Boars Sweet Revenge

Heathfield Boars 19 vs Chichester III 15

The Boars had a lot to prove after a terrible trip to Chichester last year, turning up late due to traffic problems and subsequently getting beaten badly by a strong Chichester team.

Both teams looked quite evenly matched, with the Boars selecting a few younger heads to mix in with the more experienced players. It was Chichester who struck first though by winning the toss and decided to play up the slope at Waldron.

Rory gets the forwards going with a rumble...

The Boars started well and making good use of the slope controlled the initial play with forwards winning good ball in the line out and scrums, giving the backs a chance to attack. But Chichester defended well and from some loose play their dangerous winger managed to step through several week tackles in the backs to score against the run of play. The convertion was missed and this was something that would come back to haunt them later on.

Lee keylock turns defence into attack with a strong handoff...

Heathfield didn’t lose their focus and got straight back to it, the now dominant forwards really pressuring the Chichester line. After some simple but very effective pick and drive rugby the boars got to the Chichester 5 metres line and then it was down to Tony “Too Tall” Rose to pick up and dive for the line right under the posts. The simple yet very important conversion by Kenny “KFC” Lewis put the Boars in a deserved lead.

"Too Tall" Tony dives between the posts to get the Boars right back in it!

That’s how the half finished 7-5 and anyone who has played at Waldron will know that the slope is usually worth more than a 2 point advantage so Heathfield still had it all to do.

Our referee was the same one who had refereed our game against East Grinstead earlier in the season. He seems to have a problem with hard physical rugby which is a problem when you’re a fat old centre with no pace, that’s pretty much all you have left! But both teams gave him no real problems and he had been at least consistent during the first half. At least he didn’t call me JUSTIN this time!

The second half started disappointingly for the home team, as usual they seemed to be half asleep as the Chichester forwards drove to the line; then some good hands [and an outrageous knock on] saw Chichester crash over for a deserved try.

We refocused and after some strong words from Rory we seemed to wake up and get back into the game. The backs had several good runs and eventually they seemed to make this count when Simon “Twinkle Toes” Hollingdale had one of his trade mark storming runs up the side line before offloading to Pete McEvoy who sped for the corner but under pressure from two defenders couldn’t quite ground the ball. But this was just a chance for the Heathfield forwards to show their dominance. The resulting scrum was driven towards the line and the and controlled beautifully before Ian “It has to be PINK” Schlieder, who had only just come on the pitch, touched down from the number 8 spot. An excellent conversion from KFC from wide out on the right gave the Boars a 4 point lead and really kept up the pressure on Chichester.

great defensive work from the Heathfield forwards...

With both teams desperately trying to score again the defence was good from both sides and several strong attacks were snuffed out at the last minute. It was again Chichester who got the break through as a combined forwards and back move drove down the hill and wore down the Heathfield defence, allowing them to score in the corner. But again Chichester were unable to convert and so the lead was only one point at 14-15, giving Heathfield 10 minutes to try and get back up the hill to score again.

From the restart the ball was kicked deep into the Chichester half and some great pressure saw the full back slice his kick and give Heathfield a lineout on the 22. The Boars were now really up for the game and attacked relentlessly but again Chichester tackled well and held out, but they couldn’t relive the relentless pressure.

Sam Cooley peel's off round the front of the line out to maintain the pressure...

Another line out saw Sam “The Hair” Cooley take the ball and peel round the front to get close to the line, it was a great move which deserved a try but wasn’t to be. The ball was recycled and this time it was the backs who would get a chance but again Chichester held firm, even when stretched to the limit all across the pitch Chichester were resolute. A knock on gave Heathfield a scrum just top the left of the posts about ten yards out and the Boars backs all lined up to the right. Coming from the right, tight to the back of the scrum Justin “Elvis” Waters took a nice pop from stand in scrum half Tom Keylock; crashing through the Chichester scum half and then brushing aside the defenders on the line, to finally got the break through that Heath deserved making the score 19-15. The conversion was missed by Lewis, but it was a difficult kick into the wind and wouldn’t have an effect on the result.

"Justin" crashes over to score late on, after sustained Boars pressure

With three minutes to go Chichester restarted but never really got the ball, they did finally manage to get into the Heathfield 22 but good forward tackling and pressure meant the ball was recycled to Wates who hoof the ball up the pitch and out of play for the final touch of the game.

