Rampant H&B win 97-0

Bottom-of-the-table St Francis turned up at William Parker Sports College with only 14 players, giving H&B almost unlimited time and space in which to play rugby - and to their credit they grabbed the opportunity.

They raced into a 52-0 lead by half time and added a further 45 points to their tally during a second half featuring uncontested scrums.

Among the scorers were Jake Stinson (3), Ben Campbell (3), Ben Petty (2), Jimmy Adams (2), Paul Sandeman, Steve McManus, Ben Davies, Lewis Sealy, Matt Harboard and Bruce Steadman. Sandeman kicked 11 conversions.

The result moved H&B back up to second in Sussex One after Pulborough’s 10-match winning run came to an end with a 6-3 loss away to Brighton II.

Elsewhere in the division, Rye put a series of narrow defeats behind them with an excellent 39-14 win at home to Seaford - completing the double over their mid-table opponents in the process.

Full reports on both matches will appear in Friday’s Observers.

Standings (played 14 matches unless stated): 1 Uckfield 67pts, 2 HASTINGS & BEXHILL 49, 3 Pulborough 48, 4 Holbrook 44, 5 Burgess Hill (13) 38, 6 Seaford 29, 7 Worthing III 29, 8 Brighton II 28, 9 East Grinstead II 26, 10 RYE 23, 11 Eastbourne II 14, 12 St Francis (13) 12.