Results 2012/13

19/05/13 at Lancing: North Oxford played against Old Edwardians

The annual North Oxford v Old Edwardians "unusual courts" fixture has become something of an institution and this year took us to the South Coast and the courts at Lancing College. The match was preceded by a team lunch, the highlight of which was Pete Scholey's attempt to polish off his nacho mountain faster than Stuart Broad could run through the New Zealand batting line-up at Lord's. The nachos were clearly still weighing on the Scholey stomach as play got underway after a sightseeing trip around Lancing's spectacular chapel as the Edwardian first pair of Pete and Courtney Friend got off to a slow start, losing the first game 12-4 against Gareth Hoskins and Ian Mitchell. The second one also went to the North Oxford pair 15-12. In the other court a long close first game battle was won narrowly by Tim Scholey and OL Rosie Scott over Karen Hird and Mandie Barnes before the arrival of one of the Lancing boys in search of a game meant a pair rejig. With the local lad now playing with Mandie, and winning this time over Tim and Rosie, Karen swapped courts to take Gareth's place. With the nacho effect finally wearing off, Pete and Courtney scored their first win of the afternoon 12-4. A cake break then ensued - thanks, Karen - before one final round of games brought the afternoon's entertainment to a conclusion, Gareth and Ian winning a third game against Pete and Courtney 15-11 and Karen and Rosie winning against Tim and his Lancing partner. This was an excellent fixture, very much in the spirit of previous unusual courts trips, and the only disappointment was that Courtney didn't get to fulfil his wish to move one of the spectators' sofas on to the court and under the front wall to provide a more comfortable perch for his retrieving. Roll on next year!

30/04/13 at Westminster: North Oxford drew with Old Westminsters 1-1

J.Hindle & R.Pattison beat F.Krespi & W.Illingworth 3-0 (12-3, 12-3, 12-7)

R.Morgan & R.Scott lost to E.Levy & E.Miles 0-3 (3-12, 10-13, 3-12)

Honours were even in an entertaining end of season friendly against the Old Westminsters at Westminster on Tuesday evening. Ronald Pattison came in for the latest in a series of welcome guest appearances and partenred Jeremy Hindle to an impressive straight games win over Freddie Krespi and Will Illingworth, with Ronald playing the support role and Jeremy dominating the match, with his cutting causing the Westminster pair no end of problems. Rosie Scott and Ralph Morgan teamed up at second pair and made a good fist of taking on the two Edwards, Levy and Miles. The second game, in particular, could easily have gone their way with Ralph felling one of his opponents with a vicious volley that struck him "amidships". The game was lost 13-10, however, and the match then slipped away, although the exact score depends on who you ask. Overall a creditable performance from NOEFC and a good evening's Fives.

09/04/13 at Westway: North Oxford beat Westway Olavians 2-1

G.Hoskins & J.Shaw lost to P.Cohen & R.Perrie 1-3 (2-12, 4-12, 1-12)

G.Pulsford & C.Austin beat E.Hewens & M.Street 3-0 (12-10, 12-2, 12-8)

S.Chapman & C.Rennie beat W.Betts & D.Patel 3-1 (12-7, 7-12, 12-4, 13-12)

