IN the first furious twenty minutes of this local derby, Romsey completely dominated Southampton in every facet of the game - but they weren't able to go on and claim a vital victory that would have kept them off the bottom of the table. A penalty by
HIGH-riding Romsey moved up to second place in the league by virtue of their clinical finishing in a game littered with goalscoring chances at the Bypass Ground last Saturday. Whitchurch created several opportunities in the first fifteen minutes, but
WITH the season approaching its halfway mark and 24 goals already in the bag, Bashley fans are beginning to wonder how much longer the club can keep hold of razor-sharp Romsey lad Richard Gillespie. The fleet-footed frontman, who turned 20 last month,
SALISBURY CITY assistant manager Barry Blankley has played down his interest in former Bristol City and Bashley striker Stuart Hussey. While admitting there is an element of truth to rumours that he has spoken to Hussey, he explained: "I bumped into him
POMPEY striker Lomana LuaLua has told Arsenal: You don't scare us. Pompey are unbeaten in the Premiership since Harry Redknapp resigned - and LuaLua believes a new era at Fratton Park is under way. The former Newcastle striker scored a dramatic stoppage-time
Hampshire wicketkeeper Nic Pothas reckons new South Africa coach Ray Jennings is the biggest threat to England's hopes of winning a fourth successive Test series. England began their five-Test series of South Africa todat looking for an eighth successive
TADLEY police have warned pensioners to be on their guard after a conman tried to talk an elderly couple into paying for work on their roof when there was nothing wrong with it. Ivor and Betty Tipper, who are both in their 80s, were at their home in Valley
Today's Principal Arrivals: Bungu Raya Dua, container, 0430, 204; MOL Advantage, container, 0500, 205; Dart 2, roro, 0530, 30; Emden, roro, 0645, 43; Black Watch, passenger, 0700, 101; Tristan, vehicle, 0830, 34/35; Jade Arrow, roro, 0930, 202; City of
SOUTHAMPTON port owner ABP is expected to show a three per cent rise in operating profit for this year. The company, which employs 200 people at the city docks and owns ports throughout the UK, released an upbeat trading statement for 2004. A spokesman
IT has long been a tradition for employers to reward their workforce with a small gift or two at Christmas to thank them for their work during the year. In the past this has been followed by a hangover for the employer as the Inland Revenue has sought
It's Christmas time - goodwill to all men. Forget that! Believe it and you had better steer clear of Gosport Park tomorrow afternoon when bitter London Division Two South rivals Portsmouth and Gosport clash. When Portsmouth make the short hop across the
WELLOW residents are holding their breath ahead of next Tuesday's Test Valley Borough Council Planning Control meeting. Villagers have objected to proposals for a Western Challenge Housing Association scheme of ten homes in a 20-acre field currently used
A CHURCH, which was put out of commission almost a year ago when a lump of ceiling came crashing down, will be in use again on Christmas Eve. It will be reopened in style with the Christmas Carol event, traditionally the biggest service of the year, at
BUNGLING ram raiders made off with an empty cash box after crashing a stolen car through the doors of a garage on Saturday. The incident happened at the Courtesy Filling Station, Cadnam, at around 10.15pm and Detective Constable Paul Williams, of Hythe
NINE weeks of major road works on the A36 at Wellow and Ower are set to begin on January 17th. The £1.9 million project involves further safety measures on the notorious stretch of trunk road and resurfacing of part of the stretch between the Canada Common
Haslemere 3 Andover 0 Andover's final league fixture before the Christmas break was a trip to unbeaten league leaders Haslemere, but despite a good performance they left with their third defeat in three games. They were forced to make changes but Harfield
A SMALL squad of Andover Swimming and Water Polo Club's competitive swimmers drove to Millfield Sports School to take part in an all day open meet recently. Amy Sambell, one of Andover's top freestyle swimmers, found herself competing in the 200m freestyle
CHILDREN at a New Forest primary school are preparing to wave goodbye to their popular headmaster today, when he sets off for pastures new. Jonathan Clay, who has been at the helm of St Luke's Primary School in Sway for nearly seven years, won't be venturing
BUS company bosses are refusing to lift a ban on late-afternoon services to a Waterside estate where vehicles have been pelted with stones. Solent Blue Line says the Heather Road estate at Blackfield will continue to be a no-go area until the safety of
