ROBBIE Matthews could be making his last appearance in an Eastleigh shirt at home to Bournemouth Poppies on Saturday. Bristol Rovers are taking the 20-year-old, 6ft 2in hod carrier on trial next week with a view to agreeing either a loan or a permanent
Write us off at your peril! That's the message from Fair Oak, who are determined to hang on to their much-cherished NatWest Hampshire U16 title. Completely changing the make up of last year's title-winning side, Fair Oak were not expected to be among
Fareham Nomads sent swimming squads to the fourth annual Ipswich Open meet and the Gemini Trophy at Aldershot Garrison. Many of those who competed in Aldershot had never seen a 50m pool, let alone swam in one. At the end of the two-day Ipswich meet the
Emma Richards is carving a name for herself in global sailing log books as she takes on the world alone. Ingrid Abery reports on her epic voyage. HAMBLE yachtswomen Emma Richards is blazing a trail for female sailors world-wide. The 27-year-old is the
Today's Principal Arrivals: Trinidad, ro/ro, 0530, 34/35; Feedercraft, ro/ro, 0600, 105; P&OSL Cxanterbury, ferry, 0800, No 7 Dry Dock; NYK Sirius, container, 0900, 207; Nedlloyd Africa, container, 2100, 205. Today's Principal Sailings: Shanghai Express
IF THERE was one player who deserved to be a hero in this cup tie it was Matthew Oakley. The big question is - just how far can his talent take him? After last night's FA Cup fourth round replay, in which Oakley scored both Saints' goals, Gordon Strachan
Eastleigh (Fleming Park) won their Gemini Trophy group for the third successive year and once again secured promotion. The newly-refurbished pool at Fleming Park Leisure Centre provided the venue for the Group 3 gala between Eastleigh, Romsey &
South coast building society Portman, which is under pressure from a rebel member trying to get a seat on the board, has reported a nine per cent rise in pre-tax profits for the last year and a jump in mortgage lending. The Bournemouth-based mutual, the
THE global route network of Dutch airline KLM is being opened up to travellers using Southampton International Airport. In conjunction with ScotAirways, KLM has introduced Southampton as an extra departure airport. Both carriers have signed a commercial
Macbeth - Nuffield Theatre, Southampton IT'S always tricky knowing how to serve up Shakespeare for kids, but the Nuffield's Theatre First company seems to have cracked it. The play opens in the present with three strangers gathering in a warehouse, empty
THE person seen receiving a Daily Echo Curtain Call Award in a feature in the Daily Echo on January 27 was not Gilly Jeffery, as stated, but Jane MacKinnon, receiving the award on Gilly's behalf. Gilly, who could not be present at the awards ceremony
A HIGH Court judge has banned Greenpeace anti-war protesters from boarding or attaching themselves to British military supply ships at Marchwood military port near Southampton. Yesterday Mr Justice Thomas, sitting in London, extended a temporary injunction
A controversial sex shop has been given the go-ahead in Southampton's planned cultural centre. Plans by multi-million-pound sex-shop chain Darker Enterprises to open a sex shop in Above Bar were approved by members of the council's licensing panel. The
KEEP those foreign coins and notes coming in - and at the same time hunt out your old clothes, bedding and unwanted food for the people of Serbia. The Daily Echo's Give Them Hope appeal is still going strong - but today we're asking you to make donations
COMPOSTING, recycling and energy-saving measures can all lead to an environmentally friendly garden. So, do you have a 'green' outlook as well as 'green' fingers? HSA in conjunction with the Andover Advertiser and the Hampshire Wildlife Trust is launching
ANDOVER MP Sir George Young drew loud applause when he said that as the local MP he was committed to protecting and defending the club. Although not a golfer himself he said he had enjoyed his visit to the club during the election campaign and has made
A MIDDLE Wallop company is in the forefront of technology designed to protect our armed forces if we go to war with Iraq. With war looming, Wallop Defence Systems, which started making fireworks in 1946 and is now part of the giant Cobham group, has been
FIREFIGHTERS across Hampshire are to be balloted on whether to strike in protest at the sacking of Basingstoke fireman Simon Green. Mr Green, who lives in Andover, was sacked just before Christmas and the Fire Brigades Union believes he is being victimised