Two points were needed to become Division 2 champions for the third time and the second time in a row and two points were duly won away to the Westway Olavians on Tuesday night. A formidably strong Westway line-up stood in the way including two of the top players in the country in Ryan Perrie and Pete Cohen. Thankfully - given the two points required - Ryan and Pete played together at first pair and Gareth Hoskins and Justin Shaw duly "took one for the team", doing their best but being quickly overrun. Westway had strength in depth as well, and neither of the other two pairs looked like easy points. Ed Hewens is an opponent who has caused North Oxford problems in the past and along with Martin Street he pushed Graham Pulsford and Chris Austin all the way in a first game which the NOEFC duo were delighted to come though 12-10. The second game was more straightforward but the third was close again and it was with a huge sigh of relief that the crucial point was won for a 12-8 win in the third to level the match. Half a point was all that was now needed to draw level at the top of the table with Old Millhillians 2 (NOEFC would then win the title having won the head to head); the lights go out at Westway at 10pm and Spencer Chapman was showing a wise head in not rushing his points and taking his time in what was shaping up right from the start to be a close match. The first two games were shared before Spencer and Carl put on a spurt to take the third 12-4 and move into pole position. The fourth game was close again, a long drawn out affair suiting NOEFC's purposes; Carl and Spencer established an 8-3 lead only to be pegged back by Will Betts and Darshan Patel, who got to 10 first. Spencer and Carl levelled at 10-10 but then went 12-10 down. A series of strong foot down cuts kept them in it, before some fine finishing took them to 12-12 and then to a 13-12 win. The time was already 9:45pm and the chances of finishing a fifth game remote, but it was much more satisfying to get the win rather than rely on a draw, meaning that NOEFC finish top of the table, half a point ahead of the OMs; a nailbiting finish to an exciting and exceptional season. Well done everyone!

07/04/13 at Eton: North Oxford beat Old Stoics 3-0

G.Pulsford & C.Austin beat M.Skjott & A.Bhattacharya 3-0 (12-7, 12-6, 12-0)

G.Hoskins & C.Davies beat J.Saunders & R.Hazell 3-0 (12-2, 12-5, 12-5)

S.Chapman & C.Friend beat W.Skjott & O.Malcolm 3-0

What could euphemistically be described as an "experienced" North Oxford team made short work of an Old Stoics team lacking their main threat - Dave Mew - to move within two points of winning the Division 2 title for the second year running. Graham and Chris had a potentially tricky encounter on their hands against Stoics skipper Mike Skjott and Aroop Bhattacharya, but came through strongly, improving and doinating more as the match went on. Gareth Hoskins, despite forgetting his kit bag and having to detour via the Slough branch of Halfords for some emergency cycling/Fives gloves on the way in, had little trouble winning 3-0 at second pair alongside maestro Chris Davies, who made it look easy as always. Spencer Chapman and Courtney Friend also won with room to spare leaving the team time to discuss the likely Westway Olavians line-up on Tuesday, to watch our very own Karen Hird win the ladies title and for Chris to reminisce about a memorably close encounter with the Cambridge Ladies team.

Graham and Chris clinch match point against the Old Stoics

24/03/13 at Aldenham: North Oxford lost to Aldenham 0-3

G.Hoskins & I.Mitchell lost to G.Pulsford & R.Malik 1-3 (12-7, 10-13, 5-12, 6-12)

K.Hird & P.Kendall lost to C.Rennie & D.Patel 0-3 (8-12, 4-12, 4-12)

S.Jones & P.Talbot lost to P.Lyndon & N.Margerison 0-3 (7-12, 9-12, 4-12)

The equivalent fixture at the same time last year saw the teams enjoying a post-match al fresco lunch at the Round Bush in t-shirts and shorts; this year the contrast was such that Jon Staley was unable even to get to Aldenham because of the snow. Thankfully Paul Kendall subbed in at the last minute and the match went ahead in sub-zero temperatures with the full three pairs. Ian Mitchell and Gareth Hoskins at first pair got off to a great start, winning the first game to 7 and establishing a significant lead in the second against Graham Pulsford and Rubel Malik. A shock win looked on the cards until the ball got stuck in the netting below the roof; the first ball was slow and the North Oxford pair had been dealing with it much better than the Aldenham duo. The change to a quicker ball completely changed the game - suddenly Rubel was fizzing the ball in from the back court and Graham was able to get his fast volleying top step game going. The Aldenham pair wiped off the deficit to take the second game and never looked back, going on to win 3-1. Late sub Paul Kendall and Karen Hird took on the young Aldenham pair of Carl Rennie and Darshan Patel at second pair and a close match looked on the cards after a 12-8 first game win to the home pair. That was the highpoint for the North Oxford pair, however, as the Aldenham boys won the next two games to 4. Tht third court featured enough strapping to cover an Egyptian mummy and the creaking and groaning could be heard for miles around. The Fives was pretty good, though, as former Heath player Peter Talbot, making a rare and welcome appearance in a North Oxford shirt, teamed up with Stephen Jones to take on Aldenham skipper Phil Lyndon and Neil Margerison. The North Oxford pair have not had a lot of court time this year but put up a strong showing nevertheless before fading slightly in the third game. This year's post-match lunch was most definitely of the indoors huddling around the fire variety, but was no less enjoyable for that.