THIS Fair Oak family will be celebrating Christmas with a group of inflatable snowmen - but will they be celebrating winning the Daily Echo Haskins Festive Homes competition? Today is your last chance to make a nomination for the most stunning decorated
GOVERNMENT ministers should consider taking "tough action" against APW Electronics over its appalling pensions crisis. That's the view of former Pensions Minister John Denham, who spoke out after it was revealed that the value of APW company pensions
READERS are being given the chance to help pick winners of the Daily Echo Christmas card competition. A selection of finalists' designs, hand-picked by a panel of our judges, will appear in the paper tomorrow. Entries have flooded in from across Hampshire
SPARE a thought for the 500,000 pensioners who'll spend Christmas alone this year. That's the message from Lib Dem spokesman for older people, Sandra Gidley, pictured, who is urging Hampshire residents to lend a hand to over-65s this December. The Romsey
TODDLERS and parents got into the festive spirit by making paper-chains and Christmas cards in a Southampton church hall. The party for Pipsqueaks parent and toddler group was funded with help from the Daily Echo and British Gas Cracker of a Christmas
THE River Anton in the centre of Andover is in a sorry state, according to borough councillor Rod Bailey who fears for its future. Not only are ever increasing demands lowering the water table but many people use the stream, a tributary of the world famous
A VILLAGE shop has been given a £3,000 boost by Hampshire County Council enabling it to buy much-needed chiller units and display shelving. The executive member for economic development and Sto-ckbridge councillor Michael Woodhall presented the cheque
A TIDWORTH councillor has put up £50 of his own money to help catch those responsible for trashing some of the town's Chris-tmas lights on 8 December. Chris Franklin, who has spent a lot of his own time as well as £12,000 of public money on the lights
AN Andover family has gone one better than hanging a wreath on the door - they've made one to go right around it! Vivian Benham, Christine Edwards and her children Ethan and Carmen, of River Way spent four days making the wreath which stands 9ft tall
A HUGE fundraising success in St Mary Bourne has resulted in a new recreation area for the village. Despite encountering difficulties in getting money from some sources fundraisers reached their target ahead of schedule so that the village now has a fantastic
PLANS to bring a mains gas supply to Ludgershall could be scuppered by villagers' apathy after they failed to respond to a survey. At the moment most of the village is without gas. The supply ends on the Tidworth side of the railway bridge. When the new
What's on in the South this week. SANTA Claus is coming to town - along with a whole cast of professional singers and dancers from Broadway. Broadway's Spirit of Christmas promises to delight the whole family at Portsmouth Guildhall from Monday, December
PUPILS at Whitchurch Primary School were invited to be creative this Christmas when John Dollin Printing Services Limited gave them the chance to design the company's corporate Christmas cards. Kayleigh Wilson and Chloe Kelley's designs, which both happened
GLITCHES in a new parking management system designed to ease congestion in Fareham should be ironed out within two weeks. Final tweaks are being made after recent complaints that electronic car park signs displaying availability were wrongly stating the
HARRY REDKNAPP knows what he wants during the transfer window: "Someone with a bit of front." The new Saints boss wants to bring in "two or three players" next month and says he needs people who are guaranteed to have an impact both on and off the pitch
Peter Crouch is ready to face his former Tottenham youth teammate Ledley King - with or without a White Hart Lane car park pass. Striker Crouch scored his second goal in his first Saints league start against Middlesbrough last week and will continue alongside
SOUTHAMPTON port owner ABP is expected to show a three per cent rise in operating profit for this year. The company, which employs 200 people at the city docks and owns ports throughout the UK, released an upbeat trading statement for 2004. A spokesman
CHRISTMAS: a time of woe, man-eating leeches, attempted murder, terrible fires, giant snakes and Jim Carrey at his diabolical best. Such are the wicked delights of Lemony Snicket's A Series Of Unfortunate Events, a macabre adaptation of the first three
ACCORDING to Cyndi Lauper, girls just wanna have fun. That certainly seems to be true of Sleepover, a lightweight romp aimed at teenage girls about the trials and tribulations of high school sisterhood. Unfortunately, while the characters might be having
