Oakmeadians RFC twice gave away the lead as they were beaten by Reading Abbey in a thrilling clash at Meyrick Park.
Oaks moved the ball well through the backs early on and twice came close to scoring, with strong running from centres Michael Notobartolo and Oliver Hare. However they were both let down by handling errors close to the try line.
The game came to life towards the end of the first half. With Oakmeadians cruising at five points ahead following a try from Jamie Mitchell, the two teams exchanged a flurry of penalty goals. The home side’s lead was restored until, on the stroke of half-time, Abbey winger Gavin Dampies broke away and powered over the try line. Abbey full-back Drake coolly put away the conversion to give Reading Abbey the lead.
Oakmeadians came out fighting in the second half and within ten minutes had the lead again after a penalty goal and a well-worked move that ended with Ryan Davis taking the ball over.
The final twist in a nip-and-tuck encounter came mid-way through the half when Oakmeadians winger Will Samuels made a suicidal pass to full-back Jeremy Cook on the try line. Reading’s Gavin Dampies smartly intercepted the loose ball to snatch back the lead. From here the home side never recovered and Reading Abbey, sensing the kill, twice more broke clear of the Oak’s defence to score.
Steve Drake capped a near flawless kicking performance by running over and converting the final try. The only blot on his record was a tricky conversion attempt put narrowly wide from the touch line.
Thursday, 28 January 2010
Thursday, 21 January 2010
Bournemouth Supports Road Safety Scheme
An £800,000 ‘No Excuses’ scheme to reduce deaths on roads in Dorset has got the support of Bournemouth council.
Dorset County Council communications officer Michael Carhart-Harris said: “The aim of ‘No Excuses’ is to target key types of driving behaviour that result in accidents to reduce the number of people killed on the roads.”
The campaign aims to tackle careless driving by combining improved police patrols with cameras that can detect offences like using a phone or eating whilst driving. If drivers are caught committing an offence they will face a £60 fine and mandatory road safety education. The county council says the fines will go towards funding the scheme.
Bournemouth Borough Council road safety planning and transport official Claire Elkins said: “Bournemouth is supporting the ‘No Excuses’ campaign by including the ‘No Excuses’ logo in any campaigns that are targeting drivers and passengers.”
Accidents on Dorset’s roads killed or injured 294 people in 2008. Dorset Police and the County Council have launched the ‘No Excuses’ campaign in a bid to reduce the figure by 30 per cent in 2010.
The launch of this campaign comes at the same time as lower speed limits are being trialled on the Wessex Way.
Bournemouth Council road safety engineer Rob Wilson said: The ‘No Excuses’ campaign and the speed limit on the Wessex Way are totally independent schemes but both are needed because nationally Bournemouth hasn’t been performing well as road safety targets have not been met.”
The Dorset Institute of Advanced Motorists has also praised the scheme. Chairman Hazel Bancroft said: “The scheme is a very good idea. It’s hitting all the right people by advertising on the radio in the early morning and late afternoon rush hours to make drivers aware of distractions.”
Suggested Site links:
Dorset Institute of Advanced Motorists: http://www.dorsetiam.org.uk/
Dorset County Council: http://www.dorsetforyou.com/
Bournemouth Borough Council: www.bournemouth.gov.uk/
Bournemouth Echo: http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/4854887.Dorset_drivers_face__No_Excuses__crackdown___with_video/
Dorset County Council communications officer Michael Carhart-Harris said: “The aim of ‘No Excuses’ is to target key types of driving behaviour that result in accidents to reduce the number of people killed on the roads.”
The campaign aims to tackle careless driving by combining improved police patrols with cameras that can detect offences like using a phone or eating whilst driving. If drivers are caught committing an offence they will face a £60 fine and mandatory road safety education. The county council says the fines will go towards funding the scheme.
Bournemouth Borough Council road safety planning and transport official Claire Elkins said: “Bournemouth is supporting the ‘No Excuses’ campaign by including the ‘No Excuses’ logo in any campaigns that are targeting drivers and passengers.”
Accidents on Dorset’s roads killed or injured 294 people in 2008. Dorset Police and the County Council have launched the ‘No Excuses’ campaign in a bid to reduce the figure by 30 per cent in 2010.
The launch of this campaign comes at the same time as lower speed limits are being trialled on the Wessex Way.