07/03/13 at Eton: North Oxford lost to Lancing Old Boys 1-2

J.Parham & H.Tobias lost to W.Betts & N.Cox 3-0 (10-12, 10-12, 13-14)

I.Mitchell & W.Skjott lost to D.Hewitt & S.Duncan 1-3 (11-13, 9-12, 12-4, 8-12)

M.Barnes & R.Black beat R.Scott & L.Bell 3-0 (12-9, 13-11, 12-7)

The versatillity and strength in depth present in the North Oxford ranks was proved at Eton on Thursday as NOEFC played their second three pair match in successive days, putting out a completely different team to take on the Lancing Old Boys in a friendly match at Eton. Jack Parham has made a very positive start to his NOEFC career and he was once again thrown into the heat of battle at first pair, this time alongside Hugo Tobias against the tough pairing of uberveteran Nigel Cox and ex-Oxford captain Will Betts. Although Jack and Hugo lost, all three games were close and both players performed to a very high standard. Ian Mitchell teamed up with guest player Will Skjott at second pair and they lost a very tight match in four games to Danny Hewitt and Stuart Duncan. Mandie Barnes - partnered by OL and occasional NOEFC player Riohard Black - got North Oxford's only victory of the night with a good win over Rosie Scott and Lucy Bell at third pair.

06/03/13 at Westminster: North Oxford beat Old Etonians 2-1

G.Pulsford & C.Davies beat J.Asquith & J.Hindle 3-0 (12-5, 12-4, 15-13)

J.Shaw & K.Hird lost to P.Eckersley & B.Emlyn Jones 0-3 (7-12, 4-12, 5-12)

Old Etonians conceded third pair

North Oxford scored another valuable win in their bid to retain the Division 2 title. The Old Etonians can be tough opponents and Graham Pulsford and Chris Davies were on fine form at first pair to see off the tricky challenge of Jonathan Asquith (father of NOEFC's Harriet) and another NOEFC player, Jeremy Hindle. The Etonians unfortunately had to concede third pair due to late dropouts, and there was some reshuffling required in the North Oxford ranks with Chris Austin ruled out due to an eye injury sustained at the Kinniard Cup and Karen Hird a late replacement for Spencer Chapman, who was busy helping horses give birth back at the Stud. Karen and Justin Shaw were up against another tricky pair in Bill Emlyn Jones and Peter Eckersley and both were slighlty disappointed with their performance in a match they felt they could possibly have won on a different day. The 2-1 win leave North Oxford needing 5 points out of 6 (fewer if the Millhillians drop points in their last match) to retain the Aston House Trophy. Next up are the Westway Olavians on Tuesday 26th March.

28/02/13 at Iffley Road: North Oxford beat Oxford University 1-0

S.Chapman & W.Campion beat S.Packer & D.Byam Shaw 2-0 (12-4, 12-4)

An unfortunate late withdrawal due to illness mean that last night's match was reduced to one pair at the last minute. Some successful Fives was nevertheless rescued from the evening's proceedings with Spencer Chapman and Will Campion seeing off Dan Byam Shaw and Sam Packer 12-4 12-4 and then beating Dan and OUEFC captain Fergus Imrie 12-8 (from 8-1 down!) in a classy display from the North Oxford pair.