VANDALISM which plagued the Christmas lights and needlessly drained a tight budget prompted a six-year-old Andover boy to write to Test Valley's mayor and the Andover Advertiser. Ross Cousins, of Millway Road, wrote to ask why a lot of the lights were
COMPETITION for places in residential and nursing homes is now so fierce that local authorities are fighting with each other for the scarce bed spaces. Some well-heeled social services authorities are even putting old folk in homes in other counties -
A HIGHLY successful group of Andover majorettes are appealing for help in their quest for national glory. Thirteen members of the Gee-Bettes Majorettes, a group formed in 1975 as an off-shoot of the 2nd Andover Girls Brigade, have reached the second round
A NEW study commissioned by the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) reveals that about one-third of all childcare is now carried out by dads. Now the commission is using the study to campaign for more flexibility in the workplace to allow dads to spend
SPORTY Spice Mel C has come a long way since her back-flipping days with the world's most famous girl group. Mel, who now prefers to be called by her full name of Melanie Chisholm, continues to work on solo projects including her second album, Reason,
ANDOVER MP Sir George Young has welcomed BT's decision to speed up the delivery of broadband through exchanges in rural areas of North West Hampshire. And he is urging people to register for the service now after BT announced lower targets for the number
RESIDENTS in Test Valley are being asked to reveal their travel patterns to help Hampshire County Council plan future transport improvements. About 12,000 surveys will be dropping through householders' letterboxes in Test Valley and the New Forest asking
Hamble Aquatics made a promising start to the coming league season with a convincing win over Andover in the group 5 Gemini Trophy. With each club fielding two teams, Hamble took the shield with 503 points over Andover's 373 points. There were 41 pbs
ABOUT 900 homes in Whiteley are to get their own parish council after the government approved the plans. However the extra tier of local government comes at a price - homeowners in an average Band D property will have to pay an extra £16.47 charge on
A CHARITY which provides audio tapes of local news for blind people in the Fareham area is taking a major technological step forward. After more than ten years of providing weekly news tapes for visually impaired people, listeners can now tune in with
MELANIE Purkiss took a break from winter training last weekend to notch 400 metres victory in the first of UK Athletics' domestic indoor series at the Birmingham's National Arena. Although the time of 54.10 seconds was no great shakes for the 23-year-old
EASTLEIGH'S giant railway plant looks to be back on track following fresh orders which have led to new jobs. It is a dramatic turnaround. Only a few months ago the company was on a four-day week and its 500-plus workforce were fearing for their futures
FOUR Eastleigh borough residents who have given long and exceptional service to the community are to be saluted by the borough council. Bob Carey, Dolly Dawes, Cole Mathieson and Don Watson are to be made citizens of honour at a special reception in the
ROBBIE Matthews could be making his last appearance in an Eastleigh shirt at home to Bournemouth Poppies on Saturday. Bristol Rovers are taking the 20-year-old, 6ft 2in hod carrier on trial next week with a view to agreeing either a loan or a permanent
Eastleigh (Fleming Park) won their Gemini Trophy group for the third successive year and once again secured promotion. The newly-refurbished pool at Fleming Park Leisure Centre provided the venue for the Group 3 gala between Eastleigh, Romsey &
THE career of Dynamo School of Gymnastics starlet Vanessa Hobbs is off to a world-class start after a combination of exceptional results and a rigorous weekend of physical testing at Lilleshall secured her a place in Sport England's World Class Performance
EASTLEIGH'S fabulous run of success on the match circuit continued when they trounced 2001 National Van Den Eynde Super Cup champions Ringwood on Whitemoor Ponds. Eastleigh's match secretary Dave Self has been on cloud nine all season as his squad landed
SOUTHAMPTON table tennis legend Chris Shetler proved he has lost none of his old skill as he toppled current city champion Christos Hannides. Shetler, who has won the Southampton singles title on an amazing nine occasions stretching 26 years from 1972
PALMERSTON, who seemed doomed to relegation at Christmas, look safe in Hampshire Division 1 after a convincing win that has virtually condemned reigning champions East Dorset to the drop. In the corresponding fixture during November, Palmerston were slammed
