5 tries from Heathfield’s backs, 4 of which scored by wingers, was Pulborough’s undoing when they travelled to Heathfield on Sunday for a league encounter.

2 tries by left wing Ash Sutton with very strong running inside the first 15 minutes set the trend, fly-half Mike Abbott converting one from wide out.  Unfortunately, soon after, Heathfield lost flanker Campbell Lacey with an injured wrist.  With centres Jeremy Burdett and Charlie Dagwell looking like they had been playing together for years, the wings were always going to get plenty of ball.  But Heathfield had to work very hard as Pulborough’s strong and well-drilled pack had the lion’s share of the lineout and caused the normally solid Heathfield scrum several problems.  However, from a Pulborough scrum on their own 22, a good squeeze from the home team front five enabled hooker Alex Hope to win one against the head.  Quick ball from Elliot Marshall to Abbott onto Burdett whose timed pass caught Dagwell on a brilliant line to score.   Abbott converted.

Heathfield rang the changes at half time enabling their whole squad to play but it took time for them to settle.  With the back row of Greg Salmon, Matt Halls and Ben Darcy putting the visitors under so much pressure, Pulborough were forced to kick most of their possession away.   The clearing out at rucks particularly by Tom Watkins, Tom Keylock and Larry Platt continued to give the talented backline all the ball it could want. 

So, Heathfield quickly regained their confidence from the first half and more clean possession found the Heathfield backs too hot to handle and a good loop by Abbott made the extra man and Wade Granich was on hand to score in the corner.  Soon after, a tremendous tackle by the Pulborough fullback on Sutton not only saved another certain try but forced Sutton to leave the field and it was the fullback once again who caught a kick deep in his half and ran the whole length of the pitch to score his side’s consolation try. 

Heathfield were not finished, however, and with a minute remaining, a quick pass by Salmon gave Dagwell, now playing on the wing, his second try in the corner to finish the match for Heathfield as comfortable winners.

Man of the match for Heathfield was Jeremy Burdett who had a tidy, good all-round game both in tackling and distribution.

11/4/2007 11:57:43 AM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

The chapter of disasters in the saga of the first round match in this seasons Powergen Junior Vase continued when Heath field travelled with a large band of supporters to Hayes in Kent for the rearranged fixture. Both fixtures will be remembered as much for the refereeing or lack of it as the rugby. Due to a misunderstanding there was no referee appointed for the original game and for the second meeting the refereeing was to put it mildly somewhat loose. That said Heath field were well beaten by a faster and more vigorous side and the loyal group of supporters while disappointed by the lack of control of the referee could not grumble with the result and gave credit to the home side’s performance on the day.

Heath field have combined well as a unit this season but there was little evidence of teamwork in this disjointed performance. Not helped by some strange interpretation of the laws Heath were badly beaten to the breakdown, conceded turnover ball regularly and whenever an individual made ground there was insufficient support to create scoring opportunities. Making his debut for Heath field at scrum half, Will Christian showed glimpses of class but received little protection from either the referee or his own players. The stark facts are that Park House scored the only two tries of the match and Heath field lost three players injured while a number of others were struggling with minor injuries by the final whistle. With a number of key league fixtures approaching this loss may serve as a wake-up call to a side who had been shaping so well before until this reversal.

Report by Mike de St Croix

10/27/2007 10:05:21 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)     

In Heathfields’ development team latest game of the league campaign they were due a good performance after some recent disappointing results.   Being able to select from a strong pool of players who had made themselves available ensured Heathfield were up to full strength.   Right from the kick off Heathfield played with commitment and pace, several times the forwards drove deep into the opposition half releasing the backs to get held up just short of the line.   After 10 minutes though Will Drinkwater broke down the blind side of a ruck in the opposition 22, he managed to release the ball around the back of a defender to Chris English on the wing who went over for the first try.  Within 5 minutes Jack Bayley managed to squeeze over from a ruck on the try line, with Drinkwater converting Heathfield were cruising at 12 – 0.   East Grinstead then showed they weren’t here just to make up numbers,  they upped their game and after concerted pressure in Heaths half managed to score from a charged down clearance.  There were no more scores in the first half but Heathfield were unlucky to lose their hooker Marchant with a badly injured hand.  

