Category: Sports News

AS in the past, Chinnor seconds aimed high again, this time against London Welsh, who are in the Canterbury League 1, equivalent to Chinnor?s first?s in the South West 1 and whose first team is in the national 1 league.
This match, on Saturday, February 25, provided exceptionally high quality opposition for the team for the fourth time this season. This being due to a lack of teams available to play at their level.
Tom Wood was unable to lead his boys out this week due to work commitments and the job was left in the capable hands of Matt Hutchings and senior players. The game as usual was very physical and hard, which the seconds have come to expect when they play this quality of opposition.
It took London Welsh until the 15th minute before they broke the Chinnor line with a push over try followed 5 minutes later with a carbon copy try.
Chinnor?s first points came in the 26th minute by way of a penalty by James Hewitt who was a late replacement for Richard Williams. Chinnor was then punished soon after by a missed tackle in the centre that allowed the dragons to score under the posts. In the 40th minute Ben Hewitt chased down a kick by his brother to score and was converted by James and the first half finished 17pts to 10 in favour of London Welsh.
The second half started with a missed tackle after 5minutes which gave the dragons a soft converted try, however Chinnor were very unlucky not to get more points on the board in the next 20 minutes as they played some very good and attacking rugby without reward.
Unfortunately for Chinnor and although all the boys played well they conceded 2 converted tries in a 3 minutes spell with some shoddy defensive play and London Welsh increased their lead to 38 points to 10.
To add insult to injury the ref missed a player chasing a ball from an off side position which gave the London Welsh boys another try.
The game finished with London Welsh winning 43 point to 10.
All 22 players of the Chinnor team can be very proud of the show they put on for the spectators against such a high quality opposition team.

Score: Chinnor 2nd 10 pts vs London Welsh 43 pts

THE last home match of the season saw the men?s team in the Aylesbury & District league play Phoenix D.
In the first match in Aylesbury, Thame had lost the match 2 ? 4. The recent results for this team have been improving and hopes were high for this fixture.

Ben Cooper started off with Adrian Broadway but both struggled, although Broadway was holding his own with his serve. The pair struggled and was well beaten by the Phoenix first pair in straight games. On the adjacent court, Lance Adlam was paired with Gareth Allingham who was continuing his comeback. Adlam and Allingham started off quickly and soon won the first game conceding just 2 points. The second game was more difficult as the Phoenix pair of father and son started to play a wider game and made Adlam move around the court. However, the tactic was not able to prevent the Thame pair winning the second game and the rubber.

The next rubber saw Cooper paired with Adlam. Cooper was not aggressive enough when in a position to take control of rallies and this saw Thame lose points they should have won. This continued as Phoenix took the first game. After the turnaround, Cooper started to improve and get his placements correct. With Adlam mixing up the serves, Thame were able to come back and level the rubber. The good form continued in the final game as Thame won the rubber and move into the lead in the match. Broadway was now playing with Allingham and they played well together. Broadway was serving well with his disguised flick service catching the Phoenix pair out. Meanwhile, Allingham was attacking the Phoenix serve and was smashing well. With this level of play, the result of this rubber was never in doubt and Thame duly won in straight games.

The last round of rubbers saw the pairs revert to the starting line up. With the match score standing at 3 ? 1, the team supporter was confident of victory. Cooper and Broadway started well and were always in contention. However, the Phoenix pair took their time and slowly moved ahead to win the first game. The second game saw the Thame pair lose their way with Cooper seeming to lose confidence. They could not pick up their game and Phoenix went on to win the rubber in straight games.

With the match now at 3 ? 2, the pressure was on the Thame pair. Adlam continued to serve well and not just relying on the flick serve. Additionally, Adlam?s movement around court was the best he has played for a number of years. Allingham responded with an improvement to his play and the pair won the first game. The Phoenix pair then upped their own level of play and just managed to win the second rubber. The final rubber saw the Thame pair keep the level of play up and they battled against an uncompromising Phoenix pair. The two sides exchanged points all the way to 14 all. With the sides level, Phoenix chose to set to 3 points. Phoenix won the next 2 points to leave them on match point. Thame saved this and then went on to level the scores before losing serve. The match had been played in a very good spirit and the last point reflected this as the Phoenix serve landed right on the line. It was left to Allingham to give judgement and he called the shuttlecock in to give Phoenix a last point win and the rubber.

