Rams charge to eight-try win on the road

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Haywards Heath continued their strong run of form with an impressive eight-try performance on the road, beating Worthing 3s 48-22 to build on the previous week’s victory over Pulborough.

placeholder image — HHRFC Rams | Alex Chard

In a welcome change from the monsoon conditions of the previous weekend, the Rams made the perfect start at Worthing, scoring inside the opening minute.

The hosts failed to gather the kick-off and Heath immediately capitalised, moving the loose ball wide to Tom Farmer. The winger showed excellent awareness to stay in play before grounding in the corner, with Chris Neill adding the conversion for an early 7-0 lead.

Worthing responded almost immediately after Heath returned the favour with a mistake at the restart. The hosts recycled possession well before crossing for an unconverted try to reduce the deficit to 7-5.

That proved to be Worthing’s only score of the first half as the Rams settled into the contest. Veteran prop Martin McDonagh was assured under the restarts, while Heath’s defence, led by Man of the Match Jake Bates, repeatedly halted the home side’s ball carriers.

With neither team gaining a clear advantage at the set piece, Heath began making better ground with ball in hand and through intelligent kicks in behind the Worthing defence.

Sustained pressure eventually told. Chris Neill reacted quickly to a penalty five metres from the Worthing line, tapping and going himself to cross for Heath’s second try before adding the conversion to make it 14-5.

No.8 Gareth Fergusson was next on the scoresheet, powering over from the base of an attacking five-metre scrum after Heath had charged down an attempted Worthing clearance. The conversion was unsuccessful, leaving the Rams 19-5 ahead.

The Rams continued to turn the screw and Henry Dickson was alert to another opportunity close to the line, taking a quick penalty to score Heath’s fourth try of the afternoon. The conversion was missed, extending the lead to 24-5.

Heath’s final points of an impressive first half came with a penalty try. Attacking from deep, the Rams kept the ball alive through a series of offloads before Fin Furse broke clear. He was stopped by a high tackle just short of the line, with the referee awarding the penalty try to send Heath into the break 31-5 ahead.

Worthing emerged strongly after half-time, using their bigger ball carriers to punch into the Heath defensive line. Pressure and penalties allowed the hosts to strike with a converted try, reducing the deficit to 31-12.

The Rams responded in style. Fergusson carried strongly from the base of a scrum inside the Worthing half before finding Neill, who beat the remaining defenders to score beneath the posts and then added the conversion himself for 38-12.

Worthing continued to apply pressure as Heath’s discipline around the contact area, combined with injuries and a limited bench, briefly reduced the visitors to 14 players. The hosts took advantage with two further tries, narrowing the score to 38-22.

But Heath regrouped and finished the stronger of the two sides.

Good work in the tackle allowed Furse to strip possession before the Rams kept the ball alive and kicked through. Farmer won the race to the loose ball to claim his second try of the afternoon. The conversion was missed, but Heath’s advantage had grown to 43-22.

The Rams fittingly had the final say. With Worthing pinned inside their own 22, Heath worked the ball left, where another Fergusson offload released Herlander Mbunga to score a deserved try after a series of strong carries throughout the afternoon.

The conversion was missed, but the final whistle confirmed an emphatic 48-22 victory for the Rams, their second strong performance in succession following the previous week’s success against Pulborough.