23/02/13 at Aldenham: North Oxford beat Old Westminsters 2 3-0

G.Pulsford & C.Austin beat W.Illingworth & R.Houlden 3-0 (12-6, 12-3, 12-8)

G.Hoskins & C.Rennie beat E.Levy & M.Chen 3-0 (12-1, 12-4, 12-5)

S.Chapman & C.Friend beat E.Miles & M.Mostafavi 3-0 (12-0, 12-5, 12-2)

North Oxford recorded a regulation 3-0 win against Division 2's bottom side the Old Westminsters 2 at Aldenham on Saturday, thus consolidating second place in the table and putting pressure on the Old Millhillians 2 who currently hold the top spot. Westminster schoolboy Riki Houlden was the biggest threat for the Westminsters side on the day but he and ex Cambridge captain Will Illingworth were unable to seriously inconvenience Chris Austin and Graham Pulsford, back from illness and straight into a winning groove. Gareth Hoskins and Carl Rennie combined well at second pair despite not really being tested and Spencer Chapman nursed Courtney Friend through his first game back after his pre-Christmas calf injury as they recorded another comfortable victory. This result leaves NOEFC 3 and a half points behind the Millhillians; they have one match still to play and we have three, so 7 points out of 9 would guarantee the title.

17/02/13 at Eton: EFA Trophy Qualifying Round

The EFA Trophy has been a happy hunting ground for NOEFC over the years, but with many of the big names missing this year, it was left to an inexperienced side to represent us in the qualifying rounds at Eton on Sunday. With eight teams playing in one large group and battling it out to reach the top four and the semi-finals, the competition was fierce. North Oxford were led by Spencer Chapman and Club President Andy Bishop, backed up by Hugo Tobias, Karen Hird, Carl Rennie and Jack Parham and the team got off to a tough start with defeats in the first two rounds against the top two sides in the competition, the Old Wulfrunians and the Old Salopians. We were always playing catch up after that, and one or two narrow defeats and collapses from potential winning positions meant that we were left with too much to do in the last two or three rounds to make it into the top four. This was a pity as the latter stages saw the team play by far their best Fives of the day, with Carl and Jack combining impressively at first pair, Spencer and Karen getting on a winning streak at second, and Andy and Hugo making up for a couple of disappointing earlier losses at third pair. The highlight was the final round victory over a Cambridge University side who had previously beaten both the Etonians and the Ipswichians, both of whom finished above NOEFC in the final standings. Such was the fine margin between success and failure on the day.

v Old Wulfrunians L 0-3 (5-12, 1-12, 5-12)

v Old Salopians L 0-3 (2-12, 7-12, 6-12)

v Monday Knights L 1-2 (3-12, 12-10, 2-12)

v Old Etonians L 0-3 (4-12, 5-12, 11-12)

v Old Ipswichians L 1-2 (10-12, 12-7, 9-12)

v Wycombe W 3-0 (12-6, 12-1, 12-2)

v Cambridge University W 2-1 (10-12, 12-7, 12-3)

Final Standings:

Old Salopians 19

Old Wulfrunians 16

Monday Knights 12

Old Etonians 11

Old Ipswichians 10

Cambridge University 9

North Oxford 7

Wycombe 0

13/02/13 at Westminster: North Oxford beat Old Ipswichians 3-0

N.Shaw & T.Faber beat Tom Fletcher & M.Skjott* 3-0 (12-3, 12-9, 12-6)

G.Hoskins & C.Austin beat S.Woolfries & R.Wood 3-0 (12-3, 12-5, 12-4)

S.Chapman & M.Fiennes beat N.Cox & A.Williams 3-0 (12-4, 12-6, 12-4)