The 3 all draw was an entertaining and enjoyable game of badminton played in the right spirit. Thame now have only one match to play this season against local rivals, Mill Lane BC of Chinnor.

Ashford Town (Middx) 5 – Thame United 0
These two teams last met in August for Thame United?s first ?home? match at Aylesbury. The result was a 2-2 draw. Since then whilst Ashford have improved their squad, and currently occupy second league place, By contrast, Thame have been forced to slash their playing budget and are bottom of the league. The gulf between the two teams was very apparent.

Ashford controlled the match from first to last whistle. Their first goal came after five minutes when ex-Wycombe Wanderers defender Jason Chewins met a short corner with a well placed near post header. Paul Searl was kept busy in the Thame goal. On 23 minutes he did will to get a hand to a fierce shot, but the ball fell to Gavin Smith who finished from 6 yards.Thame were unlucky when, following a corner, a Joe Da Silva shot hit the crossbar.

Ashford?s third came in the 65th minute the result of a quality run and shot from Anthony Joseph. Smith got his second five minutes later when he lobbed Searl, who was blinded by the low sun, from the edge of the area. With about three minutes remaining Dave Hocking did well to clear a goal bound shot off the goal line. Thame pushed for a consolation goal but it was Ashford substitute Lee Passmore who finished the scoring, in extra time, when he met a cross with a far post tap in.

Thame United: Searl, Hopkins (Morgan), Raja, Eason, Hocking, Groves, Way (Fisher), Da Silva, Moore, Bradley, Boland.

Thame United entertain 18th placed Taunton Town at Aylesbury next SUNDAY 5th March. KICK OFF IS AT 1.00 pm

Clevedon 3pts Chinnor 43pts

A waterlogged pitch at Clevedon forced the game to be played at the local Comprehensive School.The playing area could hardly be described as level as it was at the bottom end of a hill where the local moles obviously enjoyed the environment! However it was credit to both sides that they adapted to the playing conditions.
Chinnor were once again without Eric Brown, the League’s top try scorer, with Jamie Hiscock going on to the right wing and Rewi Tolich starting at left wing. Paul Hennessy came in on the bench with
evergreen, Simon Matthews continuing at loose-head. Darren Oxley was a notable absentee tied in Thame with domestic duties. Ali Reekie deputised.

Clevedon opened the scoring with a well struck penalty in the fifth minute from fly-half Dan Hawkes. This was nullified minutes later when James Hewitt
slotted a penalty from 35 metres out. Chinnor went close several times but over-eagerness, leading to spilled passes kept them at bay. With Andy Milburn
being denied a touch down from a rolling maul, following continued Chinnor pressure, it was only a matter of time before they were awarded a try from
another maul when Rewi Tolich got into the act to gain the touch down. A fine touchline conversion from James Hewiit put Chinnor in the driving seat. Chinnor were still finding it difficult to put in the scoring pass on numerous occasions before eventually Sam Soane broke the defence and sent a well-timed pass to the young speedster, Jamie Hiscock saw him sprint 30
metres to score in the corner for a well worked try. Another conversion by James Hewitt gave the score-line a more realistic reading at the interval.

Raaki Maxwell set the tone in the second half when he took the kick off and tore into the Clevedon pack. With most of the play taking place in Clevedon territory, Rewi Tolich again inserted himself into forward thrusts to gain two more triesWith Hewitt adding conversions to both of these efforts Chinnor were well and truly in the driving seat.

There were two fine individual efforts, one from replacement Richard Williams and the other from Matt Buckley, with Hewitt adding the one conversion, to make his strike rate six from seven, completed the scoring.

This was a good all-round performance under difficult conditions. Chinnor could and should have been more patient on a number of occasions but nevertheless this was an emphatic win.
Six games left with Chinnor needing to win the lot to make promotion a reality.

Beaconsfield SYCOB 1, Thame United 0 – February 18.
THAME United remain rooted to the bottom of the league after this disappointing result. They currently have several players injured and were without the pace of Darren More up front who ?phoned in sick? before the match.
Ben Connelly donned the number 10 shirt, and played right midfield allowing Luke Fisher to join Alex Stewart in attack.

This was a far from thrilling game which either side could have won with stronger finishing. United started brightly with Stewart meeting a good cross from Mark Boland, but his header was wide. Thame?s closest first half effort came after 15 minutes when a goalmouth scramble ended with Luke Fisher?s close shot being parried by keeper Julian Taylor. Beaconsfield?s ?Rams? mounted several good attacks and Paul Searl, in the Thame goal, was kept busy. Their striker, Allan Arthur, however squandered at least two good scoring opportunities.

