Thame.net

Author: Sonja Francis

  • Fatialofa dazzles for Chinnor

    CHINNOR overcame Canterbury 39-26 scoring five tries for a valuable bonus point, in dank conditions on Saturday, February 13.

    chinnor_v_canterbury (400x266)

    Chinnor dominated the first half, scoring 27 unanswered points. Their first score came after 10 minutes when Henry Lamont scorched through a midfield hole created by clever dummy running by Junior Fatialofa. Sam Angell converted and increased the Chinnor lead to 10-0 with a penalty goal. Canterbury, with one of their few forays into the Chinnor half, looked destined for a score but a last second and now trademark interception by Oscar Heath saw him gallop 80 metres for Chinnor’s second. Angell added the extras and another penalty goal for a 20-0 lead. Fatialofa, on half time, danced in and out of the Canterbury defence from 35 metres to record a dazzlingly impressive try. Angell again did the necessary for a Chinnor 27-0 half time lead.

    Second half honours went to Canterbury who outscored the home side by 14 points. Canterbury came out of the blocks quickly in the second half with Courtney Horey scoring an identical interception try to Heath’s in the first half, just two minutes in. Three minutes later, Canterbury again scored with Ollie Best going in after good driving work from the Canterbury pack on the opposite side of the pitch. Chinnor stopped the Kentish momentum with a try by Angell off a collapsed maul . Chinnor then patiently worked their way up field and, after a series of pick and drives, the ball was released to the backs and Jack Adams found a hole to the line. Heath took the conversion for a 39-14 lead. Canterbury refused to lie down and scored two tries late in the game from Tom Best and Harry Sayers but it was insufficient to overcome Chinnor’s lead and the game finished 39-26 to the Oxfordshire boys.

    Chinnor had probably their most impressive half of the season for the first part of this match. They succumbed to another mad ten minutes after half time, conceding two tries. However, their good work of the first half was enough to deflect Canterbury’s second half revival, particularly by the Kent side’s backs.

    The forwards were the mainstay of this win, with a dominant scrum (except once) with a rampaging and hard working back row. The highlight of the match was Junior snake hips Fatialofa’s bamboozlement of the Canterbury defence as he swayed, slowed and accelerated from 35 metres out for a spectacular try. All of the back row caught the eye but Joe Vandermolen’s non stop workrate gains him this week’s laurels.

    Teams

    Chinnor
    Scott Gibson, Oscar Heath, Jack Adams, Junior Fatialofa, Henry Lamont, Sam Angell, Greg Goodfellow, Santiago Sodini, Jonathan Phipps, Andy Darlington, Joe Vandermolen, Ben Manning, James Tyas ©, Alex Waddingham, George Messum

    Interchanges: Jamie Townsend, Mark Darlington, Justin Allen, Frank Jones, Salva Lloret

    Canterbury
    Ollie Best, Harry Sayers, Courtney Horey, Tom Best, Mason Rosvall, Martyn Beaumont (c), Dan Smart, Jim Green, Tom Rogers, Alex Wake-Smith, Royce Cadman, Tyler Edwards, Max Cantwell, Sam Rogers, George Micans

    Interchanges: Dan Winchester, Neil Wakefield, Tom Burns, Cameron Townley, Sean Nixon

    Scorers

    Chinnor
    Tries (time): Lamont (10), Heath (18), Fatialofa (40), Angell (53), Adams (58)
    Conversions (time): Angell (11, 19, 40), Heath (58)
    Penalty Goals (time): Angell (15, 33)

    Canterbury
    Tries (time): Horey (42), O Best (46), T Best (62), Sayers (77)
    Conversions (time): T Best (43, 47, 62)
    Penalty Goals (time):

    Referee: David Clarkson
    Attendance: 222
    Half time score: 27-0
    Full time score: 39-26

    SOURCE: Contributed

  • From weapons of crime to poignant angel statue

    THAMES Valley Police is taking part in a national project to create a work of art which will symbolise the country’s stand against knife violence.

    knives_sculpture (2) (400x266)

    The Force is to join more than 30 police forces already contributing to the project by the British Ironwork Centre. Knives surrendered to police from across England and Wales are being repurposed into a magnificent piece of art, a 20 ft, knife angel sculpture, which it is hoped will be displayed on the fourth plinth at Trafalgar Square in London.

    Knife surrender bins will be in a number of police front counter offices across the Thames Valley until Sunday, February 14, in support of London Metropolitan Police’s initiative Operation Sceptre.

    A police spokesperson said: “In Thames Valley we do not experience knife crime on the levels seen in similar communities and areas elsewhere in the country. From January to December 2015, Thames Valley Police received reports of 485 crimes in which a bladed or pointed article was used compared to 496 during the same period the year before, a two per cent reduction.

