In a thrilling encounter that showcased the growing strength of Girls and Women’s rugby at Haywards Heath Rugby Club, the Heath Under16 Girls delivered a stunning comeback victory away at Crowborough RFC.

Despite a dominant first half from the home side, who used powerful forwards to notch up four tries and take a commanding 26-5 lead towards half time. The Haywards Heath team showed remarkable resilience and character and continued to fight back. Just before the half time whistle, lock A. Ells-Marchant offloaded smartly to A. Wetton for the opening Heath try.

The second half saw fly-half S. Flower slice through the defence to score a try, followed by a response from Crowborough before outside centre E. Tennant, broke the line and raced away for another.

With momentum shifting towards Haywards Heath, determined rucking laid the platform for A. Wetton to grab her second try and scrum-half L. Pearson added to the tally after a strong run from captain E. Brotherton-Smith.

In a dramatic finale, Heath launched an attack from deep inside their own twenty-two, with E. Tennant again outpacing defenders to score in the final minute which sealed a remarkable 33-34 win for Heath.

A brilliant advert for Girls Rugby played in front of a large and appreciative crowd on Crowborough’s 1st XV pitch, this was a performance full of heart and promise from a young and evolving Heath U16 side.

Anyone interested in joining any of the girls squads at U12, U14 or U16 should email rugby@hhrfc.co.uk. New players welcome at any time.