Thame dominated the first 10 minutes of the second half and put together some good moves but failed to really test Taylor. Before the match Beaconsfield had signed former Slough Town striker Matt Seedel. It was him who, on 80 minutes broke the deadlock by meeting a ball cut back from the by line with a well-placed shot. Thame pushed in vain for the equaliser and with 2 minutes remaining Stewart forced a good save from Taylor with a well-struck free kick.

Thame United face some strong teams over the next few weeks and, unless they can regain that important habit of scoring goals, they will still be at the bottom of the pack at the end of the season.

Thame United: Searl, N Rhodes, Hocking, Eason, Raja, Groves, Fisher, A. Rhodes, Stewart, Connelly, Bowland.

AFTER two seasons with no success for any of Thame Badminton club?s teams, the men?s team playing in the Oxford & District league have achieved the divisional title and promotion.
The final game of the season for the side was against Windrush of Witney.

Ever present in the side, Chris Charman, paired with Trevor Walker, opened the match against the Windrush 1st pair. Chris and Trevor were forced to work hard but were still able to win in two straight games. Chris Daniels, another ever present team member, paired up with youngster Ben Cooper. After an initial hiccup, Daniels dominated the play and oversaw another Thame straight games win. The third pair was Keith Richards and Andy Scarlett. Despite Scarlett playing poorly, the pair was still able to beat the Windrush 3rd pair in straight games.

The second round of rubbers saw Charman and Walker struggle against the opposition who managed to take a game off them. However, they stormed through the last game to win the rubber. Daniels and Cooper took on the Windrush 1st pair and surprisingly beat them with more ease than their first rubber. The 3rd pair of Richards and Scarlett again struggled to win in straight games. However, when both players completely relaxed they improved although it was strange to see Scarlett serving four successive high serves.

With the match won, it was expected that all the pairs would relax and ease through the last round. However, it was only the youngest pair of Daniels and Cooper who did ease through their final rubber in straight games. Richards and Scarlett again were not playing well and their positional play was poor. Nevertheless, they were still able to complete a third straight games win. The final game for Charman and Walker again saw them being taken to three games before winning the rubber. Although Thame won the match nine rubbers to nil, some of the team felt that they had had to work harder than they had all season.

The victory is one that Thame Badminton Club hope sees the return of higher playing standards for the club. One of the most pleasing aspects of the season for this team was that promotion was gained without ever being able to field the strongest side the club was capable of producing. Next season will see harder matches and the need to strengthen the club.

Where possible, Thame Badminton Club likes to see existing members improving their play through coaching and play. Higher playing standards allow the club to improve the play of all its members. Improved play in turn leads to more enjoyable badminton.

Contributed by Andy Scarlett

Thame United 2, Paulton Rovers 2
THAME united ended their run of seven successive defeats, and could have secured all three points, but for an equaliser scored deep into extra time.

Both sides missed chances in a scrappy first half, but the pace quickened after the restart with both teams looking sharper. The first goal came in the 73rd minute when Paulton?s Lee Bryant headed in a good cross from five yards. Thame equalised five minutes later when a free kick was headed on to Darren Moore, who fired home from close range. With two minutes of normal time remaining, Thame took the lead. Following a good run, Gavin Way threaded the ball though to Luke Fisher who scored from 10 yards with a blistering shot from an acute angle.

Just when the Thame faithful were preparing to celebrate, Paulton won a corner. The Thame defence failed to clear the danger and the ball broke to Paulton defender Steve Briggs who found the back of the Thame net with a superb shot from the edge of the area.

Robbie Eason was man of the match but there were also excellent performances from Majid Raja, Daren Moore, and Luke Fisher. Luke would have scored in the first half but for a great save from Paulton?s goalkeeper.

Thame United: Searl, Hopkins (Way), N. Rhodes, Eason, Hocking (Groves), Raja, Fisher, A. Rhodes, A. Stewart, Moore, Boland.

Thame are away to nearby Beaconsfield SYCOB next Saturday, 18th February.