    “The figures refer to sexual and violent offences, including robbery, where a pointed or bladed implement is recorded as being used in the offence, and it was capable of piercing or puncturing the skin. A pointed or bladed implement could include items such as knives, pens, screwdrivers and broken bottles. The item could have been used to injure or threaten.

    Independent Mortgae Solutions (RGB) - R1“It is important that we continue to ensure that people understand that carrying a knife makes an individual more likely to be a victim of knife crime themselves.”

    Knife surrender bins will be in front counter offices at the following locations until Sunday (14/2): Oxford, Abingdon, Banbury, Henley, Cowley, Didcot, Witney and Bicester.

    Knives should be wrapped in cardboard or something similar and secured with tape. You can read more about the Knife angel project here: LINK

     

  • Join the Mayor for her Celebration Dinner & Dance

    Mayor_dixon_champken_day_centre_staff_civic_recep2015 (283x400)

    TICKETS are now available for the Mayor of Thame, Nichola Dixon’s Celebration Dinner-Dance, at The Oxford Belfy, Milton Common, near Thame, on April 9, 2016.

    The tickets for this black tie event cost £40 each, which includes a sumptuous three-course dinner, dancing and entertainment. Tables of up to 10 are available. Funds raised will go to the Mayor’s two chosen charities for her Mayoral year, the Thame and District Day Centre, and the Thame to Thame Earthquake Appeal.

    RSVP to: rosie.collins@thametowncouncil.gov.uk, by March 18, or call in at the town hall. The menu and application form for tickets can be found HERE 

  • Woman admits stealing from employer

    TIFFANY Dowie, of Hilltop, Long Crendon, has admitted two counts of theft by an employee by stealing £240 cash from Sally Russ-Silsby at the Shepherds Crook pub in Crowell, Chinnor, on August 22, 2015, last year and stealing a further £150 on August 30.

    magistrates_court_oxford (2)She was given a 12-month conditional discharge by Oxford Magistrates, and ordered to pay £390 compensation, a £15 victim surcharge and £30 costs.

  • Can Thame run its threatened children’s centre and day centre locally?

    IT has become clear that if Oxfordshire County Council agrees to a recommendation for massive budget cuts, Thame’s day centre facility for the elderly, as well as the Red Kite Children’s Centre, will be in grave danger of closure.

    Sewing flowers at Thame & District Day Centre
    Sewing flowers at Thame & District Day Centre

    Like the children’s centre (and others across the county), Thame and District Day Centre is mostly funded by Oxfordshire Social Services but in the proposed budget cuts of £70 million, support for day centres and most children’s centres will be slashed.

    Efforts to find a way forward for Thame

    It was reported at a meeting of Thame Town Council’s Community, Leisure and Recreation (CLR) Committee this week that the Management Committees of both endangered organisations, together with Sharing Life Trust and the Thame Alliance Group (group made up of service providers in the town to identify gaps in service provision and find solutions) are working together to formulate a plan to try and keep the Red Kite Centre and Thame and District Day Centre open. Much will depend, regarding the children’s centre, on whether OCC, which owns the building that houses it (the old Thame library building in Southern Road), will want to sell it off the building or allow Thame to keep it.

    A voice against the cuts

    Thame Town Cllr Mary Stiles, who is a Trustee of the The Red Kite Children’s Centre, and who made the case against cutting children’s centres to the county council’s Cabinet on January 27, (see LINK ) intends to speak against the proposed cuts at OCC’s full council meeting next Tuesday, February 16, and will be taking part in the march against the proposed cuts to services in Oxford, this weekend.

    Serving ‘the frail and isolated’

    Thame’s day centre relies on a grant from Oxfordshire Social Services to finance its core services, but also relies on charitable donations from the public for activities, entertainment, outings and a Christmas lunch for the elderly members who may be frail or otherwise isolated.

    Leader says ‘sorry’

    Independent Mortgae Solutions (RGB) - R1OCC’s Leader, Ian Hudspeth, has said that he is ‘desperately sorry’ about the cuts, but that they were needed because planned reductions in government funding were ‘much worse’ than had been feared, after the government announced in December an additional cut in its grant funding of a further £20 million, on top of the previously announced £50 million.

    Oxfordshire County Council will decide whether to go with its Cabinet’s recommendation at its meeting next Tuesday, February, 16, at 10 am. (AGENDA DETAILS)

  • Sponsor needed for Thame Tidy Day


    BUSINESSES in Thame, who would like to be involved in Thame’s big tidy up over the weekend of Saturday and Sunday, March 5 and 6, are being invited to become a sponsor for the event.

    tidy_day2016_poster (356x400)

    The organisers particularly would love to hear from a local business willing to sponsor the advertising of the event, through the facebook page: Thame Tidy 2016 – https://www.facebook.com/thametidy/

  • Invitation – Meeting the skills needs of Oxfordshire

    ADRIAN Lockwood, Chair of the Oxfordshire Skills Board, will speak to businesses in Thame about the skills strategy for Oxfordshire, at a meeting to be held at Lord Williams’s Upper School, at 8am on Monday, March 7.