* ineligible player named in advance

NOEFC returned to winning ways after the disappointment of Sunday's defeat at the hands of the Salopians with a convincing 3-0 win over the Old Ipswichians at Westminster last night. The OIs have been producing some good results this season but arrived with a depleted team, lacking several of their key men. Graham Pulsford's ongoing absence due to illness meant a late selectorial panic, but with Nick Shaw stepping in at the last minute it was a strong NOEFC line-up that arrived at Westminster early enough for half of the team to enjoy a brief pre-match warm up in The Sanctuary. It is always great to see former Summer Fields pupils turning out for NOEFC and Tommy Faber teamed up with Nick to make a formidable all-Harrovian first pair. They duly won comfortably against OI skipper Tom Fletcher and late replacement Mike Skjott. Second pair saw two former National Schools' winners in opposition, with Richard Wood (Repton 1976) up against Chris Austin (Wolverhampton 1993). Confusingly the two genuine Old Ipswichians on court were also on opposing sides with NOEFC's Gareth Hoskins partnering Chris to a straight games win over Richard and Simon Woolfries, despite both of the OI pair proving on several occasions that there is plenty of truth in the old adage about class being permanent. As well as turning out in a North Oxford shirt on several occasions over the years, uberveteran Nigel Cox has also managed to play against us for a bewildering array of different teams and he added another one to that list with a third pair appearance for the OIs alongside youngster Alex Williams. After an outing for the Jesters at the weekend against Eton where the combined age of Nigel and his partner exceeded that of their opponents by over 100, it must have come as a relief to Nigel to be up against the more experienced NOEFC pair of Spencer Chapman and Martin Fiennes - making a rare and very welcome league appearance - although having been hit in the eye by Spencer and then beaten 4,6 and 4 he may have wanted to revise his opinion afterwards. The three points move North Oxford to within 3½ points of Division 2 leaders the Old Millhillilans, with two matches in hand.

10/02/13 at Eton: North Oxford lost to Old Salopians 1-2

G.Hoskins & P.Scholey lost to M.Hughes & Guy Williams 1-3 (12-8, 6-12, 12-13, 11-15)

C.Davies & S.Chapman lost to Grant Williams & H.Blofield 0-3 (4-12, 4-12, 5-12)

C.Rennie & K.Hird lost to M.Quinn & A.Fraser* 0-3 (7-12, 5-12, 3-12)

* ineligible player named in advance

NOEFC suffered their first league defeat of the season at Eton yesterday at the hands of a very strong Old Salopian side. Grant Williams had travelled down from Shrewsbury with the current school first pair and they teamed up with Eton coach Mike Hughes to make a formidable top four. Gareth Hoskins and Pete Scholey got off to a good start at first pair, winning the first game 12-8 against Hughes and the younger Williams before they really got going. The tables were turned in the second at which point the match became very tight. Gareth's movement was hampered after a nasty slip in the wet out the back of the court in the third game, but Pete rose to the challenge, taking control of the rallies and keeping the North Oxford pair in touch. Unfortunately it was the Salopian pair who just managed to get over the winning line in two very close games to take the match 3-1. Spencer Chapman and Chris Davies, also not 100% fit, were unable to keep up with their opponents at second pair but the saving grace was the Old Salopians' inability to produce a sixth player. Andrew Fraser from Aldenham kindly stepped in to ensure everyone got a game and to save the Salopians from suffering a penalty point, but it meant that NOEFC salvaged a league point despite Carl Rennie and Karen Hird being unable to defeat Andrew and Mark Quinn.

