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SENIOR RUGBY
Two big games awaited our senior men on Saturday as our 1XV travelled to Ditchling which is always a tough encounter. Meanwhile our 2’s stayed home and hosted local rivals Crowborough. Could we get two wins? First up were the 1’s. Read about the game here: Match report

To see all of Ben’s pics of the game, click here: Match pics

Next up were the 2’s who had a storming game against a team several places above them in the table. Trys from Henry & Freddie and a fantastic brace from MotM Dylan, meant the game finished with the scoreboard showing 22 - 12 to the G’s (or it would have done if the scoreboard was working).

JUNIOR RUGBY
The start of the school holidays brought with it a welcome change in mood — sunshine did its best to make an appearance and it turned into a pretty mild and enjoyable Sunday morning at the club. A far cry from some of the conditions we’ve battled through in recent weeks. With early starts for the intermediate teams, it made for a busy and lively atmosphere around the clubhouse from the off. Plenty of activity, plenty of rugby and plenty of coffee being consumed on the sidelines.

The U5/6s, U7s, U8s and U9s were all at home training, continuing their preparations as the season draws towards its conclusion. There’s a real sense of momentum building across the younger age groups, with a flurry of festivals coming up to round things off. The U9s in particular have the Tigers Challenge in Bognor in a couple of weeks’ time to look forward to — a great way to cap off the season.

Meanwhile, the U10s and U11s were on the road with an away trip to Brighton, continuing their busy run of fixtures and festivals as they head into the final stretch.

U11 - Brighton Festival
EG U11s arrived in Brighton full of confidence following their recent festival success, and they wasted no time showing their intent. The opening match against Haywards Heath got off to a dream start. Straight from kick-off, Seb’s well-placed kick caused chaos in the opposition defence, and Mattie was quickest to react, touching down after just 10 seconds. With standout defensive efforts from Erikas and Cam, EG held firm to secure an excellent opening win.

Next up was a tough test against Uckfield, one of the strongest sides in the age group. EG showed real resilience, turning defence into attack with great determination. Ollie and Thomas both broke through to score, earning a well-deserved draw in a highly competitive game. The third match against Hove proved challenging, with the intensity of the morning beginning to take its toll. Injuries to Bradley and Cassius disrupted momentum, and despite crossing the line twice, EG were narrowly beaten, suffering their first defeat of the day.

Facing Brighton next, another strong side, EG produced one of their most impressive defensive displays. Under sustained pressure for five minutes, the team showed outstanding organisation and determination, even earning praise from opposition coaches. Despite their efforts and two well-taken tries from Thomas, Brighton managed to edge the contest.

EG finished the morning strongly against the touring side Stockwood. With Erikas running excellent lines, and Sam linking up well with Jude to probe the defence, EG found their rhythm again and crossed for multiple scores to secure a deserved win. Overall, a fantastic showing from EG U11s—highlighted by resilience, strong defensive work, and some excellent attacking play against high-quality opposition.

U10 - Brighton
Sunday saw our two Under 10 rugby teams take on strong opposition from across Sussex at the Brighton U10s and U11s Minis Festival—and what a fantastic day it was. Both squads performed brilliantly, showing real determination, skill, and resilience throughout their matches. The teamwork on display was particularly impressive, with players supporting each other consistently and taking responsibility in all areas of the game. Passing and support play were strong, with very few rushed or “grenade” passes, and the commitment in defence stood, with every player getting stuck in when it mattered. At times, the teams could have made better use of space and perhaps made life a little easier for themselves, but even then they showed great character, often turning hard work into well-earned tries.

Overall, it was a hugely positive outing, full of energy, teamwork, and great rugby. Well done to all players for representing EGRFC so well! Looking ahead to next weekend, it’s Easter Sunday, with all sections back at home. There may well be a few missing faces with families away enjoying the long weekend, but no doubt there will still be plenty of rugby on show.

Let’s hope the sunshine sticks around — and that any Easter eggs brought to the sidelines last longer than the warm-ups.

INTERMEDIATE RUGBY
EGRFC Colts vs Heathfield & Waldron.
This weekend saw the culmination of this years Colts league and so G’s headed to Heathfield buoyed by the return of some of the OG East Grinstead lads to bring some much needed firepower and grunt to the team. It’s not every day your local Colts team has a serving soldier playing for you but that’s what we had, with Tristan Simpson returning on R&R from his first overseas tour, landing late on Saturday night and lacing up his boots for one last run out with his mates from home! No doubt the recent experience of playing alongside and against the finest Fijians the Army has to offer set him up perfectly for a game in the Sussex heartlands…..!

With Freddie Mitchell and Bobby Davis adding some muscle up front in the pack, Teddy O’Shea and Will Jolley returning from injury and Will ‘Wiggy’ Blackburn back from his Warlingham sojourn the team was looking strong and keen to make up for last week’s match at Eastbourne where they conspired to lose when the win was there for the taking.