This was an excellent game played at a high tempo, by two teams that wanted to play rugby regardless of the weather and any strange referring decisions...

Man of the match could have gone to anyone. Tom Keylock stepping up to scrum half late on was a contender, as was Sam Cooley for his great barrelling runs but this game was won in the forwards and for his rallying cries and overall performance Rory “The Hitcher” Burchett has to take the honours.

Boars Team – N. Evens, C. Ambrosino, R. Burchett, P. Hookway (I. Schlieder), T. Rose, S. Cooley, K. Lewis, J. Parsons (T. Flint – 20), L. Keylock , T. Ingram, J. Wates, T. Keylock (P. McEvoy), S. Hollingdale, J. Gavor, N. Sands

Match Report by Julian Wates (with help from KFC)

2/3/2009 12:52:51 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

Heathfield & Waldron II vs Barns Green

This away match against Barns Green was played at Horsham RFC due to an unplayable pitch at Barns Green.

The game started at a furious pace with Barns Green attacking down the slope and putting the Heathfield defence to an immediate test. Heathfield were up to the challenge and denied Barns Green from collecting any points. The first score came just on the ten minute mark Heathfield had a penalty, ten metres out, in front of the posts, instead of a safe three points a quick thinking Greg Kneller tapped the ball and just managed scramble over the line to score, conversion by Sam Goacher.

In this league Heathfield have learnt that they can't relax for a minute because when they do the opposition can strike, which is what Barns Green proved as they ran the ball from there own ten metre line, ran through most of the Heathfield team to score. This wake up call focused Heathfield to reply with three quick tries, the first was a backs move with centre Chris English making good ground and popping the ball to wing Mike Hole to run in and score.The second was a lovely team try involving forwards and backs, which was finished off by the forwards as prop Greg Kneller popped the ball to flanker Jack Bayley to outrun the defence with a two metre sprint and score. Just on half time captain, Levi Willis who was having a very strong game, scored one of his typical tries powering through the Barns Green defence and scoring. This gave a half time score of 26 - 5 to Heathfield.

The second half fell a little flat and although always in complete control Heathfield did not stamp there authority on the game and always gave Barns Green a chance to make a come back. The deadlock was broken as Greg Kneller scored his second try of the game after 15 minutes. Undaunted Barns Green who had not given up managed to run in another try helped by a little complacency in the tackling department.

Towards the end of the game Barns Green began to tire and holes began to appear in there defence. The Heathfield backs took advantage and put together some lovely moves and ran in two tries, one by full back Ross Riley, and one by wing Mike Shalcross.

Final score  Heathfield & Waldron 43,  Barns Green 10

2/3/2009 12:37:52 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

Rugby The Winner!

Heathfield U14 (24)  Vs.   (12)  Crawley U14

Heathfield U14 arrived at the Crawley ground with blue skies overhead but with freezing temperatures and a bitterly cold wind blowing. The ground itself was just about taking a stud but was marginal in places. The game however went ahead with all in agreement and Heathfield started the match playing into the strong wind that was blowing.

The match started fairly evenly with both sides testing each other’s defence in the forwards and in the backs. Heathfield just about edged these contests with good rucking technique and some fantastic breaks from the midfield by Alex Borg (playing his first match at centre from prop!) and Henry Jolliffe. These two played really well considering they were up against the best opposition centre pairing they have faced this season. Eventually, Heathfield broke clear with Henry J. beating a couple of tackles and getting a try in the corner. Much of the rest of the half was played in a similar manner with the Crawley backs using the wind advantage exceptionally well and putting continued pressure on the Heathfield back three, and the Heathfield forwards driving, rucking and mauling very well to gain back ground. Harry Reilly played well and mixed his game astutely at fly-half but was helped by a generally dominant scrum. Towards the end of the half, Crawley applied concerted pressure and capitalised on a few Heathfield mistakes to score and unconverted try in the corner.

Half-Time: Heathfield drawing 5 – 5.

