FIVE POINT HAUL SECURES SECOND SPOT

    
15 Eddie Cartwright  14 Si Brown  13 Tom Owen  12 Willie Tufui  11 Callum Harriett-Brown  10 Dan Cole  9 Dom Walsh  1 Olly Cook  2 Mark Puttick  3 Chris Moore  4 Matt Beasty  5 Saif Boussadda 6 Jonny Cole  7 Joe Shipman 8 Alex Patrick  16 Luke Saltonstall  17 Fergus Marsden  18 Paul Turner.

Kensington playing field was the temporary home for Heath as they entertained Beverley in a re-arranged game postponed last week due to North Dean suffering from flooding. The pitch looked heavy and with a strong wind blowing around the conditions were far from perfect, as were the preparations in the run up to game, but thanks once again to club officials, coaches, players and an army of helpers the game went ahead.

Returning to the starting line-up were full back Eddie Cartwright, centre Willie Tufui and Joe Shipman at open-side for the unavailable Ezra Hinchliffe, holiday, and Jordan Moana, suspension. The bench also looked strong with Luke Saltonstall, Paul Turner and Fergus Marsden ready to play.

Beverley, in third spot, arrived full of confidence as they were looking to narrow the gap on second place Heath but as Heath kicked off it was the home side who had the perfect start. A deep punt from Dan Cole was not dealt with by the Beverley defence and Willie Tufui pounced on a loose ball to release Eddie Cartwright, who slipped a pass to wing Callum Harriett-Brown who in turn went in at the corner for a try and Heath led 5-0 with 2 minutes on the clock.

Heath were using the conditions to their advantage putting the visitors defence under pressure and from a penalty Dan Cole increased Heaths lead to 8-0 with 10 minutes played. Heath were in control but a lapse in concentration and poor tackling resulted in Beverley running through from the half-way line to score a try in the corner 8-5. This seemed to inspire Heath as they fought to get back into the game but Beverley were strong and quick to close play down. The redoubtable Mark Puttick was in the thick of things supported by Matt Beasty and Jonny Cole and as props Chris Moore and Olly Cook drove in making solid yardage Beverley were struggling - giving away a number of penalties. From one, Heath decide to scrum and with Alex Patrick controlling the ball it was left to Joe Shipman to scoop the ball out to the immortal deity Si Brown who showed his immense talents with an under-arm pass to enable Eddie Cartwright to score in the corner. The attempted conversion from Dan Cole went just wide but Heath led 13-5 with 25 minutes played.

Heath were now playing well and dominating the game and with Matt Beasty a lighthouse in the line out this enabled the backs to play some good solid rugby. However, much to Beverleys credit, the visitors clung on and gradually worked their way back into the game. Paul Turner and Fergus Marsden replaced Olly Cook and Saif Boussadda to try and shore up the onslaught but Heath's sandbagging defence was enough to keep the green and white surge at bay as half time arrived.

The start of the second half began with a storming run from stand in captain Chris Moore which seemed to inspire his charges and once again they put pressure on the visitors defence resulting in a penalty try being awarded to Heath, 20-5 with 48 minutes played. Luke Saltonstall replaced Si Brown as the game developed into a midfield battle with both sides pounding into each other and everyone putting their bodies on the line. The deadlock was broken when Beverley made a charge and broke free to score a second try in the corner, 20-10 with 64 minutes played. Back came Heath with some surging runs from Tufui and Moore and in one up popped Eddie Cartwright for his second try of the game. A superb conversion from Dan Cole saw Heath lead 27-10 with 10 minutes remaining. However, Beverley were not finished, and their response was immediate scoring a converted try under the posts, 27-17. With time running out from the re-start Heath were awarded a penalty and Dan Cole slotted the ball between the post for a final score 30-17.

This was yet another fine performance from Heath. All the players from both sides contributed to an excellent game in difficult conditions to keep the crowd entertained and the five point haul from Heath secures second spot in the league with 3 points separating them from leaders Old Brodleians with seven rounds to play.