The second half needed Heath to show patience, East Grinstead were making all their tackles and competing at the set piece.  Drinkwater added a penalty then after some excellent forward pressure Mike Brown was able pounce on a loose ball on the opposition try line, Sam Goatcher who had come on at fly half for Drinkwater got the conversion.   By the last 10 minutes of the game East Grinstead were tiring and Heathfield took full advantage with Jim Cummings scoring to tries, one of them being converted by Goatcher. 

Overall this was a much improved performance, Levi Willis gets credit for just being stopped short of the try line on 4 occasions but the man of the match award goes to scrum half Mike Jacques who provided quick ball for the backs, constantly harassed his opposition scrum half and kept the pack moving forward throughout the whole game.  The development team hope this is the springboard for a run of good results in the league, with the next 2 games also home fixtures competition for places will be especially tight.

Report by Shaun Hipgrave

10/27/2007 6:02:58 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)     

Boars beaten

The Boars went to East Grinstead for a top of the table clash in high hopes and good spirits but returned well beaten by a very good team.

The Boars started slowly and lost two converted tries in the first 20 minutes as they failed to put in the tackles when it counted. The EG pack were very solid and had the Boars pack in all sorts of trouble at the set piece and their back row were breaking away and being allowed to make a lot of ground.

Heathfield hit back when Kiwi Nick burst through on the left to score and spirits lifted. The Pirates came back quickly when they were awarded a penalty on the Boars 22 and opted to kick the extra points. The game was pretty evenly fought at this point and the Boars had a stroke of fortune when Matt Woods intercepted a loose pass and ran half the field to score between the posts for Lewis to convert. Shortly after Hesketh was struggling with a shoulder injury and this cost the Boars a try when a barrelling run by the Pirates number 8 ended in another converted try and brought the score at halftime to 22-12.

A good team talk roused the Boars at the start of the second half and a great kick off by Burdett led to a Boars penalty on the EG 5 metre line. Captain Lewis did not hesitate, tapped and charged for the line and caught the EG defence napping to score. The next 10 minutes showed the Boars at their best but their failure to score in this period was to be the turning point. The Boars came closest when an unconventional lineout option led to Lewis being held up over the EG line.

The Boars then started to fall off tackles once more and lost another try in this fashion. When prop Geesin went off injured the fight seemed to go out of the Boars and another try was conceded. Winger Hollingdale brought a brief glimmer of hope when he went over with about 10 minutes to go but even this was snuffed out when the Pirates scored in the last minute.

East Grinstead were a very different team to the one beaten 60 – 5 by the Boars in early September and look a side capable of remaining at the top of this division.

Man of the Match for the second game in a row was Brady Burdett for kicking well in defence and playing well when going forward.

Boars Team – K. Nick, M. MacLeod, J. Geesin (B. Groves – 60), T. Rose, S. Walker, J. Parsons, K. Lewis, N. Sohail, D. Rhodes, B. Burdett, D. Hesketh (A. Farrell – 40), M. Woods, M. Gardiner (K. Davies – 65), S. Hollingdale, D. Ramsey-Smith

Report by Mike MacLeod

10/27/2007 2:56:47 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)     

Tough test for H3 girls

H3 U15 girl’s rugby team faced strong opposition in their opening match of the season against Folkestone, at Heathfield on Sunday.

With several young and inexperienced players in the side the H3 girls played determined but controlled rugby to lead 19 –10 at half time.  The forwards battled hard against a heavier Folkestone pack and the defensive line worked together very well. Strong tackling throughout the team denied Folkestone opportunities to play a fluent game and runs from Nina Crowther and Deborah Harwood from inside their own 22 yd area added to the H3 points score.  Folkestone started the second half strongly with two tries and briefly led 27-24 but a final push by H3 saw a well- deserved sixth try and a hard-earned 34-29 victory at the final whistle.

Other points scorers for H3 were Olivia Davis and Laura Baker.

H3 is comprised of girls from three local rugby clubs Hellingly,Heathfield and Hastings. Any girls or ladies interested in playing rugby please contact Andy Baurer on 0774-0162367.