The second half saw a number of changes to get everyone on and a few positional changes. Heathfield started to consistently get the better of Crawley, with Conor Ingham and Will Morris making good yards, but it was Lewis Golding (later to be named Man-of-the-Match) who continued superbly from where he left off in the 1st half making great yardage and generally causing chaos in the opposition ranks. Indeed it was from a couple of these charges into the opposition back line, and the setting up of good possession by Lewis, that allowed Henry Jolliffe to score a brace of converted tries in a couple of minutes. This took Heathfield clear of Crawley but, to the credit of the Crawley squad, they continued to play hard attractive rugby. Henry Jolliffe scored his fourth of the day following good play from Dean, Will and Greg on the touchline. After this, a bit of an error by the coaches in attempting to make a substitution for Henry (suffering from tonsillitis even though he did score 4 tries) at a penalty meant that Heathfield were out of position on a good attack by Crawley, allowing them to exploit the lack of a fullback to score a well worked converted try taking the score to 24 – 12.

The final whistle came with all parties involved commenting on what an extremely good, entertaining and well refereed game of rugby they had just watched. It was an excellent advertisement for junior rugby and we look forward to hosting Crawley in a return fixture next season.

2/3/2009 11:33:03 AM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

Heathfield 12 Bromley 0

Heathfield continued their impressive recent form with a decisive victory over the team one place higher than them in London SE Division 4. All four Heathfield teams won on the day but this was put in context as the games were preceded by a minute’s silence for the tragic death of a young Hastings player last weekend.

Playing with the stiff chill breeze in the first half, Bromley started brightly, putting pressure on the home scrum and, as happened throughout the game, making good ground through their three quarters with pace and skilful running.  However once Heathfield gained possession they counter-attacked effectively and from broken play near the Bromley 22, Grant Stewart  scooped up a loose ball on the run, kicked ahead and out-paced the defence to re-gather and score one of the most impressive individual tries ever seen at Cross-In-Hand. (5-0)

The home team had the majority of possession as the scrum settled down after that first problem and instead was putting pressure on Bromley so that Lee Vockins at scrum-half was often able to disrupt the visiting No8 as he picked up.  The lineout was also a source of solid possession as Bruce Pestell and Stewart generally secured their own ball and often upset the Bromley throw-ins.

For much of the first half Heathfield were able to nullify any advantage that the wind might have given the visitors by denying them the ball with the green back row being especially effective in countering the large Bromley forwards.  There were several periods of sustained pressure on the visitor’s line but their defence proved just adequate.  Sean Hammond, playing at hooker in the absence of Rob Lawrence, was conspicuous throughout the game playing right on the offside line and often making effective runs.

After half an hour Chris Watton was unable to continue due to a calf injury and was replaced by Tim Evans.  Then on a rare foray into the home half, Bromley had a penalty kick at goal but the kicker hooked it wide.

The second half initially continued in much the same pattern.  Heathfield now missed a penalty but after ten minutes the decisive score was made by Sam (Mono) Thewlis.  A Heathfield lineout near the Bromley line was securely won by Stewart and Bryn Jones at fly half ran flat with the centres drifting wide, taking the defence with them, allowing full-back Thewlis to enter the line at pace and touch down under the posts.  Matt Skinner duly converted.  (12-0)

Heathfield continued to pressure the visitors and eventually the referee yellow-carded one of them for impeding a quickly taken penalty.  In spite of being a man short the Bromley defence proved adequate and as the game went on they started to achieve more possession and made a number of dangerous attacks.  However Heathfield’s defence has been a particular strong point throughout this season and there was no further scoring, albeit not without some shaky moments.

Heathfield coach Dave Jones was very pleased with the result and found it difficult to select a man of the match.  Stewart and Hammond shared the honours with the back row of Matt Ryan, Bruce Pestell and Simon Wilson who all had impressive games.

Heathfield’s next league match is on 14th February away to Horsham – 2.30 kickoff. Third place in the league looks very possible and promotion is not impossible.  Before then Heathfield are due to travel to Chichester next Saturday for a semi-final in the Sussex Trophy, 2 pm kickoff, weather permitting.

2/3/2009 10:11:30 AM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

Success for Heathfield Girls

Just a quick note to let you know that Heathfield have 4 girls selected in the South East of England regional squad of 25 players.

They play their first match against the East Midlands on Feb 8th at St Albans.

Sussex have 11 out of the 25 which is a great result compared to previous years- 6 of these are from H3 out of which 4 come from Heathfield.

Photo attached: from left to right – Georgia Gale, Charlotte Bird, Deborah Harwood and Georgia Gray.

Georgia Gale and Deborah Harwood played their way up through the Heathfield Minis, all the way from U8

1/26/2009 1:36:03 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

Heathfield & Waldron II v's Norfolk Arms

Heathfield played at home for this tough fixture against Norfolk Arms who were currently second in the league.