DETECTIVES have made a major breakthrough in their hunt for the killers of Hampshire builder Paul Booth. A mystery caller who police believe holds vital information that could help solve the four-year murder investigation last night broke his silence
AVERAGE council tax bills in the New Forest are set to soar above the £1,000 mark for the first time. The exact figures have not yet been fixed, with the various authorities finalising their budget arrangements. New Forest District Council's Cabinet yesterday
DETECTIVES have made a major breakthrough in their hunt for the killers of Hampshire builder Paul Booth. A mystery caller who police believe holds vital information that could help solve the four-year murder investigation last night broke his silence
THIS is the face of cardboard city Southampton. Up to 16 homeless people - who call themselves the Street Family - have turned a car park near the city centre into an impromptu night shelter, using cardboard and newspapers as bedding. They are refusing
SOUTHAMPTON business bosses have spoken of how they are losing thousands of pounds due to ongoing roadworks on one of the main arteries into the city. Employers have had to deal with lost custom, delivery delays, and staff turning up often more than an
FOUR Southampton schools are set to get more than £2m to provide state-of-the-art sports facilities. In what has been described as "a very exciting time for school sports in Southampton", pupils at Weston Park Boys School, Bellemoor School, Bitterne Park
AN administrative blunder at Test Valley Borough Council has foiled a campaign against a controversial Orange telecommunications mast. Villagers in Upper Clatford were celebrating last year when planning councillors rejected an application to construct
A SOUTHAMPTON music shop will be heading out on the road this summer after a Daily Echo appeal certainly did not fall on deaf ears. Oxfam's Portswood Music Store is already reaping the rewards from a campaign to boost its stock of vinyl, CDs and tapes
THE leader of Hampshire County Council has described this year's budget as the worst he has ever seen and on a par with the introduction of the poll tax. Cllr Ken Thornber has spoken out to condemn a government move to decrease grant funding from Hampshire
THE rural Cango bus service has exceeded all expectations since it was launched in the Andover area in June last year. In January last year Hampshire County Council announced a £500,000 boost for community minibus schemes in a bid to alleviate pressure
SEVERAL borough councillors and two county councillors sat with Sir George Young to hear the views of the public. The three Winton ward borough councillors, Marion Kerley, Alan Smith and Pamela Mutton all spoke of their opposition to the plan but because
A NEW 50,000 sq ft building with more than 100 rooms including a gymnasium and two separate x-ray facilities will open its doors in July to provide comprehensive primary health care for thousands of military people in Tidworth. Construction firm Taylor
ONLY a final say from the secretary of state now stands between the people of Stockbridge and a much-needed nursing home described as their triumph. Test Valley's planning control committee has this week referred an application, by Brookvale Homes for
GOODWORTH Clatford is not, I confess, a place where most people would expect to find the vampire hotbed of the UK. But 32-year-old Samantha Diegutis runs the largest genre wesbite in the UK specialising in the subject from her home in Green Meadow Lane
CAPTAIN Margaret Camsell is relishing the challenge of her post as the new commanding officer of the Andover Corps of the Salvation Army. She was installed at a special ceremony last month led by Lt Col Peter Ward from Basingstoke and has already settled
THE manager of Andover's River Way Tesco has promised the problem of abandoned trolleys will soon be resolved. He was responding to a complaint by Test Valley Borough Council member Garry Rankin-Moore. Mr Rankin-Moore had demanded the store did something
FROM now on all pigs must have something to play with to keep them squealing happily, following an EU directive. Experiments have persuaded officials in Brussels that high jinks in the pen are just the recipe for your average porker. But local free-range
MATTHEW OAKLEY fired Saints into the fifth round of the FA Cup and said: "We are good enough to win it." The Saints midfielder capped an outstanding display with two superb strikes as Saints dramatically sealed a 2-1 extra-time victory against the Lions