Back Row : Mary Cunningham, Georgia Gale, Laura Baker, Stephanie Walter, Megan Curtis, Nina Crowther, Abbey Cleaver, Olivia Davis

Front Row : Mel Ruffell, Milly Gale, Becky Hope, Deborah Harwood, Becky Dorrill

10/22/2007 10:32:53 AM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)     

History was repeated when Heath field defeated Crawley by a comfortable margin after the game was played with uncontested scrums for the last fifteen minutes. The illogical league rules indicate that the score should be recorded as 24-0 because that was the score when Crawley were unable to provide a second front row replacement having lost their hooker and one prop through injury. Last year the league rules committee instructed the game to be replayed after Heath field were short of replacements who could play in the front row. In view of the timing of the injuries and the score at the time of the injury to the prop it is anticipated that Heath field will be deemed winners at the adjusted score.

The home side dominated the game from first to last whistle with an awesome display by their pack who carried the ball forward at pace time and again with the back row and the highly mobile second row having storming games. Driving play by the forwards set up scores for wingers Tennant and Hole early in the game and Simon Wilson who along with Bruce Pestell had scattered the Crawley defence on numerous occasions, finished one of his surges by scoring a fine try to put the Greenies !9-0 up after twenty minutes. A further try by Damien Pestell who combined well with fellow centre Matt Skinner took the score to 24-o at half time and the game was in effect out of Crawley’s reach.

Heath field started the second half looking as though a cricket score was in the offing. However Crawley defended bravely and showed some skilful touches in mid field.. Heathfield`s pack had been on top for most of the game with Richard Cooley and Rob Lawrence combining to take several scrums against the head and Crawley`s inexperienced front row suffered their second injury with about fifteen minutes of play remaining.Crawley were then reduced to fourteen players when one of their forwards landed a crisp punch on the face of Heath Flanker Paul Flood who had only recently joined the game from the bench. Protesting his innocence in the incident Flood retired for medical treatment with a yellow card, apparently for retaliation while the Crawley player deservedly received a red card.

These diversions spoiled the rest of the game as a spectacle although new Greenies scrum half Will Christian combined well with hooker Rob Lawrence at the front of a lineout to produce a score in the corner.Crawley scored a consolation goal but never managed any parity with a very competent Heath field XV.

Heath field will be without Lee Vokins for the remainder of the season as he has decided to travel to Australia and New Zealand. Lee is an excellent club man and played his usual sound game. There was no weakness in the Heath field side. They ran strongly, tackled decisively and combined well. Due to the interruptions the game became disjointed but t under the guidance of Coach Dave Jones the team has given notice that they have every intention of enjoying a successful league campaign. They travel to Park house on Saturday and anyone requiring transport should contact the clubhouse.            

Report by Mike de St Croix

10/20/2007 5:17:41 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)     

Boars win local derby

The Boars enjoyed this league game against local rivals Uckfield. Not only did they play better than the score suggests but they beat their rivals second team for the first time ever.

A young looking Uckfield second team arrived at Waldron on a bright sunny day. The Boars opted to play up the slope in the first half in the traditional fashion and got off to a great start when Cook finished off a good passing move by bursting 20 metres to score after only 5 minutes. This got better when Farrell dived over from close range to score a try that was subsequently converted.

Then came a period of farce for the Boars as 3 backs missed tackles on the Uckfield right winger, who then went in at the corner for a try. Shortly afterwards Davies and Barber collided when going for a high ball which presented Uckfield with their second try which they gratefully converted.

Davies then made amends for his part by finishing off a good passing move to put the Boars back in the lead. This was added to when Farrell went over for his second try of the half. This made the score 22-12 at the break and everyone thought the next score would be important in deciding the match.

When Cook got his second try of the match the Boars heaved a sigh of relief and when Mike Barber went further and scored the try of the season so far the Boars, taking a great angle through the line, Farrell popped him the ball and then it was only a case of the 75 metres to the line. Then the boars started to relax (or was that tire?) and Uckfield came back into the game. Uckfield scored when their number 8 broke several tackles in a rampaging run that started on the Boars 10 metre line.

From the kick off the Boars pinned Uckfield in their own half, the pressure eventually resulting in a scrum 10 yards out, a nice dummy scissors from Hesketh gave Burdett the opportunity to pop the ball to Wates who crashed through under the posts to score.