Heathfield also had the return of some of their stronger players from schools and colleges around the county and the talk on the sidelines pregame was all about the abilities of their backs who boasted one of Newman College’s strong ACE team in their line-up. That confidence was very short lived as not long after kick off and during a tense passage of play Heathfield ran a short ball down the centre channel and their star player was folded like a deckchair by Louis with a monster hit leaving him gasping for air prone on the ground, having to leave the pitch not long after. This set the tone for some outstanding Gs’ defence, time after time Heathfield gave the ball to their enormous Number 8 who was simply battered by the lads up front who’d clearly listened to Ryland’s constructive debrief (!) of last week’s game and stepped up to meet the challenge head on.

G’s dominated in the scrum which led to prolonged periods of pressure, and after an excellent break from Conor who jinked through the defence and offloaded out the back to Radley who’d run an excellent supporting line the deadlock was broken and G’s took the lead.
Heathfield came back from the kick off and kept hammering at the G’s line, with some exceptional goal line defence keeping them held up for a drop out. Eventually the pressure was going to tell and one of their forwards crashed over from short range to score. The conversion meant they crept into the lead, undeservedly in the view of the G’s coaches!

But back we came, piling on the pressure and with the pack crashing the ball up and recycling as though their lives depended on it and the backs managing to not drop the ball too often wave after wave of attack finally paid dividends and Radley broke through several weak tackles to score under the sticks. With the conversion successful G’s took a 12-7 lead into half time.

With a shuffle in personnel, the wind at our backs and Ryland’s wise words still ringing in their ears, the second half started with a bang. Wiggy received the kick off in our own 22 and returned it with interest, nailing a huge 50-22. With several of the lads all on the same page, haring after the kick and getting hands on it was clear what Will Longstaff had on his mind, taking the quick throw in and looking to punish Heathfield before they were set in defence. Unfortunately, the passes didn’t go to hand but G’s clearly had some attacking in mind!
Wave after wave of attacking rugby was unfurling in front of the sizeable crowd, with EG supporters far outnumbering the home fans. And finally it was time for the backs to get in on the action, with Louis keeping hold of the ball, using his strength to smash through some of the cover defence and score much to the delight of all those watching.

Similar happened from the next kick off, with the forwards recycling possession and Will L going on one of his trademark sidestepping runs before kicking over the cover defence. Luckily for Heathfield the ball went dead just before the chasing G’s players got there but from the resulting goal line drop out the lads penned Heathfield on their own goal line, winning possession back through a penalty before the big man in the front row Bobby crashed over for a hugely popular score.

With a decent lead it looked as though G’s were well on their way to a straightforward win, but as ever with this team nothing is ever easy and with a few infringements and poor discipline they let Heathfield back into the game with a simple score.

As the clock ticked down, the crowd were dying for the game to finish with a flourish and that’s exactly what happened. After a strong scrum for the pack, Wiggy took the ball flat to the line and released Harvey straight through the gap in the centre. With a swerve and the pace to go round the cover defence he ran it in from half way leading to one of the tries of the season and with the conversion successful and a final jackal turnover from Will J from the kick off that saw the end of the match and a convincing 31-12 win for EG and 5 league points that sees us consolidate 2nd place in the league and the end of a long and successful season.

Ably led from the front by Tom McMahon, the senior lads finished off their junior rugby careers in style and we wish Tom, Ben M, Tristan,sBobby, Freddie, Teddy, Tom K, Louis and Ben S all the best as they go up to Senior rugby whether for EG, Uni, the Army or wherever they find themselves. And remember there will always be a friendly face and cold beer for you at Saint Hill!

Whilst the league season is done, we’re not quite finished yet though. Plans are underway for next seasons Colts, starting with training with the U16s this week, pre-season training and little matter of the Sunshine 7s on the horizon so no rest for the wicked! See you all at the club soon!

Our U14’s also had a fine win as they hosted Warlingham to win 55 - 10 win. Well done lads - G’s rugby has a fine future!!

GIRLS TOUCH RUGBY
Girls, come along to our fun and relaxed touch rugby sessions starting on Friday 24th April! All ages and abilities welcome. Absolutely no experience necessary.
Come to the club on a Friday evening at 6pm for an hour and have a ball!!!

For more information please email Julie at: events@egrfc.com

LAST LEAGUE LUNCH
Our last league pre-match lunch of the season is on Saturday 18th April before the visit of Seaford. Get this in the diary as it will be a cracker!! More information will follow soon.

CARDIO & COFFEE CLUB
It’s not just our players that can get fit at EGRFC as we launch these exiting new ways to get your heart pumping, meet new friends and enjoy a coffee on weekdays at Saint Hill.

Donna will be running classes including pilates, weights, aerobics, toning, fitness and yoga. For more info or to find out which session is best for you, give Donna a ring on 07908 953776.

We are also planning, if demand is high, of offering different types of yoga classes, including; Gentle, Chair based, Gentle Hatha, Yoga Flow and Pilates. Please contact Donna with your preferences.

SECURE YOUR SEAT FIRST
You have early access to the Red Roses' September fixtures, with our presale opening now.

New Zealand return to Allianz Stadium on Saturday 26 September. Get tickets today with the presale offer: Adults from £15, Juniors £5.

Click here for tickets: Red Roses tickets

AGM
Get Friday 17th July in your diary.
We will meet at 7pm to vote in our officials and celebrate another season at our fantastic club.

OTHER NEWS
If you have any news about any aspect of our rugby family here at East Grinstead, get involved and email m.marriott@btconnect.com. See you next week!!