Jessica Ricca-Maggs ACL Surgery Fundraiser

Hi, we, with the support of Worthing RFC are trying to raise funds to pay for Jessie's Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) reconstruction surgery (Knee surgery)

Those of you who know Jessie will already understand what this means to her and how desperate she is to be back playing and for those of you that don't know her, thank you for taking the time to read this.

Jessie ruptured her ACL playing in a U14's Tigers Challenge tournament in April this year, and at the time wanted to play whenever she could, so happily joined with some of her team and merged with Brixham RFC. Jessie played a handful of games on the day and in "her" final game she snapped her ACL. Since the injury occurred and after an MRI scan, Jessie has been waiting for reconstructive surgery.

Although listed as "priority" by the NHS, who are doing all they can, they are unable to confirm when she can have an operation. With 7 months passing, there is no indication at all when they could do the operation, even with us reaching out to the Hospital who confirmed there is nothing we or they can do.

The next stage of Jessie's journey should be joining Worthing College Academy, where she can pursue both her academic and sporting ambitions of joining the Harlequins academy. With an expected 12-month recovery period post operation, she needs the operation very soon to keep on track.

Tim Mackew, chair of Worthing Rugby Football Club has said 'Jess is one of the brightest young developing talents that Rugby Union has seen' and has 'the ability, ambition and work ethic to achieve professional rugby status at the highest level'.

As a young person this has put huge pressure on her mentally, with the time lapsed feeling like an eternity for her, especially with the unknown of when she will be fixed. As you can imagine this was having a detrimental effect on Jessie's well-being, so we have decided to reach out for support to have the operation completed privately via help of this gofundme.

For Jessie, like many others that play, rugby is more than a sport, it is a network of friends, family and a support system. Jessie joined the club at a really difficult time in her life. Rugby gave her peace, a fresh start, focus and determination. She built new friendships and felt part of a family.

Initially, Jessie was devastated that the injury meant she would miss her clubs 10's festival, 7's academy and Sussex try-outs, but not only this, she couldn't play with the girls in her team. She has since been denied the access by the examine board to take GCSE PE because of the injury, and has since had confirmation from the school that the operation is needed soon due to practical elements of the alternative qualification offered.

Not giving up she has been partaking in light training duties and assisted coaching the U5's with a teammate. The sport has been a source of significant mental recovery for her and all her progress is regressing the longer we leave it.

The club has made the following statement 'it is clear this is her pathway and she has waited long enough but further delay could affect her pathway, education and career. This is heartbreaking for Jess and for those who love and admire her. We need help to get Jess back to where she wants to be'

For those who are able to support Jessie in this go fund me it will make a huge difference to her life, so we thank you. We understand not all can donate but we also thank you for reading this, even messages of support and encouragement will help Jessie and if possible we hope you can share this to a wider audience.

Kindest Regards

Phil Maggs

(Father - Jessica Ricca-Maggs)

maggsphil1@

gmail.com