But once again Uckfield wouldn't give up and scored again to give the Boars a nervous last few minutes before the final whistle blew on a victory that keeps them at the top of the league.

Man of the Match was Brady Burdett who put in a sound all round performance to edge out Mike Barber who put in two try saving ‘one on one’ tackles.

Boars Team – M. MacLeod, T. Wates, A. Sutton, P. Hookway, T. Rose, A. Farrell, K. Lewis, D. Cook, D. Rhodes, B. Burdett, J. Wates, D. Hesketh (P. De Bruin – 50), K. Davies, S. Hollingdale, M. Barber (B. Groves – 60)

Report by Mike MacLeod

10/20/2007 10:00:39 AM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)     

I've been offered 3 tickets for the England v. South Africa game this Saturday but can't make it (very annoyed!!)

Anyway, my mate has asked if I can flog them.  He wants £300 each so let me know if you are interested or know any body who might be.

The tickets are Category 4 in Row 1 of Block 12 - seating position shown attached First come first served !!!

10/18/2007 9:10:05 AM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)     

Here are a couple of photo's of the Under 13's taken on the 13th October at Haywards Heath RFC.

10/15/2007 11:44:58 AM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)     

Due to availability of players, a much changed Heathfield side travelled to Chichester for the 1st round of the Sussex Vase Competition.

 
Chichester began well and after 5 minutes were deep into the Heathfield 22 and produced their best forward move of the game, with a 10 metre driving maul which ended with a try and was converted.
 

From this point on, the Heathfield forwards took control and dominated all the set scrums and the vast majority of rucks and mauls. A fine performance by all the front eight was the highlight of the game.

A penalty kick by Sam Goatcher gave a 7 - 3 half time score.

 
Chichester struck first again in the second half with a penalty. Heathfield replied with a dominate period of pressure which resulted in a 5 metre scrum, this was driven over and No 8 Warren Wright touching down. Sam Goatcher converted. At 10 all, with 15 minutes to go, the game hung in the balance. A Heathfield infringement gave Chichester a penalty opportunity that gave them the 3 points that won the game for Chichester.

10/15/2007 11:24:47 AM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)     

In Heathfields’ development team 2^nd game of the league campaign they had to return from a disappointing defeat from the first game, and oh how they did it.  Lewes arrived with just 14 players and were provided with a Heathfield player midway through the first half when it was realised a cricket score was in the offing.  Heathfield fielded a strong mixture of youth and experience in their team and the blend of experience, pace and organisation was just too much for the under strength Lewes team.

Right from the start the sniping runs and pacey breaks of Mike Jacques at scrum half worried Lewes, he squeezed over for a try in the first 3 minutes, then set up Sam Goatcher for a try after breaking from his own half several minutes later, Goatcher duly converted his own try.  There followed concentrated pressure by Heathfield with Ross Reilly going over for his first try from a move he started at fullback after collecting a wayward kick and Levi Willis bagging a hat trick of tries before half time.  Goatcher converted 2 of the tries.   As the half time whistle blew Heathfield were 41 – 0 up with Jim Cummings going over for his first try just before the break.

The second half continued on in much the same fashion with Jim Cummings and Ross Reilly getting another 2 tries each to make their hat tricks, Levi Willis another to make it 4 for the day and Mike Brown squirming under the posts for the final try of the match.  An assorted group of players made 4 conversions and the match finished with Heathfield scoring another 33 unanswered points.  Even though this was a game against an under strength side there’s no doubt the talent in this development team are going to be pushing for places in the first team in the Future. No Man of the match was awarded because of the excellent all round team performance.  With no game next week, the team look forward to a tough cup game in 2 weekends time against Chichester.

Report by Shaun Hipgrave

9/29/2007 5:45:06 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)     

Conditions were perfect for this Sussex Division I match between near-neighbours.  There was little wind, some cloud, no rain and the pitch at Cross-In-Hand is now in magnificent condition.

Hellingly were promoted from Sussex Division II last year and on the basis of this match they look likely to be competitive at this level.  However they were immediately handicapped by the loss of their tight-head prop in the first scrum with a jarred neck and were under steady pressure from the home side with successive attacks on both wings.  On three occasions within a few minutes a Heathfield player crossed the line only to be recalled for a forward pass.

