Haywards Heath RFC celebrate derby double
Haywards Heath RFC’s first XV won 38-24 at Hove in Counties 1 Surrey/Sussex – while Heath Rams were 28-0 victors at Burgess Hill.
At Hove the Heath 1st XV squad faced a season-defining fixture needing points to put daylight between themselves and the bottom two in the division.
Early dominance from Hove, particularly up front, was repelled by Heath, and the visitors took the lead with a score from winger Takhy Ndiaye Marrero which Tom Wharton converted for 0-7. Hove pulled a try back only for Ndiaye-Marrero to respond with an outstanding individual try to restore the lead at 5-12.
By half-time a physical Hove side had squared things up at 12-12.
But what a second half it was for Heath scoring four more tries to put the game to bed and take maximum points.
A trademark tap and go from a penalty in the Hove red-zone saw captain fantastic Wilf Bridges crash through defenders for a try, converted by Wharton for 12-19. Ten minutes later another old stager was on the scoreboard when Jack Lucas, at outside half, showed electric pace to burst through a gap and outstrip the defence to touch down under the posts. Wharton added the extras for 12-26.
Heath were not for letting up and when recent Australia returnee Cam Reed was given a bit of space wide right, he beat his opposite man and racing in for a converted score.
Hove hit back with a score but it wasn't long before former colts captain Otto Serjeant took a clever quick penalty on the opposition 22 before crashing a tackler and sprinting away for the sixth Heath try.
A consolation try for Hove saw them take a bonus point but a final score of 24-38 was just reward for a strong Heath performance across all areas of the park. Next week sees Heath host top of the league Twickenham at Whitemans Green.
Meanwhile Heath Rams took the short trip to old foes Burgess Hill, facing a daunting task given the experience in the opposition line-up.
The Rams side were clearly up for the task and within ten minutes were on the board when a good move saw the dancing feet of Ollie Goswamy beat defenders and score a try which he converted for 0-7.
Hill struggled to get momentum as the Rams held firm and the visitors scored again. A penalty kicked to the corner was mauled to within three metres of the line allowing Pat Stedman to burst down the touchline and score in the corner. Goswamy slotted the conversion from the narrowest of angles and the score moved to 0-14.
Another foray into the Hill 22 saw the pack picking and going towards the line where colt Jacob Davies was stopped just short only for veteran back rower Jack Bull to dot down for his first try in a while and 0-21 on the scoreboard.
The second half was much tighter with the big Hill forwards crashing down the park and the Rams defence holding out strongly.
The Rams scored the try of the match when, running the ball from their own half, they carved the opposition backline open and fed centre Luca Richmond who side stepped his way past tacklers and went in under the sticks for the bonus point try. Goswamy maintained his 100% conversion rate for 0-28.
Hill came steaming back and were camped on the Rams line for some time before a ruck turnover alleviated the pressure.
The Rams defence held out to the final whistle for a well-earned victory which was a testament to the blend of experience and youth in the side which featured seven homegrown current colts having their first season in adult rugby.
Heath 1st XV play at home on Saturday, when all the 6 Nations rugby matches will be shown live on the big screens in the new clubhouse. All welcome.
Heath 1sts: Charles Newey; Will Purdy; Harry Edwards; Harry Clarke; Ellis Dubois; Wilf Bridges (capt) ; Dan Jarman; Otto Serjeant; Jamie Thurston; Jack Lucas; Takhy Ndiaye-Marrero; Ali Darling; Ollie Simpson; Cam Reed; Tom Wharton; James Fleming; Kai Dolan; Tom Smith.
Heath Rams: Martin McDonagh; Stan Bradford; Karl Wicking; Henry Dickson; Pat Stedman; Jack Bull; Flinn Herbert (capt); Jacob Davies; Tom Butler; Harry Barker; Dougie Kern; Ollie Goswamy; Luca Richmond; Ollie Schlup; Roscoe Atkins; Finlay Furze; George Targett; Arthur Kempson; Oscar Mann; Jack Knight; Che Stokes.