Heathfield played this friendly as Eastbourne cried off their League Game giving Heathfield a 40-0 walk over.
The 3rds welcomed back Dave Rhodes after a long absence at Scrum Half teaming up with another veteran Brady Burdett at Stand Off. The first half was all Heathfields with 80% territory and possession. Early on a great drive by Campbell Lacey lead to a penalty which Dave Rhodes put to touch but several infringements by both sides meant constant stoppages. However Heathfield were constantly in Cinque Port’s 22 and putting them under pressure. A good drive by Scott Gladwish unfortunately resulted in a turn over ball which was kicked for touch only for the ball in the high wind to go back over the dead ball line.
The resulting scrum turned into a maul on the 5 metre line and the canny no. 9 Dave Rhodes sneaked a deft pass to Dan Ellis who went over in the corner to give Heathfield the lead.
By now the wind was howling and the rain was lashing down and most of the crowd had retreated to the safety of the clubhouse. But the game continued at a furious pace. An injury to Nick Seddon gave Craig Austen White the chance to come on. Possession changed hands many times but Cinque Ports were forever under pressure in their half rarely breaking out.
Before the end of the first half there was a couple of "handbag” incidents which enabled both sides to take a breather while the Captains had a chat with the ref. Heathfields scrimmaging was strong as shown by a couple won against the head.
The first half ended with Heathfield 5-0 up. Wholesale changes were made at half time with Brady Burdett and Dave Rhodes giving way to younger legs. Keylock came on at no.9 with his distinctive pink socks. Skipper Kenny Lewis warned those substituted to stay warm as they may be needed as rolling subs , but the minute his back was turned they all retreated to the clubhouse where many of them showered and changed.
The second half gave more possession and territory to Cinque Ports but whenever they had a half decent chance of making ground they managed an offside or knock on. An injury to their Hooker meant that the scrum became uncontested , which did not necessarily suit the strong Heathfield pack.
The scrum was well controlled by Keylock who fed the backs well but earlier passing would have created more chances for the backs to run the ball forward into territory.
The last 8 minutes of the game took place inside Heath’s 22 and it looked a certainty that the game would end in a 5-5 draw but despite a long defence of their try line , two 5 metre scrums Heathfield’s defences were strong and denied Cinque Ports a score.
The score line reflected the massive defensive efforts of both sides and although it was a narrow victory Heathfield deserved the win for their better handling possession and territory.
Team : Mike Powderly, Kieran Farquar, Nick Evans, Paul Hookway, Kenny Lewis, Neil Burfield, Campbell Lacey, Ian Schlieder, Dave Rhodes, Brady Burdett, Scott Gladwish, Nick Seddon, Mike Hole, Dan Ellis, Tom Gooders.
Subs : Albert Wright, James Cooley, Dan Biggins, Tom Keylock, Mike Shallcross, Craig Austin-White, Frazer Richards, Oli Goldswothy, Ben Weston.
Match Report : George Warren.