The wet ground conditions were not ideal for running rugby, but the Heathfield backs, marshaled by stand off Sam Goacher took no notice of the conditions and played some open running rugby which included some technical backs moves,which didn't always come off, but when they did produced some lovely flowing rugby which sliced through the Norfolk Arms defence. Scores were only prevented by some strong last ditch Norfolk Arms defence. The Heathfield forwards once again were dominant in the scrums with hooker Chris Jones winning a number of balls against the head and scrum half Simon Jackson making full use of any ball that came his way.

The first half was a low scoring affair with one penalty conversion score for each side.

The second half started in the best way possible. Virtually from the kick off the ball was won back from the Norfolk Arms forwards and with some fine interplay between Ross Riley, Josh Mullet, and Sam Goacher, Sam crossed the line for the first try of the game. The second Heathfield try came half way through the second half. From a scrum a pre planned backs move cut the Norfolk Arms defence in half allowing inside centre Nick Seddon to power through to score, this was converted by Sam Goacher.

By this time Heathfield were looking to take control of the game with both strong forward play and flamboyant backs play.

The final try of the game was scored by prop Greg Kneller, He had tactically moved out to the wing, to have a rest, and ended up being on the receiving end of a backs move just five metres from the line, a distance that he was able to sprint and score.

All in all a good performance by Heathfield who are slowly but surely moving up the league table.

Final score,  Heathfield  20 - Norfolk Arms  6.

1/24/2009 5:35:57 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

Park House 5 - Heathfield & Waldron RFC 19

Park House has never been a happy hunting ground for Heathfield and although the Greenies recorded a satisfactory win, they were made to defend manfully in the second half and suffered a worrying number of injuries in the process. Bruce Pestell played most of the game with a broken and bloodied nose, Rob Lawrence suffered ligament damage to an ankle and both Chris Watton and new boy Grant Stewart also had to leave the field for treatment. That is the bad news. The good news is that  Park House competed more strongly in the second half and game was superbly refereed by a young official who will surely go on to referee at a higher level.

Heathfield started the game confidently and soon advanced deep into Park House territory. With Rob Lawrence throwing accurately, Greenies soon began to gain quality lineout ball through debutant Grant Stewart who made a good impression from the outset. After about fifteen minutes Stewart won a lineout inside the Park House 22 and the forwards drove for the line with Simon Wilson getting the touchdown. The conversion was missed but after a further spell of good all round play by Heathfield a forward claimed another try which delighted the Heathfield supporters on the touchline. Prop forwards sometimes score tries from forward drives near their opponent’s line but rarely sprint over from twenty yards out. However the powerful Chris Watton who looks fitter every week received a pass near the touchline and ran strongly towards the try line. He was at full throttle when he took the pass and with a powerful hand off and even a hint of a sidestep he beat the cover to score a most impressive try.

Shortly before half time Heathfield scored another brilliant try when Tom Sheffield came off his wing and, picking a perfect line took an inside pass from fly half Bryn Jones to score under the posts. Matt Skinner made this conversion to stretch Heath’s half time lead to 19 points to nil. Sadly just before the break Heathfield`s outstanding Hooker Rob Lawrence had to leave the field with a nasty ankle injury.

Heathfield had dominated the game in the first half but in the second they rarely reached their opponents half of the field. The home team improved their game in every department and Heathfield had to absorb a great deal of pressure. Park House were a different team after the interval. Their forwards set about winning rucks and mauls and their backs attempted to play a fast and open game with their full back giving an almost flawless performance. He had command of the high ball and constantly made yards with his running from deep. Heathfield were disrupted by injuries and by the change of pace shown by their opponents. They did not look like increasing their lead but it was to their credit that they only conceded one score against some spirited play from the home side. The final score was a fair one mainly because Heathfield have such a well organised and robust defensive system.

For Heathfield the flankers Pestell and Tom Pritchard played with great courage and with Wilson at No 8 the back row was always close to the breakdown. The backs with Damien Pestell continuing to make powerful runs in the centre were mainly reduced to defensive kicking and tackling in the second half. They are an exciting three-quarter line but must make more use of the talents of Tom Sheffield on the wing. This was a tough game for the Greenies but they played enough good rugby to suggest that their winning sequence can continue. They play second placed Bromley at Cross in hand on Saturday (kick off 2.15)

1/24/2009 5:33:05 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

GREENIES GET OUT OF JAIL (AGAIN)

Heathfield U14    10   vs     5    Pulborough U14

Familiar headline? Read on...