Films showing in the Hampshire region until 23rd December. BAD SANTA (15): Every year a couple of criminals dress up as Santa and his little helper to get work at a shop only to use their inside knowledge to break into its safe. But one year a little
AS part of my mission to eat my way around Hampshire my willing and able friend Lisa and I decided to make the The Old Forge in Otterbourne our first port of call. We decided to give it a whirl on a Saturday night, traditionally a busy and demanding night
THERE was an early Christmas present for M&T on Saturday - their first league win since the second weekend of the season! M&TA didn't play their best football, and their finishing let them down, but they still the better side. It didn't take long
IF Winchester City miss out on promotion again this season, manager Neil Hards believes it will herald the break-up of his FA Vase-winning squad. One of Dave Malone's main reasons for quitting as director of football and vice-chairman last month was his
Lymington & New Milton's flying full-back Pete Smith admits he is finding the speculation surrounding his future "frustrating." The 19-year-old has turned in a series of exhilarating performances for the Fawcett's Field side this season and his eye-catching
A HIGH-profile "three strikes and you're out" scheme, piloted at a Bas-ingstoke school, has resulted in a massive drop in uncompleted homework. As exclusively revealed in The Monday Gazette, pupils at Fort Hill Community School in Winklebury have faced
THE major inquiry to decide where development should take place in the borough in the years up to 2016 and beyond will begin in the new year. From January 11, three government planning inspectors will be sitting in the Eastlands building on London Road
HEALTH bosses are not planning to apply for Basingstoke to become one of the next foundation hospitals - despite being invited to as it is a three-star organisation. The hospital had planned to apply for foundation status again for April 2006, after bosses
A TRIO of drug dealers, who were bringing thousands of pounds worth of heroin and crack cocaine into Basingstoke, have been put behind bars. Basingstoke police officers smashed the lucrative operation in May this year, after observing the activities of
CIVIC leaders have voiced their dismay at the Post Office's decision to close four branches in the Basingstoke area, despite strong local opposition. The sites at Queens Road in Brookvale, Kings Road in South Ham, Worting Road in Worting, and Vyne Road
ONE of Basingstoke's most prolific criminals has been jailed for four years after committing nearly 70 burglaries. Father-of-two Richard Denham, a heroin addict who stole to fund his £150-a-day habit, targeted homes right across the town during his 18
Portsmouth-based Hampshire Division 1 Nomads carry all Hampshire's hopes for a Twickenham adventure in the Powergen Junior Vase last 32 when they tackle high-flying Surrey outfit London Cornish. Second-bottom of the league Nomads, who have never gone
PHILIPPA Newnham - well known in Romsey for her work as a tour guide as well as a speaker to WIs and other societies - died last week, at the age of 65, from brain cancer. In August Philippa was admitted to Southampton General Hospital, where she was
A NEW crime-busting initiative aimed at reducing shop crime was launched in Romsey this week. Shopwatch - an updated version of Romsey Town Radio Link - hit the shops on Monday. Sergeant Barbara Hardcastle, who introduced the highly successful Pubwatch
A NEW £7.25m cultural centre for the heart of Winchester is a step closer to reality after an agreement on funding was reached. The centre will combine the city's existing two libraries alongside several stunning new spaces for art and exhibitions and
AFTER almost 100 years of business a Hampshire coach firm is to close with the loss of 15 jobs on Christmas Eve. Taylors Coaches of Sutton Scotney has been trading from its yard at Oxford Road since 1916 when the present managing director's great-grandfather
George Williamson 1944-2004 THE athletics world is sadly marking the passing of George Williamson who was the chairman and chief track coach of the Andover Athletic Club. He died unexpectedly on Friday December 3 and will be a sad loss not only to the
Portland United 2 Andover 2 ANDOVER extended their league record to five games unbeaten at a chilly Grove Terrace stadium on Saturday, but once again they conceded a late goal to deny themselves all three points. After going behind to a seventh minute
Andover 38 Tottonians 0 CFL UK sponsored Andover took to the Goodship Ground in what was thought to be a titanic clash against Southampton-based side Tottonians. Riding high in the league in third position and at full strength, the visitors were looking