THIS was always going to be a tough encounter for Chinnor against a resurgent and well drilled Chippenham outfit.
Two enforced changes in the Chinnor side, both influential players in the shape of Paul Hennessy with
influenza and Eric Brown, work commitments, saw Raakai Maxwell come in at number eight and Ali Reekie take the wing spot. Chippenham were first on the score
sheet in the third minute when Rupert Crockett broke from open play to put winger, Darren McMillan in at the corner. A finely struck penalty into the wind from James Hewitt reduced the arrears for the home side before Rewi Tolich rounded off a sweeping Chinnor move to score wide out. With Karl Brant
converting a penalty for Chippenham on the stroke of half-time, the scores were level at the break.

It was very much ‘nip and tuck’ for the first 20 minutes in the second half with much of the play taking place between the respective 22 metre
lines. The introduction of Jamie Hiscock broke the deadlock in the 60th minute when he took a pass from Sam Soane, which was his first touch of the
ball, to sprint 30 metres and score wide out. With Hewitt adding the extra points with a fine touchline conversion, there was now daylight between the
sides and with Buckley scoring when he supported another move along the threes, Chinnor were 12 points ahead. A further individual try from Matt Buckley and one from debutant Rod Mahe (both converted by Hewitt), completed the scoring.

This was a much needed win for Chinnor following the
disappointment of their cup exit last Sunday. It took them time to shake off the blues of that defeat but the last 20 minutes showed glimpses of what
they are capable off. With James Hewitt striking the ball well, Simon Matthews showing there is life in the old dog yet, some sound scrummaging and
Matt Hutchins back from a long lay-off, then Chinnor can look forward to their last seven games, all which need to be won, with optimism.

Score: Chinnor 34pts Chippenham 8 pts.

THE first half of this match was a scrappy affair with both sides missing chances. Thame?s closest effort was a high, 25-yard rocket from Alex Stewart. Swindon came out for the second half determined to get a result and for the first 20 minutes relentlessly bombarded the Thame goal. Thame defended well and Paul Searl, in the Thame goal, was outstanding.

United fought back and were beginning to threaten Swindon when the deadlock was broken. In the 85th minute central defender Roger Emms met a corner with a classic far post header. Thame players protested that he had used an elbow unfairly to beat Robbie Eason, but the goal stood. Immediately after the restart Matt Pratley made a good run on the right before firing a shot from 12 yards, which Searl did well to parry. Unfortunately for Thame the ball fell to Ryo Matsunaga who finished from close range.

The final ?goal? was a total fiasco. Marine broke from just inside the Thame half apparently beating Thame?s offside trap. Searl came out to meet the danger and Swindon passed the ball forward to elude him – a pass which all in the ground, including Swindon supporters, officials and players, saw as offside. The move ended with substitute Neil Dix walking the ball into an undefended Thame net. To everyone?s amazement the assistant kept his flag down and referee William Bull signalled a goal.

Thame United 0, Swindon Supermarine 3

Thame United: Searl, Hocking, Bradley, Tregurtha (Magld), Eason, Freeman (Hopkins), Connelly, A. Rhodes, A. Stewart (Caldwell-Smith). Moore, Bowland

Thame United entertain Paulton Rovers at Buckingham Road Stadium next Saturday, 11th February.

Oxford United 0, Thame United 1
AFTER weeks of disappointing results Thame knocked the holders, Oxford United, out of the Oxfordshire Senior Cup on Tuesday evening. It was Thame?s first victory since early November but this was no fluke result. Thame fought for every ball, defended well, were dangerous moving forward, and thoroughly deserved their victory. It was a night on which there were some excellent individual performances combined with cohesive teamwork.

Oxford?s team included the experienced Tom Winters, Mark E?Beyer, and Jamie Brooks supported by youth team players. Oxford may have underestimated the strength of the Thame side, many of whom were themselves playing youth football last season.

The first half hour was fairly even with chances at both ends. Alex Stewart?s height troubled the Oxford defence and he was unlucky to see two glancing headers go wide. On 33 minutes a good cross from the right from Stewart found Adam Rhodes who reacted quickly, but his fierce shot was saved well by the Oxford keeper, Gareth Tucker. The only goal of the match came two minutes later when a long overhead ball found, the on form, Darren Moore who ?blew away? two defenders and fired home to beat Tucker from 10 yards.

The second half started with 50/50 possession but as Thame gained in confidence they began to control the game, and Thame goalkeeper Paul Searl was a spectator for the final 15 minutes. After a good pass from Ben Freeman, Moore could have made it two but his goal bound shot was blocked. As Thame pressed it needed good work from Tucker to keep the deficit to one goal. Thame held out comfortably to earn a place in the semi finals.