Another Sunday, another league match. With the holiday season over and a cancelled match against Bromley due to weather, Heathfield went into this game having not played since the league match against Crowborough in mid-December.

Heathfield arrived at Pulborough with a number of players out injured or unavailable and a match squad of 20 players with pretty much the whole back division either new or playing out of place. However this didn’t show as Heathfield started with a bang with Alex Borg scoring in the corner after about 1 minute of phased play from the kick-off.

The rest of the half was dominated by some very poor refereeing by a referee who was either unwilling or unable to control the rucks and simply did not understand what the offside line was. Pulborough players were continually smashing into the side of rucks, nowhere near the “back-door” that they were meant to be attacking and perpetually picking up the ball in the middle of rucks without being penalised. (Apparently I am unaware of the rules and this is actually allowed - I SHALL NOT be coaching our players to do this!). Heathfield fought well, against the odds, and had some flashes of good play but to be brutally honest, let Pulborough off the hook by allowing themselves to become embroiled in the general shoddy nature of the game. They did, however, manage to score another try in the same corner by Jamie Wardle.

Half-time and Heathfield lead 10 – 0.

The 2^nd half started much as the first left off. Very little changed except Heathfield were playing into the wind. More “unusual” refereeing kept play very fractured and the Pulborough number 12 was having a field day, often 4 or 5 metres offside and on one occasion, putting in a tackle on Harry Reilly when he was actually still running BACK to get to an on-side position on the pitch after having made a tackle earlier in the play – fantastic! During this period Pulborough managed to put some good play together and concerted pressure found them scoring in the same corner as Heathfields two tries. Very few opportunities to either side for the rest of the half meant that this game, although well fought by both sides, was really meandering to an end.

However, there was one last drama to be played out. With the match time over Heathfield kept pressing for a try and were camped on the Pulborough try-line for about 2 minutes – a simple tap into touch would have ended the match. A dropped pass by Heathfield and fly-hack by Pulborough resulted in a straight leg-race between a Pulborough centre and Henry Jolliffe. Neither player was able to get away and after 80 metres of pulling, tugging and fly-hacking, Henry put in a football style tackle from behind on the Pulborough center who went tumbling into the turf. The referee apparently said that there was so much pulling of jerseys and shoving during the chase that he could have given a penalty to either side (I personally thought that the only decision was a penalty try but hey!... I didn’t realise that you were allowed to pick up in a ruck!). In the end the decision was to blow for the end of time!

Final Score and Heathfield win 10 – 5.

1/19/2009 1:28:13 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

Boars start well in 2009

Heathfield Boars 22 Lewes 3’s 10

The Boars brought in the New Year with a win over the only team who had stopped them scoring in 2008. Lewes had looked composed as they warmed up and caught the Boars cold by scoring a converted try within 2 minutes of the kick off. Aggressive and direct running in the centre found only weak tackling and the score was inevitable.

How would the Boars respond? Up stepped 17 heroes as they worked very hard to establish some control on the game, dominate field position and then finish the game strongly.

Heathfield start to move towards the Lewes try line...

How you play up the Waldron slope is a key factor in deciding who wins matches there and as the Boars defence grew stronger so the young backs started to make breaks and take the game into the Lewes half. This was rewarded when Boars won a 5 metre scrum, controlled the ball nicely and fed Tom Ingram who drew 2 tacklers before offloading for Julian Wates to score.

it was from this scrum that Ingram broke through the defense to set up the first try...

With no further score before half time the Boars were very happy to be 5-7 down but have the slope in their favour. After 10 minutes of play the Boars got the break they wanted with a carbon copy of the first try as a good forward platform let Ingram release Wates to score a try converted by Kenny Lewis.

this win was based on hard work from everyone...

A period of Lewes pressure saw them kick a penalty to narrow the gap to 12-10 and the game stayed in the balance until Tom Keylock scored a wonder try. Lewes broke out of defence and with strong running made it to the Boars 10 metre line before a good tackle put the ball in touch, KFC screamed at Dave Rhodes to take a quick throw. The balled moved through several sets of hands before it reached Keylock who jinked his way through almost the Lewis team, before handing of the full back to score under the posts, giving Lewis an easy conversion. With only 10 minutes to go the Boars knew that continued hard work would see the win and the cherry was put on top when Lewis kicked a penalty goal ahead of the final whistle.