Bournemouth Council road safety engineer Rob Wilson said: The ‘No Excuses’ campaign and the speed limit on the Wessex Way are totally independent schemes but both are needed because nationally Bournemouth hasn’t been performing well as road safety targets have not been met.”
The Dorset Institute of Advanced Motorists has also praised the scheme. Chairman Hazel Bancroft said: “The scheme is a very good idea. It’s hitting all the right people by advertising on the radio in the early morning and late afternoon rush hours to make drivers aware of distractions.”
Suggested Site links:
Dorset Institute of Advanced Motorists: http://www.dorsetiam.org.uk/
Dorset County Council: http://www.dorsetforyou.com/
Bournemouth Borough Council: www.bournemouth.gov.uk/
Bournemouth Echo: http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/4854887.Dorset_drivers_face__No_Excuses__crackdown___with_video/
Tuesday, 12 January 2010
Down in the Woods is Down in the Dumps
The abrupt closure of a Wimborne youth club has caused parents to lead a march to Poole’s Civic Centre protesting against the Council’s decision.
Activities at Merley Youth Club (MYC), Chichester Walk, were brought to a halt recently after Anne Newton, Strategic Director for Children’s Services, Borough of Poole, made the decision to close the building. She said, “The safety of the children and adults who use the building clearly must come first.”
Down in the Woods pre-school which runs at MYC found itself without a home. Owner Debbie Benjafield (46) said, “It came as an utter shock to be told at quarter-to-two that we had to close in less than two hours.”
Parents, carers and grandparents of 56 children at Down in the Woods marched to Poole’s Civic Centre on Monday as a demonstration against the closure.
Hayley Pope (27), Media and Communications officer at Poole Borough Council, said, “We received a structural engineer’s report that suggested the structural stability of the building couldn’t be guaranteed in the worsening forecasts for coming weeks.”
“The suggestion has been made that parents and staff of Down in the Woods will claim for loss of earnings,” said Miss Pope, “but no formal claims have been made.”
Merley Councillor, David Brown (39), said, “My understanding is that the engineer’s report was with the council a few weeks before so I believe the situation was dealt with appallingly, it should never have got to the point where the club was closed with only a couple of hours notice.”
Down in the Woods will move to Canford School, Wimborne for the next two weeks before returning to MYC, which will be supported by scaffolding, until July 2010. Mrs Benjafield said, “My 8 staff have been out of work for the week, we have to try and fight it out with the council for some permanent accommodation.”
A spokesperson for Canford School said, “We are happy to accommodate Down in the Woods.”
“Parents have been very supportive,” Mrs Benjafield said. “We have had cards that the children have made saying they want to return to the club.”
Activities at Merley Youth Club (MYC), Chichester Walk, were brought to a halt recently after Anne Newton, Strategic Director for Children’s Services, Borough of Poole, made the decision to close the building. She said, “The safety of the children and adults who use the building clearly must come first.”
Down in the Woods pre-school which runs at MYC found itself without a home. Owner Debbie Benjafield (46) said, “It came as an utter shock to be told at quarter-to-two that we had to close in less than two hours.”
Parents, carers and grandparents of 56 children at Down in the Woods marched to Poole’s Civic Centre on Monday as a demonstration against the closure.
Hayley Pope (27), Media and Communications officer at Poole Borough Council, said, “We received a structural engineer’s report that suggested the structural stability of the building couldn’t be guaranteed in the worsening forecasts for coming weeks.”
“The suggestion has been made that parents and staff of Down in the Woods will claim for loss of earnings,” said Miss Pope, “but no formal claims have been made.”
Merley Councillor, David Brown (39), said, “My understanding is that the engineer’s report was with the council a few weeks before so I believe the situation was dealt with appallingly, it should never have got to the point where the club was closed with only a couple of hours notice.”
Down in the Woods will move to Canford School, Wimborne for the next two weeks before returning to MYC, which will be supported by scaffolding, until July 2010. Mrs Benjafield said, “My 8 staff have been out of work for the week, we have to try and fight it out with the council for some permanent accommodation.”
A spokesperson for Canford School said, “We are happy to accommodate Down in the Woods.”
“Parents have been very supportive,” Mrs Benjafield said. “We have had cards that the children have made saying they want to return to the club.”
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