Men’s 1st XI beat Oxford to rekindle promotion charge

NEWBURY & Thatcham men’s 1st XI revitalised their promotion campaign in South Central League Division 1 North.

Doug Clayton led the way in Newbury’s 5-1 demolition of Oxford 2nd, while Alex Philp, Rob Haimes and man of the match Zach Pool were also on target.

The win kept Newbury in fourth place, just five points adrift of second-placed Amersham & Chalfont 2nd.

And they will be looking to step up the pressure on their rivals as they host ninth-placed Yateley 1st at Henwick on Saturday (11am).

Any lingering hopes Newbury 2nd may have entertained about promotion from Division 2 North look to have disappeared as they went down 3-1 at home to high-flying Sonning 2nd.

Nick Barrett grabbed Newbury’s lone goal, but defeat left them 11 points off the promotion places.

The race for promotion from Division 3 North is the tightest in the league, with just four points separating the top seven teams.

And Newbury 3rd ensured they are still in the thick of it after cruising to a 5-1 win over Eastleigh 3rd to stay in seventh place.

Ben Cook led the way with two of the goals, while Aleksey Storchak, Francois Kilian and Oliver Soames also scored and John Williams was named man of the match.

Newbury can bolster their position if they beat the side above them in the table, Oxford 3rd, on Saturday.

Star player William Jones kept Newbury 4th in the running for honours in Division 1 Thames.

Jones produced a man-of-the-match display in Newbury’s 6-2 victory at Reading 6th, bagging a hat-trick.

Eddie Pool weighed in with two more and Euan Dalgarno also struck to keep their side in fourth spot.

But Newbury 5th slipped further off the pace after losing a nine-goal thriller against Wycombe 4th in Division 2 Thames.

Timothy Hayden (2), Brad Arlington and Justin Smit were on target for Newbury.

Scott Bevan grabbed Newbury 6th’s consolation in their 4-1 defeat at the hands of Marlow 7th in Division 3 Thames.

But goals from Mark Inskip and Rogan Lang earned Newbury Masters a 2-2 draw against Salisbury Over-40 Striders.

NEWBURY & Thatcham Women’s 2nd XI gave their South Central Division 1 Thames title hopes a huge boost this week.

Newbury faced a tricky-looking test against sixth-placed Amersham & Chiltern 4th.

But they cruised to a 4-1 victory to remain second in the table, six points behind leaders Staines 2nd but with a game in hand.

Alexia Vavatzanidis produced a player-of-the-match performance, while goals from Ellie Sweeney, Holly Harris, Katy Hall and Rosie Tregear set them up for a clash with struggling South Berkshire 3rd on Saturday.

In the same division, Newbury 3rd are looking over their shoulders after losing 4-3 against Wallingford 3rd.

Katharine Cain struck twice and Becci Morley was also on target, but Wallingford just had the edge to leave Newbury just one place above the drop zone.

Meanwhile, Newbury 1st remain eighth in Division 2 North aftger a disappointing 3-1 defeat at the hands of Slough 2nd.

Gemma Goss grabbed their lone goal, and they will be hoping to bounce back against bottom

club South Berkshire 2nd on Saturday.

Newbury 4th slipped to the foot of Division 2 Thames, despite a battling display against fellow strugglers Maidenhead 4th.

Sophie Riddle was named player of the match, but Maids grabbed the only goal to seal a 1-0 win.

And there was no joy, either, for Newbury 5th, who were beaten 4-0 by Maidenhead 5th, despite an excellent performance from Elaine Davies.