Now we may be able to let Tom Keylock off for wearing white shorts, but what was "Brighton" Pete thinking of when he selected his!!!

This was a great team performance with everyone working for each other. Much praise goes to Sam Cooley, Dan Bird, Tom Ingram, Julian Wates and Tom Keylock but the Boars man of the match award went to back rower Tony Flint who harried the opposition throughout the match.

Boars Team – M. MacLeod, J. Sharp, R. Burchett (M. Powderley – 50), P. Hookway, S. Cooley, D. Bird, K. Lewis, M. Brown (T. Flint – 20), D. Rhodes, T. Ingram, J. Wates, L. Keylock, P. Brighton, J. Gavor, N. Sands

Match Report by Mike MacLeod

1/17/2009 7:08:08 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

Heathfield & Waldron RFC 23 - Folkestone RFC 5

Heathfield started their post Christmas league season with a workmanlike victory over a Folkestone XV which had not had a game since the break. The Home team started well and were quicker to the breakdown and better coordinated in all they attempted. The sides were well matched as they were before Christmas but Folkestone, who were short of some key players found the long trip and Heathfield`s desire to climb higher in the league Table too much on a surface made for good rugby.

Heathfield attacked from the start and inside the first five minutes scored a try by Tom Sheffield who pounced on a loose ball which had squirted out of a scrum near the Stone’s line. Before Folkestone had time to recover from their journey and conceding an early score, Heath scored again. This was a much more satisfying try scored by hooker Rob Lawrence after a spell of interpassing by the home team with backs and forwards involved. Neither try was converted and towards the end of the half Folkestone began to exert more pressure. They played some good rugby but Heathfield showed how well organised their defensive system is and they managed to cope with everything that the Stone’s threw at them The half time score was 10-0 to the home side.

Folkestone continued to take the game to the home side as the second half got under way but much of their good work was spoiled by errors while Heathfield played with considerable patience until they rested the initiative from their visitors. Chris Watton who has made a welcome return to the club this season was substituted in the front row by the excellent and versatile Sean Hammond who looked to have regained his early season form after injury. This allowed Richard Cooley to move to the tight head and provided the Greenies with a fresh impetus in the loose. The introduction of Sam Thewlis also added pace and it was good to see Dan Hunter- Evans back in the pack. He is a talented forward and will feature in the club’s forward planning. The home side extended their lead with a Matt Skinner penalty for hands in a ruck and then put the match out of their opponents reach when Damien Pestell, with a surging run from the 22 scored a fine try under the posts to take the margin to 23 points.

Folkestone did not lie down and produced some strong rugby in the last quarter which resulted in a well taken try after a tapped penalty. The final score was a fair reflection on the game which meant that taken on both matches this season honours were even between two very similar and compatible clubs.Heathfield travel to Park House next Saturday in good heart and entertain second placed Bromley the following Saturday. There is much to savour for Greenies supporters in the next few weeks.

1/17/2009 3:01:34 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

QUIZ NIGHT CHALLENGE - 30TH JANUARY 2009 - CLUBHOUSE

The Junior Section of the Club is holding a quiz night in the Clubhouse on Friday 30th January from 7.30pm. It is hoped that each squad will put in at least two teams at £20 a team with 4-6 players - Payment on the night!  Everyone is welcome to put teams in and the money raised will go towards the overall running of the Club.

The challenge has been issued!!!  Can anyone beat the U14s Team who are completely confident of their abilities????? 

Please speak to your squad manager for further details and to organise teams. Thanks.

1/13/2009 11:17:35 AM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

Sussex Cup Quarter Final

Heathfield & Waldron RFC 13  -  Lewes RFC 8

Heathfield were forced to concede their home draw for this match when the pitch at Cross in Hand was ruled unplayable within an hour of the scheduled kick off. By kind permission of Seaford RFC where the pitches were not frozen the game was transferred to the coast. Unfortunately this meant that two London League sides were obliged to compete on a very small pitch which did not help either side or the quality of the rugby played. However the match was a typical cup encounter played in front of an enthusiastic crowd which ended with the side from London SE 4 gaining a surprise victory over Lewes from one division higher.

