Haywards Heath RFC's Barney Clark continues to take giant strides in his young rugby career after captaining English Premiership club Harlequins' Under 17 Academy side to three wins out of three at the RFU Malvern Festival last week.

Barney, a permanent fixture with the HHRFC juniors since the age of 12 under the tutelage of Carl Husselmann and his coaching team, led his Harlequins side to victory over Northampton Saints, Exeter Chiefs and Gloucester Rugby in Malvern.

He capped this strong team performance with a solo back-row try that saw him cut through the Saints defence on a perfect line from inside his own half and sidestep the fullback before sprinting clear of the covering left wing.

The 16-year-old, who measures 2m (6ft 6.5 inches - that's taller than England skipper Maro Itoje), is one of those rare players with the pace and agility of a back and the size to play as a lock or back row.

Barney first appeared on the Quins radar at under-14 level and has been in the programme ever since. He has not only been selected for their U17 Academy Development Phase for the coming season but has also been invited to train with the U18 squad for pre-season.

A former student at Oathall Community College, he moves to Seaford College in September to study for his A Levels and is looking forward to representing the college in The Schools Championship (TSC XV) and other fixtures.

STOP PRESS: Since this article was written, Barney was selected for the Harlequins U18 match‑day squad to face Bath in the Defender PREM Next Gen league at Gordon’s School, near Woking. He made his U18 debut in the fixture, gaining valuable minutes at the higher level and continuing his rapid progression through the Harlequins pathway. The match was live streamed with full commentary on the Harlequins App and TikTok channel and highlights are available here