Dads and lads victorious
When Littlemore RFC open-side flanker Darren Massey scored two crucial tries to secure victory against Didcot’s second team, nobody cheered louder than his son Jack who was playing on the right wing. It was a dads and lads day as the team’s number 9 Archie Keown spin passed to his father John steaming in as full back.
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With the match ending in a 24-17 win, the four repaired with the rest of the team to the clubhouse, all the more appropriate as it was a father and son duo who in 1976 founded the club and were, with Cameron Wilson, the driving force behind building what’s believed to be the UK’s first licensed premises on school grounds. The then Head of PE at Peers School was fundamental in the club’s early success, coaching them until the late 1980s when he moved on to take charge at Chinnor RFC.
The clubhouse remains a popular community hub at what is now the Oxford Academy, running regular events like live bands and quiz nights. Their location means they have the use of Oxford Academy’s state of the art grass and 3G pitches and can recruit players from the school and from Oxford’s universities.
Littlemore has retained the club’s original community focus and has weathered pulling out of the leagues in 2006-7, rebuilding and returning to compete in Bucks, Berks, Oxon Division 1 South after promotion in its first year back in the leagues. They offer fun and competitive age grade rugby for players aged five to 17 and have a great team of volunteers.
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