Heathfield started the game by competing well against a physically larger team and took the lead through a Matt Skinner penalty after 4 minutes. At this stage Heath looked a more coordinated team holding their own in scrum and lineout and gaining much turnover ball through their faster forwards. Their backs also looked to have the edge behind the scrum. A little against the run of play Lewes took the lead with a good try after one of their props made a break leaving more than one Heathfield tackler in his wake. Shortly before half time Heathfield restored their lead with another Skinner penalty after a high tackle.

Having showed that they could more than compete with Lewes, Heathfield were worth their slender lead. From early in the match Lewes declined to attempt points from penalties given within comfortable distance of their opponents posts. It was clear that they were confident that tries would come and therefore opted to kick for position for most of the match. This played into Heathfield`s hands as they have one of the best defensive records in their division and again proved that they hate having their line crossed.

The game changed dramatically in the second half when Lewes soon gained the ascendancy in scrum and lineout and when Heathfield were shown a yellow card after a succession of attacks by Lewes close to the Heathfield line. The carding was somewhat bizarre because the ref called for the player wearing a number 7 shirt which was not in play at the time. Eventually the courteous and evergreen Tim Evans who was wearing number 17 suggested with considerable courtesy and charm that he was prepared to accept the card. As Evans who must have been the most senior prop on the field by some years had been galloping about the field with his usual energy and had been counter rucking with skill and ferocity, it may be that he felt he could benefit most from a brief period on the sideline. The result of this incident was that the Greenies defence held firm and Lewes again declined a number of kicks at goal which, if converted, would have reduced their deficit.

Having survived the first prolonged period of pressure on their line Heathfield, through Sam Thewlis who had replaced Will Drinkwater, and Bryn Jones kicked their way back into their opponents 22. From a set scrum the Greenies passed to the blindside where Eddie Armah who had come from his right wing position ended some slick passing to cross on the left wing and run round to behind the posts for a superb try which was duly converted.

At this point Lewes began to win lineouts with and against the throw and constantly disrupted the Heathfield scrummage.They also ran with more pace and determination but errors and the referees whistle prevented them from finding the rhythm they needed to break an extremely resolute and brave defence. Lewes could have won this game but because Heathfield got their noses in front and refused to lie down, it was they who achieved a noteworthy victory. In a game which had much to warm the blood on a freezing afternoon both sides competed well at the breakdown and both back rows impressed with Tom Pritchard being named Greenies man of the match for the second week running. Lewes dominated the scrummage and their lineout jumper had a field day but Heathfied`s front five were always up with play and every player in a green shirt tackled heroically to restrict Lewes from scoring a try which would have taken the game into extra time.

Heath are due to play another very strong Sussex side, Chichester in the semi-final at Chichester on Jan17th. 

1/3/2009 3:30:59 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

A new adventure...

Sidcup U21 V Heathfield & Waldron U21

Sunday 28th saw a first (please correct me if anyone knows otherwise) for Heathfield and on a crisp Sunny afternoon an U21 team was assembled and travelled to Sidcup. 6 car loads of players and supporters turned up at the right place and pretty much on time.

First job on arrival was to sort a team from the players. Being a new group that had not even trained together positions were always going to be previously untried for some of them. To their credit everyone accepted their roles without complaint and after an all too short warm up and run through the team took to the field lead by captain for the day Ross "The Boss" Riley.

So to the game. There had been a clue to the way this would go when a very well drilled Sidcup U16 side thumped us in Paris in 2006. Sidcup started with a brisk wind behind them and set at Heathfield with an intent. The Heathfield defence here was immense and for 10 minutes Sidcup threw everything at them but tackle after tackle went in and there was no way through. Unfortunately Heathfield could not stop the Juggernaut indefinitely and Sidcup went through to score. From that point on there was only one outcome but at no point did Heathfield give up the fight or drop their heads. They did not complain or argue amongst themselves, they kept at it until the final whistle.

The Cast:

Dan "Birdie2" Bird - Obviously playing a lot of rugby. Tackle count was fantastic even against bigger opposition. Worked hard the whole game.

Matt "Mad Dog" Overy - Matt does everything at 100mph and at half time had run himself out. 5 minutes break at half time then he did it again. Great strength good tackles.
Danny "Tall Boy" Bazen - Pulled out of bed after a heavy night. Worked manfully to hold Sidcup in the scrum. Always a positive influence in the face of adversity.

"King" Otto Tibbles - A welcome return to Heathfield after 2 years away. Fought hard with Danny in the scrum with Danny against a much bigger pack. Covered the park all day normally one of the first to the breakdown.

