Rye only raise eight players

The New Roaders had just eight available players for the scheduled trip to unbeaten Sussex One leaders Eastbourne last weekend.

Injured captain Matt Cooke said: “Nobody really knows why. It was just one of those weekends where people were doing other things and we struggled from the off really.”

It was the second fixture Rye have failed to fulfil during a winless first half of the season.

“It is a worry,” continued Cooke. “I know it’s close to Christmas, but it’s about time people started showing a bit more commitment to the club.

“There’s a good strong core of people that want to play, want to win, but the people around that are letting the club down at the moment. It’s about time people stuck together and proved to the club where their loyalties are.

“We hate having to cancel games and historically we’ve always been very good at fulfilling fixtures even with weakened sides. The club management has got to put their heads together and put their focus on getting people to play rugby every Saturday.”

Rye’s next game is away to Hove II on January 3.