.

Wing Nick Jackson ghosted in at the corner and Rob Cook stepped up to make it 20-19 with the winning conversion from the touchline. It was an afternoon sufficiently painful for Ian Smith to mention it in the build up to this match.

So how the Moseley head coach would have enjoyed watching his side snatch three precious Championship points in similar circumstances on Saturday.

Knowing their next fumble or infringement would be their last, Moseley pressed the ball up field with their battering ram forwards before giving as good an impression of a French threequarter line as they have ever produced.

Nathan Bressington and Anthony Carter pinned their men and little Jack Pons was released up the right sideline to score his first try in senior rugby, one that was the product of incongruously sublime handling and a sharp finish.

That brought Moseley two bonus points, for a fourth try and a narrow loss, only for Brad Davies to step up and - just as Cook had done nine months earlier - ensure the boot was stuck in further.

The fly half's sideline conversion was majestic but then his game management had been pretty good too. 

If they are honest Moseley will concede that until Pons slipped through at the end, they could not match their visitors when it came to cutting edge out wide.

However, what they did do was marmelise the Pirates' scrum and ensure they got good value out of the possession and penalties they manufactured. Davies was central to that process.

So often in the past Moseley have left too many points on the pitch but this time - apart from a misfiring lineout - the feeling was that they had claimed a pretty good percentage of those they were offered.

Perhaps had the throwers and jumpers been in greater accord and with some stardust in midfield there would have been more but 26 was a decent return for their enormous commitment.

But that Smith did not enjoy his afternoon more was down to the fact of the 26 points the Cornishmen bagged, quite a few had been handed on a plate - particularly that horror third try which included a pair of poor kicks and a brace of missed tackles. It really was a toe-curler.

Nevertheless one should not be too critical. As we have said Moseley were defeated in the corresponding fixture last term and that they managed to avoid that fate this time suggests they have either learned that lesson or recruited well.

MOSELEY: Carter; Bressington, MacBurnie, Reay, Pons J; Davies B, Taylor; Williams (Voisey 40), Caves, Sigley (Williams 63), Lyons (Stott 8), Spivey, Maltman, Pennycook, Evans (Pons B 20-38, 75). Replacements: Protherough, De la Harpe, Gillick, Maggs

PIRATES: Pointer; Davies, Hopper, Luke (Winn 65), Jackson; Cook, Cattle (Storer 38-48, Doherty 49); Andrew, Ward (Elloway 65), Rimmer (Storer 63), Nimmo, Myerscough, Morgan, Betty (Burgess 63), Cowan (Marriott 63). Replacement: Currie

Referee: Darren Gamage (RFU)