07/02/13 at Iffley Road: North Oxford beat Oxford University 2-0

G.Hoskins & S.Chapman beat J.Flowers & F.Imrie 3-0 (12-4, 12-4, 13-12)

J.Shaw & W.Campion beat B.Radcliffe & F.White-Thomson 3-0 (12-0, 12-0, 12-0)

The local derby was back on the agenda at Iffley Road last night as North Oxford beat the University 2-0. A couple of late withdrawals meant that the University fielded a very inexperienced and weak second pair, who were unable to trouble the scorers against the strong Justin Shaw and Will Campion combination. A mix and match extra game afterwards was of more benefit to all. Spencer Chapman and Gareth Hoskins at first pair took on OUEFC captain Fergus Imrie and promising Old Salopian Jack Flowers. It looked like a regulation win for most of the match with Spencer and Gareth's biggest problem being keeping the University cycling team from claiming the courts to do their spinning practice. A comfortable win seemed assured at 2-0 and 9-3 up, but at that point the University pair found the form that had previously eluded them, levelling at 10-10 and then taking a 12-10 lead. With a fourth game in the offing, Gareth and Spencer stayed calm, produced some solid game ball cutting and then reeled off three consecutive points to claim the third game 13-12 and with it the match.

17/01/13 at Eton: North Oxford beat the Brigands 3-0

J.Hindle & S.Chapman beat M.Powell & H.Turnbull 3-0 (15-14, 12-4, 12-9)

I.Mitchell & K.Hird beat N.Cox & R.Pattison 3-1 (12-10, 12-4, 10-12, 12-5)

J.Parham & S.Nowinski beat R.Smart & N.Higgins 2-0 (12-4, 12-10)

NOEFC recorded an excellent 3-0 win against what could euphemistically be termed a "highly experienced" Brigands line-up at Eton last night. Skipper Spencer Chapman moved himself up the order to partner Jeremy Hindle at first pair, reviving memories of the Aston House Stud Superleague glory days, and although they didn't hit top form, a 15-14 win in the first game was enough to set them on their way to victory against Martin Powell and Harry Turnbull. Ian Mitchell and Karen Hird put in a good performance at second pair, returning lots of cuts and avoiding too many unforced errors to beat veteran Ronald Pattison and uberveteran Nigel Cox in four. It was great to see another Summer Fields old boy make his NOEFC debut as third pair as Jack Parham teamed up with Stefan Nowinski to beat Rod Smart and Nick Higgins in a best of three match. This was an impressive debut from Jack, who bossed the game against more experienced opponents, and we hope to see more of him in an NOEFC shirt in the future.

12/01/13 at Highgate: North Oxford beat Old Citizens 1 2-1

G.Pulsford & C.Austin lost to J.Reynolds & N.Gill 1-3 (5-12, 7-12, 12-5, 3-12)

G.Hoskins & C.Davies beat D.Davis & B.Friedman 3-0 (12-6, 12-1, 12-7)

S.Chapman & K.Hird beat A.Nice & S.Mullin 3-0 (12-6, 12-3, 12-3)

NOEFC returned to the top of the Division 2 table at the weekend with a 2-1 win over the Old Citizens at Highgate. The opposition featured Fives legend John Reynolds in their ranks and that was always going to create difficulties for Graham Pulsford and Chris Austin at first pair. With Nick Gill playing a strong supporting role, the North Oxford pair struggled to get close in the first two games. The third saw a change of fortune as Graham and Chris upped their game to provide hope of an epic comeback but the fourth saw Reynolds return to his earlier dominant role to take the match 3-1. The other two pairs were a lot more straightforward for the North Oxford team. Gareth Hoskins and Chris Davies won in straight games at second pair without ever achieving much fluency and Spencer Chapman - an Old Cit himself, of course - and Karen Hird made short work of Alex Nice and Stephen Mullin at third. A total of 11 points from four matches puts us in a strong position and next up are one of the major threats to us retaining the Division 2 title - the Westway Olavians on their home patch in a couple of weeks time.