Dave "Radders" Radford - Another welcome return and playing out of position. Tackling well above his weight and on a couple of occasions showing glimpses of his considerable speed.

Lee "Gobby" Keylock - Lee's work rate was phenomenal with great tackles around the fringes. Always played with his head and turning up in the right place. Get fit, play more, you will be a great 6 / 7.

Phil "Goosey" Gander - Another stalwart on the tackling front. One of the fitter players and played hard from start to finish. Now planning to run 45 miles to raise money for an U21 Tour!!!!!

Mike "Twin1" Jacks - Showed why the Development Coaches think so highly of him. Hugely difficult game at scrum half with most of his ball coming with the pack moving backwards. Great work rate good fitness.

Charlie "The Real Deal" Jones - Unusual to have a flyer with only one arm/wing. Worked hard in defence. Must have been frustrated at lack of ball to show his speed.

Joseph "Fishy" Salmon - Some good kicking under intense pressure. Showed how much he has worked on his strength over last year. One good break showed flash of speed available.

Chris "Twin2" Jacks - Like his brother a class act. On the couple of occasions he was given the chance showed glimpses of good speed and safe hands. Sound in defence.

Sam "The Blond Bombshell" Greenman - Frustrating for him in the first half with a lack of ball but when moved to the Flank in second half came into his own making tackles and good work at the breakdown.

Baz "The Mop" Hunt - Saw more ball in the second half when moved to Full Back (maybe not the right sort of ball!). Always prepared to put his body on the line whatever size player coming at him. A welcome return to rugby.

Ross "The Boss" Riley - Not given enough opportunity to use his attacking strengths but defended well throughout and always positive in leading the team.
 
Supporting Cast:

Steve "Even Madder Dog" Sherlock - Unfortunately Steve couldn't make it to the game but he was actually the most important part of this fixture. Steve had to work hard to find this fixture and without his persistence it would not have happened.

Steve "Birdie" Bird - On Flags

Sasha "The Voice" Hunt - On bottles and first aid

The remaining Bird family - On Eye Candy

Mr "Daddy" Jacks - On general support

Chris "Sammo" Salmon - On hot air and bluster

This may not have been the result we wanted but should be the start of something new and we will be better prepared and stronger when Sidcup visit us at Easter.  

1/3/2009 1:42:44 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)     

Pulborough u17/18 Colts 10 v's Heathfield u17/18 Colts 24

Heathfield traveled to Pulborough on Sunday and for the first time in weeks played on a large and very dry pitch, ideal for the running rugby.

Pulborough had a very good start however. Playing down the slight slope and with the wind, in the 1st half,  pinned the visitors in their own 22.  Releaving kicks by fly half Mike Abbott would not go far against the wind and Pulborough were able to maintain the field position. 

Five minutes into the game, from a lineout close to Heathfields line, Pulborough worked a clever move and scored. But to their credit Heathfield didn’t panic and resorted to some good driving play up field. The backs were  then used to good effect and gained more ground finishing close to the Home teams line before being bundled into touch.  From the ensuing Pulborough line out, the ball went straight over the back to the ever ready flanker Matt Halls. He sped through the large gap and dived over to tie the scores.

The rest of the half was basically a defensive one on Heathfields part, but Pulborough were beginning to tire having expended large amounts of energy trying  to keep the upper hand and the pressure had been comfortably dealt with.

It was a different story in the second half with good driving play by the Heathfield forwards, particularly captain Angus Taylor and prop Tom Watkins. Once quick ball was created, the ball was spun with Inside centre Leon Collen eventually getting on the end of a fine move to score under the posts, with Abbott converting.

Heathfields line out was securing some good quick possession from Fraser Rogers and Alex Scott and this ball was invaluable to the visitors and they used it to good effect

The 3rd try was the score of the match involving great interpassing between backs and forwards, with the wall being moved to the far left wing, being recyled and finally going down the backs again and wing Luke Hannah having far too much pace on his opposite number and he scored.  Abbott slotted the conversion beautifully from wide out.

The backs were having a field day now and Full back Jeremy Burdett got in on the action. He was involved twice in the move before the ball found scrum half Callum May to round off the game. Pulborough pulled a try back just before the end to make the score respectable but the half had belonged to the visitors.

All in all a very good performance by the Heathfield side just beginning to find its shape.

12/21/2008 1:32:39 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)