Tag Archives: Witney and District League

The RAF

02 Friday Jan 2026

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Saturday 20th September 2025 ko 14:00

Witney & District League Premier Division

RAF BRIZE NORTON 1 (Castle 41)

Henderson sent off 90 (violent conduct)

Fletcher sent off 90 (violent conduct)

CHARLBURY TOWN 2 (McCallum 32 Eley 87)

Hornblow sent off 90 (violent conduct)

Att 15 at Belfast Square, RAF Brize Norton

Free Entry

I must admit, I do like a military game, and particular one actually behind the security barrier at a base. That fact indirectly led to two games behind security on GroundhopUK events, at RAF Benson and DA Watchfield. I’ve also seen games at MOD Lyneham and at RAF Brize Norton under my own steam so you may wonder why I wanted to head back to the base at Brize?

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The Ref

03 Monday Feb 2025

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Saturday 25th January 2025 ko 14:00

Witney & District League Premier Division

ASTON 1 (Cuss 19)

Collins sent off (serious foul play) 72

BAMPTON UNITED 3 (J Fleming 53og Colville 58 M Norridge 90)

Att 8

Free Entry

Sometimes your plans have to adapt. My car was being serviced but it took longer than expected, so I had to pick somewhere a lot closer to where I was in Eastern Oxfordshire. Stood in a cold garage I manipulated Fulltime. I knew there was nothing new for me in either the North Berkshire League or the Oxon Senior League but there were a couple in the Witney & District League that represented a new tick for me. But here’s the thing; in over 3,800 games watched I then did something new. I made my choice based on who the referee was!

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Just Like Watching Brazil

31 Wednesday Jan 2024

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Saturday 27th January 2024 ko 14:00

Witney & District League Division 2

LEAFIELD 1 (I Ribeiro 19)

YARNTON A 2 (Fouracre 26 Payne 46)

Att c10

Free Entry

If it’s my lot to slowly visit all the grounds of the Witney & District League like this, I’ll be quite happy. I’d remembered passing by Leafield between Milton-under-Wychwood and Minster Lovell on the first Witney Hop and wondering why I hadn’t put them on too! The truth of it, is that my geography of this part of West Oxfordshire wasn’t great, and in any case I was happy with the clubs we visited back in 2019.

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Royalty

15 Monday Jan 2024

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Saturday 6th January 2024 ko 13:45

Witney & District League Division One

WITNEY ROYALS 0

DUCKLINGTON 2 (Fisher 25 Williams 70og)

Att c15 at Pitch 1 Burwell Recreation Ground, Thorney Leys, Witney

Free Entry

I’d had all kinds of ideas as to where to watch a game. The determining factor was a triple of sorts, football, Oxford City Stars Ice Hockey unusually facing off on a Saturday evening, and the pub quiz at 9pm. But as much as I like being busy there was another factor to be considered- the rain.

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Downton

18 Monday Dec 2023

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Saturday 3rd December 2023 ko 14:00

Witney & District League- Division One

BAMPTON UNITED 6 (Parker 13 J Haley 44 Gardiner 48og S Haley 55 Pritchard 66 Hughes 75)

EYNSHAM SSC 1 (Oates 77)

Att c20

Free Entry

I’ll always feel that Bampton is the one that to some extent, got away. If like most you use the A420 to get here you’ll see just how this part of what is now West Oxfordshire forms the border between the North Berkshire League and the Witney & District League. As in to demonstrate the point, I drove past Kingston Bagpuise, of the North Berks, and the old Bampton Town transfered out of the North Berks in 2011.

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Humble Bumble

11 Friday Nov 2022

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Saturday 24th September 2022

11:00 Witney & District League Division 2

BRIZE NORTON 0

CASSINGTON RANGERS 1 (Blackman 3p)

Att 168

14:00 Witney & District League- Division 1

TOWER HILL 1 (Scott 82)

HATHEROP 3 (Hathaway 31 Turner-Williams 56p 63)

Skinner sent off 20 (violent conduct)

Att 154

17:00 Witney & District League- Division 1

HEYFORD ATHLETIC 2 (Chambers 20 Phipps 90)

CHADLINGTON 2 (Charlesworth 7 61)

Att 153

Entry to each game, including programme £4

When the league and I were putting together this event, I found myself thinking back to Steventon, the first game on the first North Berkshire League Hop back in 2011.

Rightly or wrongly I see the North Berks and Witney Hops as being continuations of each other- both are grassroots leagues playing (mostly) in Oxfordshire. I remember a senior (in terms of numbers) groundhopper coming up to me before the event in 2011 to inform me that, in his opinion, a groundhop here couldn’t possibly work. We held 7 hops in the North Berks, and this was to be the 3rd in the Witney & District. And while I’ll be the first to admit that these hops aren’t for every hopper, they certainly do a lot of good for the clubs, I get a lot of personal satisfaction from seeing a good club do well, and any hop organiser will tell you, the smaller clubs tend to make the most effort!

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The Farm

02 Wednesday Nov 2022

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Tuesday 6th September 2022 ko 18:30

Pre-Season Friendly

CHADLINGTON 1 (E Bennett 3)

CHARLBURY TOWN 3 (25, 55 63)

Att c20

Free Entry

As is so often the case I was sat in the pub on a Saturday night. Kev and I go back a long way, and the fact that he splits his time working here with time in the Netherlands and Australia means I don’t see as much of him as I used to. We were talking about how we’ve both ended up knowing places in other countries far better than we know places close to our homes. Kev mentioned north-west Oxfordshire and was heard to comment, “I know parts of Amsterdam better than I know Chadlington!” I allowed myself a wry smile. Continue reading →

Lynn

05 Monday Sep 2022

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Wednesday 27th July 2022 ko 19:00

Lynn Simpson Memorial Game/ Cancer Research Game

SHERBORNE HARRIERS 2 

LARKING’S LEGENDS 2

Att c30 at Sherborne Harriers

Metaphorically speaking if you scratch the surface of Sherborne Harriers you find Lynn Simpson. She founded the club out of the ashes of Northleach’s youth team, set them up in the grounds of Sherborne House and ran the club for 23 years. It was Lynn I spoke to when I first saw the Harriers 7 years ago and it was Lynn that added the flying pigs to the clubhouse wall when they finally got a long lease on Sherborne Park from the National Trust.

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The Finals Section

28 Tuesday Jun 2022

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Tuesday 10th May 2022 ko 19:30

Witney & District League- Senior Cup Final

STONESFIELD 0

S Kemp sent off 22 (DOGSO- handball)

C Rice missed penalty 80

HAILEY 1 (Foster 23)

N Kimber penalty saved 23

Att c200

Entry £3

We’d got to that stage at the end of the season where just about every game was a final of some kind, the only decision was where? Not that needed much thought, Robyn had never visited Kilkenny Lane, and I didn’t need any excuse to visit my friends at the Witney & District League. There was no small issue with Carterton FC’s ground though. Continue reading →

The Mouse That Roared

05 Tuesday Oct 2021

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Sunday 19th September 2021 ko 14:00

Witney & District League Division One

KINGHAM ALL BLACKS 1 (Lay 89)

CHADLINGTON 2 (Morley 5 Burton 15)

Att 177

Entry by programme £4

I reached Kingham in a state of nervous exhaustion; I think the stress of getting this hop set up, then running to a standard I’d regard as acceptable had caught up with me.  I’ll never regret these Sunday games, both host clubs’ success was proof that gambit worked, but on Saturday evening sat in the pub I did find myself thinking that if I hadn’t asked for those games my stress would have been over. Continue reading →