At such moments frustration can begin to upset concentration but eventually Bruce Pestell and then Matt Skinner scored fine tries after good handling moves and it began to look as though a comfortable win was likely. 

Possibly the key moment in the game now occurred as a Hellingly centre was binned for ten minutes.  Bryn Jones converted the ensuing penalty and thereafter Heathfield continued to spread their good possession wide with more home tries looking imminent.  However scores came at the other end as Hellingly seized on two perhaps telegraphed passes to score interception tries, one of which was converted, even though they were still a man short at the time.

With the score at 15-12 Hellingly now had their best period of the game as they spent long periods in the home team half.  Just before half time the visitors missed an easy penalty which would have tied the scores and the home supporters were looking uneasy.

Initially in the second half it looked as though Hellingly would continue to threaten but gradually the home team took control again.  Rob Lawrence stretched an arm out over the line but was adjudged to have made a second movement.  However Will Drinkwater soon scored an excellent try under the posts. Lee Vockins was now replaced by Nick Cherry and Richard Cooley gave way to the veteran and much appreciated Rob Streeter.

The home lineout and scrum had a good day generally and Heathfield had plentiful possession.  The best try of the day was now initiated by Eddie Armah who floated a delightful pass to Adam Tennant who made useful ground before putting Bryn Jones in. Then Damien Pestell matched his brother’s try following a quick tap and break by Nick Cherry and with Bryn Jones converting four out of the five tries the score was now a healthy 36-12.

Just as the home supporters were anticipating even more points Hellingly again burgled an interception and collected their third try.  Few observers could remember three interception tries in one game. However Heathfield were in no mood for further upsets and that was the final score in the game.

Report by Phil Bell

9/29/2007 11:21:31 AM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)     

Heathfield U 13's kicked off their first match of the season with a friendly against local side Crowborough and were allowed to play on the main 1st team pitch.

Harry Reilly, after 5 minutes, put the first 3 points on the board after Crowborough were penalised for a high tackle and after this the game was dominated by some excellent forward play that helped Harry Reilly to pressure Crowborough with effective set pieces. At one stage, Heathfield went through seven phases of uninterrupted play where the ball was handled by virtually the whole team. Jasper Wren, Henry Ross and Jamie Wardle were highly effective in the scrum and Crowborough were not allowed to get into the game by Heathfield. The partnership between scrum half Kieran Burdett and Harry Reilly at fly Half is proving to be extremely effective and pressure kicking put Crowborough on the back foot. Unfortunately Heathfield lost Henry Jolliffe early on who retired from the game injured after having already proved his pace.

Jamie Wardle scored the first try from a quickly taken tap-penalty close to the Crowborough line. and ten minutes later, Wardle again tapped quickly from a similar position and found Henry Ross who ran a spirited sprint to touch down the first of his two tries.  The conversion was ably converted from wide out. Jack Koops and Callum Cuming are proving to both have the pace for some deft kicks that tested the Crowborough defence. Jamie Wardle scored the third try with some breathtaking footwork to evade Crowborough's last defence, following some good handling by the backs, once again successfully converted.

After this it was the forwards who once more took the game by the scruff of the neck and just would not let the ball go, dominating the mauls and rucks with gutsy determination and it was from one such ruck that Henry Ross peeled way and took a brilliant angle to score Heathfield's final try.

This was a hugely enjoyable match to watch with both sides playing extremely positive rugby and Crowborough were rewarded with a try and conversion in the last few minutes after putting up a dogged and spirited performance.

The whole Heathfield team supported each other, put in some crunching tackles and Adam Davies, Max Ellery and Dean Pennell were constantly at any breakdown and Louis Chavannes, Isaac Brown and Freddie Jones all played important parts insuring that the Heathfield defence was not breached. Man of the match for Heathfield in the backs was Fergus Diplock at inside centre, who tackled, rucked and ran tirelessly all game, with Jamie Wardle given the Forwards award, thanks to his 2 tries and aggressive tackling.

This was Heathfield's first match on a full pitch and the sides stamina and fitness and general positive rugby and teamwork augur well for an interesting season ahead!

9/23/2007 8:16:00 AM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)