09/12/12 at Aldenham: North Oxford beat Old Millhillians 2 3-0

G.Pulsford & C.Austin beat S.Tailor & N.Krendel 3-2 (12-8, 12-5, 8-12, 9-12, 12-7)

P.Scholey & C.Friend beat J.Weller & J.Mason 3-0 (12-1, 12-3, 12-6)

S.Chapman & C.Rennie beat G.Kong & R.Levy 3-0 (12-10, 12-2, 12-7)

NOEFC returned to Aldenham on Sunday for a potentially tough match between two of Division 2's unbeaten teams and emerged unscathed with a third successive league win and our 100% record intact. Graham Pulsford and Chris Austin made a strong start at first pair against the dangerous Sunil Tailor and Nick Krendel, using home advantage to take them into a 2-0 lead. Things then went a bit flat as the Millhillian pair got back into the match, and at 2-2 and 3-7 down, the situation was looking dicy for the North Oxford pair. However, some stirring support from the watching NOEFC contingent spurred Graham and Chris on at the crucial moment and with the assistance of a few Millhillian cuts flying out of court at the end, they stormed through to win 12-7. At second pair the Edwardian old firm of Courtney Friend and Pete Scholey made short work of their Millhillian opponents, the biggest danger coming in the shape of Courtney "going in the fetlock" midway through the third game but just about managing to drag himself over the line. At third pair Carl Rennie and Spencer Chapman followed up their win against the Carthusians the week before with another convincing victory, despite a small wobble in the first game, with Carl impressing with his increasing range of attacking shots. This win puts us joint top of the table going in to the Christmas break.

02/12/12 at Charterhouse: North Oxford beat Old Carthusians 3-0

G.Pulsford & C.Davies beat M.Platt & F.Imrie 3-0 (12-6, 12-8, 12-8)

G.Hoskins & K.Hird beat A.Burrows & B.Rinck 3-0 (12-10, 12-3, 12-2)

S.Chapman & C.Rennie beat R.Pattison & N.Walker 3-0 (12-0, 12-1, 12-3)

NOEFC's trips to Charterhouse in the past have had a tendency to be influenced by various meteorological factors and this year was no exception. There were no floods or sweating courts this time, but having successfully negotiated a closed A3 round Guildford pre-kick off, the teams were faced with frost-covered lights inside each of Charterhouse's eight courts. This meant that play was perfectly possible for a game or so before the heat generated by the lights being on began to melt the frost, resulting in a large amount of water dripping down onto the courts and turning them dangerously slippery. Undaunted, the North Oxford team dodged the indoor showers, switched courts with bewildering frequency and skated their way to a second maximum point haul in two league games so far this year. Graham Puslford and Chris Davies - playing on his new local courts - showed that there was no substitute for experience as they held the upper hand all the way through at first pair against Mark Platt and current OUEFC skipper Fergus Imrie. Gareth Hoskins and Karen Hird got off to a slow start at second pair against the dangerous Alex Burrows and his partner Ben Rinck and almost managed to lose the first, but then began to find their form and cruised through the second and third games. Old rivals Spencer Chapman and Ronald Pattison squared up at third pair and it was Spencer and Carl Rennie who showed a ruthless streak to dispatch the OC captain and Nick Walker 3-0 in double quick time. Our fixtures with the OCSsare about more than the Fives, however, and substantially more time was spent having Sunday lunch in the pub afterwards than was spent sliding around on court in the morning. A good trip all round.

09/10/12 at Highgate: North Oxford drew with Old Cholmeleians 1-1

C.Austin & R.Morgan lost to G.Chapman & D.Goldschmidt 0-3 (4-12, 5-12, 1-12)

C.Rennie & S.Chapman beat A.Bhattacharya & A.Tansey 3-0 (12-5, 12-9, 12-5)

Highgate School was the venue for North Oxford for the second time in three days last night as NOEFC took on the mighty Old Cholemeleians, one of the most decorated clubs in the history of Eton Fives. Captain for the night Spencer Chapman took the controversial selectorial decision to drop himself to second pair, leaving Ralph Morgan and Chris Austin with a tough game against Guy Chapman and Dave Goldschmidt, which the Cholms won 3-0 in convincing style, with Chris and Ralph fighting hard but not abe to get enough cut returns into play to pose a threat on the scoreboard. Spencer then teamed up with the improving Carl Rennie at second pair to beat Abs Bhattacharya and recent leaver Alex Tansey to square the tie and claim the draw.