TWO Andover-based powerlifters recently had great results in the British Deadlift challenge and team championships at Birmingham. Phil Nosco won his 90kg category with lifts of 245k, 255k and 260k with deadlifts of 200,220 and 230k. Friend and training
GEOFFREY Hughes eyes me with a mischievous look. "So you're a virgin then?" he chuckles cheekily. But we weren't discussing anything sordid - I'd just admitted to Geoffrey that I'd never been to a pantomime. As far as Geoffrey is concerned, he is somewhat
FOLLOWING their sell-out success last year, professional theatre group Salisbury Umbrella are back at Salisbury Playhouse with a hilarious original show. More Crackers! runs until January 8 at the theatre's Salberg Studio and is a Christmas review show
DISABLED train-users in Romsey are having to take a 35-mile detour into another county to reach Southampton - because there's no disabled access to one of the station's platforms. Instead of jumping on a southbound train to Southampton from Romsey - an
JOURNEYS to school across Fair Oak will become safer only if travel plans deal with parking problems, say parents. As previously reported in the Daily Echo, some parents have criticised school travel plans in Fair Oak for not doing enough to help drivers
HUNDREDS of jobs are on the line today as anxious workers wait for the announcement that could signal the end for a Hampshire rail depot. A week ago, the debt-laden engineering giant Alstom, which runs the Campbell Road works, dropped the bombshell news
HUNDREDS of Hampshire workers face being caught in a pensions trap after their firm was at the centre of a £1 billion buy-out. Now unions are calling on NTL bosses to be fair to staff and fund a £60 million hole in their pension scheme. The cable giant
TWO Hampshire MPs today warned controversial hospital trust boss Mark Hackett: We are watching you. Former health minister and Southampton Itchen MP John Denham and Alan Whitehead, Southampton Test MP, said they would be keeping a close eye on the trust's
ANDOVER woman Carole Nugent will be able to dress to impress this Christmas after dropping five dress sizes. Carole, of Brackenbury returned from Malaysia in 1997 shocked to realise she could no longer fit in her size 10 clothes. She had to buy size 20
MORE than 60 people gathered outside the home of Derek Plunkett to watch his official Christmas light switch-on. This is the eighth year running Derek has decorated his Valencia Way, Andover, home with Christmas decorations. Each year Derek has built
AFTER the much criticised Weyhill Road scheme, Hampshire County Council says work will be taking place on the western and north-western approaches to Andover during the festive period. The traffic management work, costing £400,000 and being carried out
BRITISH bad boys The Dogs D'Amour will be playing some of their cult classics at Southampton's Joiner's Arms tonight as part of their 15-date UK tour. The cult rockers will play songs from their album Heart Shaped Skulls - Best of 88 -93 with numbers
PARENTS dropping children off at Castle Primary School in Ludgershall have been scrutinised by police who are concerned about dangerous parking in the area. Their concern follows an incident when a child was in collision with a vehicle outside the school
PENTON Mewsey baby Freya Cousins turned out to be an early Christmas delivery - she was born in the car en route to hospital. A frantic dash to hospital by parents Tim and Victoria failed to stop Freya venturing into the world in a car parked on a Winchester
HASLAR crusader Councillor Peter Edgar has quit his role on the hospital's steering committee and vowed to wage war on the health chiefs who are closing it down. The Gosport Council leader resigned from his post of three years, stating that board members
EASTLEIGH'S giant railway works is to be axed, throwing hundreds of people out of work. Alstom announced today that it was closing its train renovation business by the end of 2005. The firm said falling orders and over-capacity left it with no option
STUDENTS at Eastleigh's Barton Peveril College have won a big civic pat on the back for helping to make shopping easier for the disabled. Second year health and social care students carried out research to test the accessibility of shops and businesses
ERNIE Howe has been given the green light by Basingstoke Town's board of directors to sign two loan players and revitalise his squad as the demands of the Nationwide South season begin to take their toll. Howe's young side - put together on a shoestring
IN 1987, Rob Reiner directed The Princess Bride, a family fantasy which gleefully subverted the conventions of the fairytale and made a star of Cary Elwes. The film is now a cult classic with its wicked sense of humour and crowd-pleasing blend of action
