Haywards Heath girls' rugby squads shine across the ages

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A blustery, wet morning didn't stop Haywards Heath’s rugby girls from pulling off three fantastic wins against local opposition. The U12s took on Burgess Hill, the U14s visited Crowborough and the U16s took on East Sussex Barbarians at Whitemans Green.

Heath Girls U12s played their penultimate league game of the season against Burgess Hill. After a thrilling first half in which both teams scored some excellent tries through strong running and tireless support play, the weather took a turn for the worse, the girls having to play the second half through lashing rain, freezing temperatures and high winds.

Heath U12s made the best of the conditions, running in several more tries on their way to a 13-6 victory. The game was played with incredible commitment and spirit by both sides. Special mention to Heath’s I Redford who scored seven tries despite carrying an injury sustained in the opening minutes.

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Heath U14 girls travelled to Crowborough to conclude their first phase of the Sussex league and put in a strong performance for a 32-0 win. This match would have been in the balance had kick off been an hour later, with stormy weather rolling in.

The Heath Girls U14 squad celebrated a great winThe Heath Girls U14 squad celebrated a great win
The Heath Girls U14 squad celebrated a great win

However, there was enough time before an early abandonment after 40 minutes for Heath-Uckfield to record six unanswered tries, with three from stand-in fly half S Speight, a wonderful 70-yard solo effort from a Crowborough kick-off from flanker M Turenko and further tries from centre K Harada and full-back ETennant.

The Heath-Uckfield team played with ambition, with accurate and well-timed passing helping them find strong attacking positions and committed defence and counter-rucking keeping the possession level high.

The victory was the Heath-Uckfield girls' fifth out of seven in the league and secured their place in the upper half of the Sussex table, meaning they will be competing with Hove, Horsham and the East Sussex Barbarians for the Waterfall league and cup during the rest of the season.

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Heath’s U16 girls’ squad played some excellent rugby against East Sussex Barbarians as they secured a memorable hard-fought win. Captain K Camarra set the tone, charging down the opening kick with S Mainzer going on to score a try.

Some excellent drives and rucking kept the pressure on ESB throughout, with another try for Mainzer and then for Camarra. ESB got one back, followed by tries for E Brotherton-Smith, L Pearson and I De Luca. Brotherton-Smith had her kicking boots on with a hat-trick of conversions.

ESB came back with another try followed by two quick fire tries from S Flower. A fantastic team effort with excellent runs, solid tackles and support from I Williams, A Oliver, S Watson and W Peck, despite challenging conditions.

It was a memorable day for Heath girls’ squads and the first when all three age groups had secured wins together. For any girls interested in trying rugby for the first time, Heath welcome new players for any of the three age groups, U12, U14 and U16, at any time during the season. Email [email protected] .

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Heath U12s - I.Redford, L.Bugden, L.Elston, C.Keddie, T.Unruh. Heath U14s - K.Aldridge, D.Blight, S.Bromley (c), C.Dodkin, C.Funnell, K.Harada, A.Kean, C.Langley, T.Laska, I.Morton, Z.Piper, C.Rayner, S.Speight, E.Tennant, L.Timson, M.Turenko, L.Turner, A.Wetton, E.White-Francis.

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