07/10/12 at Highgate: North Oxford beat Highgate School 4-2

T.Cox & R.Wilson beat C.Noble & B.Mills 3-0 (12-3, 12-5, 12-3)

G.Hoskins & S.Chapman beat J.Hosking & J.Willett 3-0 (14-12, 12-5, 12-5)

N.Cox & C.Rennie beat J.Angel & S.Papaloizu 3-0 (12-7, 12-5, 12-6)

S.Nowinski & R.Morgan lost to C.Blackaby & J.James 0-3 (3-12, 2-12, 8-12)

K.Hird & C.Cooley beat E.Smith-Bingham & A.Paul 3-0 (12-2, 12-7, 12-5)

R.Scott & H.Allan lost to A.Reimer & P.Bracken 0-3 (3-12, 5-12, 7-12)

Highgate School are not playing in Division 2 this year. which meant that the 2012 edition of this fixture morphed into a friendly, but it's still one of the few opportunities on the circuit to play a match across more than three pairs and produced an excellent morning's Fives. This was the first outing of the season for the Highgate senior boys and they generally struggled to cope with the mighty NOEFC artillery being aimed in their direction. It was great to see Tom Cox - the only Old Summerfieldian to go on to win the National Schools' Open title - returning to his Oxford roots at first pair alongside star of the Aston House Studs summer campaign Robert Wilson, and they put in a classy performance to win 3-0. Gareth Hoskins and Spencer Chapman had a slight wobble in the middle of their first game at second pair, but were otherwise in complete control, with Spencer in particular hitting an assortment of outrageous ledges at regular intervals. Nigel Cox and Carl Rennie at third pair are becoming a tried and tested combination and not even a drive back to the UK from Provence the previous day could prevent Nigel from confirming his number one uberveteran status with another 3-0 win. Stefan Nowinski and late call-up Ralph Morgan found life more difficult at fourth pair; they were beginning to get the measure of their opponents once into the third, but ran out of time before they could turn the tide their way. Much interest was centred on the ladies pairs, and first pair in particular, as Charlotta Cooley and Karen Hird teamed for the first - but certainly not the last - time this season to take on reigning schools and U21 champions Eve Smith-Bingham and Aimee Paul. The Highgate girls might have been hoping to cause an upset but the North Oxford pair got off to a flying start, leading 11-0 in the first game, and the younger pair were never able to get back on even terms as Karen and Charlotta dominated from start to finish in impressive style. The Highgate second pair are not far behind their first and provided a stern test for the OUEFC past and present combination of Rosie Scott and Harriet Allan. As with Stefan and Ralph, the North Oxford pair improved as the match went on and were getting closer to their opponents, but were unable to take a game off them. So a 4-2 win for NOEFC, some excellent games, a school lunch and then an afternoon in the pub - what Fives is all about!

North Oxford beat Berkhamsted 2 3-0 at Aldenham 23/09/12:

G.Pulsford & C.Austin beat D.Foster & N.Woof 3-0 (12-9, 12-6, 12-10)

G.Hoskins & D.Byam Shaw beat A.Theodossi & H.Percy 3-0 (12-4, 12-8, 12-10)

C.Friend & H.Tobias beat J.O'Neill & E.Casey 3-0 (12-7, 14-13, 12-3)

North Oxford's season got off to a fine start at Aldenham at the weekend with a convincing 3-0 win over Berkhamsted 2. It was good to see a league debut and fine performance from Dan Byam Shaw at second pair and with the Aldenham duo of Austin and Pulsford in fine fettle at first pair, and old lags Tobias and Friend doing the business at third, a welcome three points were in the bag.