    Adrian Lockwood - image courtesy of www.banburyinbusiness.co.uk
    Adrian Lockwood – image courtesy of www.banburyinbusiness.co.uk

    The role of the Oxfordshire Skills Board is to bring together public and private employers, secondary, further and higher education skills providers and stakeholder groups and works closely with the Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership. The Board aims to achieve improvements in the skills available to Oxfordshire’s employers, and the learning opportunities available to students, residents and the workforce.

    If you are interested to learn more about the wider picture of economic growth in Oxfordshire, the plans for skills development and how this might impact on Thame, then this event is for you.

    Nicky Stallwood, Personal Development Curriculum Manager at Lord Williams’s School, who runs a Business Breakfast meeting three times a year, invited Adrian Lockwood to go to the March meeting, and has extended the invitation to anyone in Thame who has any involvment in meeting the skills needs of the local economy.

    Anyone who would like to attend is invited to contact Nicky by February 29, via n.stallwood@lordwilliams.oxon.sch.uk, to confirm a place.

  • Invitation to businesses to be ‘body aware’

    THE special guest at the next Late Breakfast meeting in Thame, will  be Alexander Technique teacher Cathie Kidger, who’s talk Body Aware will help business leaders become aware of harmful patterns of tension in their everyday movements and reactions, that may lead to pain and poor posture.

    The Late Breakfast - Monthly networking
    The Late Breakfast – Monthly networking

    This will be an interactive presentation, showing how a greater self-awareness can help prevent physical wear and tear and improve freedom and balance in our everyday lives.

    The meeting will be at The Spread Eagle hotel in Thame, on February 18. More details and how to book can be found HERE

     

  • Chinnor thwart potential champions

    OLD Albanian, who have been top of the table for most of the season, suffered at the hands of lowly Chinnor who produced their best tactical performance of the season on Saturday.

    Chinnor, playing with a gale force wind in their favour for the first half, gave Old Albanian little choice but to run the ball out of defence as kicking into the strong wind was not an option.
    Consequently most of the initial play was in the Albanian half with lock, Daz Oliver leading the charge followed by occasional counter attacks into Chinnor territory. The Chinnor defence rallied to prevent any score and fly half Angell’s kicking relieved any pressure and pinned Albanian back into their own half.

    After 30 minutes, Chinnor opened the score when wing, Oscar Heath intercepted an Albanian pass to run 30 metres unopposed to score a try which was converted by Angell. Chinnor desperately tried to get another score before half time while they had the wind advantage but the Albanian defence stood firm.

    rugby_ball (350x233)

    In the second half, Chinnor now had the task of driving against the elements and they certainly rose to the occasion with scrum after scrum being pushed forward by their pack to release the back row of Manning and Messum to lead driving mauls while Waddingham tackled anything that moved. It didn’t take long for Heath to intercept yet another Albanian pass on the half way line then hand off the Albanian fly half to complete a 50 metre sprint to the line to score an unconverted try.

    Then scrum half Greg Goodfellow stepped up to take centre stage. The frustrated Albanian pack began giving away penalties, one of which Greg took quickly from his own 22 metre area and ended up jinking into the Albanian half allowing lock Vandermolen to join in the driving run. Goodfellow then took a second quick penalty on the half way and sprinted through the Albanian defence only to be brought down short of the line. A quick flick to supporting Sam Angell put him over in the corner for an unconverted try and a surprising 0-17 point lead with 20 minutes remaining.

    Old Albanian maintained their pressure but excellent defence by centres Beer and Fatialofa prevented any penetration of the three quarter line and attacking runs by ‘Fats’ often crossed the gain line and put Albanian on the back foot. With five minutes to go, Albanian kicked a penalty deep into Chinnor’s half and from the resulting line out the ball was fed quickly along the line for full back Foster to join in and score an unconverted try.

    An exhausted and exhilarated Chinnor stuck consistently to their game plan to earn this well-deserved 17-5 victory.

    SOURCE: Contributed by Doug Humphries

  • Book your pitch for Thame Carnival and fete now!

    PLANS are well underway for Thame Carnival 2016, on Saturday, June 11, and local organisations, clubs and businesses can now book their place for the parade and/or a stall at the Big Street Party fete following the carnival at Southern Road Recreation ground.

    carnival_2016_logo

    In recognition of Her Majesty’s 90th birthday celebration this year, the them of the Carnival is The Best of British. The Carnival and Fete booking details and form can be be downloaded Carnival_Booking form 2016

    The next Carnival meeting will be at The Stables at the James Figg on February 24, at 7pm, and anyone who would like to discuss any aspect of the Carnival can email the Chair of the Carnival Committee, suedownhill@gmail.com or call her on 07860 328880.