Stories for 16 September 2004

Basildon,Echo News

Billericay: Man fractures back in three places after falling from tree

Energetic Terry Stannard sprung into action to show his godson how to climb trees but fell 13ft fracturing his back in three places.  more...

Basildon: MP Smith delighted at hunt ban

Basildon MP Angela Smith has hailed the Government's bid to ban hunting with dogs after years of campaigning.   more...

Brentwood,Essex News

Essex: Recruitment success for drivers association

A group which steers the motorists of Essex towards better driving techniques has chalked up an excellent record of success since it first hit the road a year ago.   more...

Chelmsford,Essex News

Chelmsford: Approval for hospital car park

A new 700 space multi-storey car park for Broomfield Hospital looks set to ease parking pressure for patients and visitors to the site.   more...

Colchester,Essex Business

North Essex: E-commerce lunch boost for business

A lunch to encourage more companies in Essex to embrace e-commerce is being held today.   more...

Colchester,Essex,Evening Gazette,Eveninggazette News

Colchester: Gallery architect welcomes debate

The architect of Colchester's new £15 million art gallery has welcomed criticism of the proposed project, saying it is a valuable part of the consultation programme.   more...

Dovercourt: Mums save toddler group

Two determined women have won their battle to save a mother and toddler group.   more...

Essex: Police could soon be using shock tactics

Essex Police firearms teams could soon be using 50,000-volt shocks to render criminals helpless.   more...

Colchester: Card theft victim foils conmen's trickery

Conmen tried to trick the owner of a stolen credit card into giving them his pin number by ringing him up and saying they had caught the thief.   more...

Braintree: Oh bollards! Residents' emergency access fear

Elderly residents in a Braintree village were amazed to see a row of concrete bollards being put up outside their bungalows restricting access to the front of their homes.   more...

Maldon: Lake death leads to £200,000 fine

A council has been told to pay £200,000 for failing to take precautions at a popular swimming lake where a man died.   more...

Kirby: Vandals trash garden built by school pupils

Mean vandals trashed a children's garden and wendy house causing hundreds of pounds in damage.   more...

Colchester: Three down - hopes to be a winner

One man hoping he knows his nine downs from his three acrosses is Sam Glen.   more...

Colchester: Men caught mixing refuse get sack

Rogue refuse collectors who mixed sorted recyclable items with rubbish are no longer being employed by Colchester Council.   more...

Harwich: Hunt vote delights animal campaigner

An animal rights campaigner has described his delight after a ban on fox hunting moved a step closer this week.   more...

Little Oakley: Work on school starts in two weeks

Long-awaited building work on a new primary school will start within the next two weeks, ending years of delays.   more...

Colchester: School put in special measures

A school for children with learning difficulties has been severely criticised and branded ineffective by Ofsted inspectors in a damning report.   more...

Chelmsford: Hospital traffic worries

Broomfield Hospital's £120 million redevelopment is not dealing with the traffic congestion it will create.   more...

Witham: Bubbly and cake at market

A farmers' market celebrated its fifth birthday in style.   more...

Colchester: Knife ordeal at takeaway

A robbery victim has told how his wife was held at knife-point during a raid at their takeaway.   more...

Essex: A12 roadworks to start next week

Major roadworks are due to start on the A12 next week.   more...

Clacton: 'Time to ban the boozing'

Fed-up traders have called for a zero-tolerance booze ban on the streets of Clacton in a bid to cut crime.   more...

Harwich: Dog attacks girl, five

Police are appealing for witnesses after a five-year-old girl was attacked by a dog being walked by two youngsters.   more...

Colchester,Essex,Evening Gazette,Eveninggazette Sport

Soccer: Stevenage Borough 0-3 Colchester United Reserves (Pontins Holiday Combination League)

Colchester United Reserves were denied the chance to go top of the Pontins Holiday Combination League when they were soundly beaten 3-0 at non-league Stevenage Borough.   more...

Athletics: Paralympians aiming for medals in Athens

Paralympic hopefuls are getting ready to start the final leg of their sporting dream.   more...

Cricket: Ronnie backs Gough

Ronnie Irani today welcomed the prospect of England hero Darren Gough being named as his new Essex vice-captain for next season.   more...

Essex News

Essex: New call centre for police

Essex Police Authority has agreed to build a call centre capable of employing 150 people in the Chelmsford area.   more...

Essex Sport

130 turn out for disabled fun day

BASILDON Disabled Sports Club held their annual sports day at their Markhams Chase base on Sunday. More than 130 competitors took part and the club's Ralph Dennerley was delighted at the impressive turn out. "It was a great day," he said. "Angela Smith MP came along and it was very enjoyable for everyone. Clubs came as far as Brighton to join in and I like to say a special thank you to the Air Cadets who helped us out as well. They did all the measuring and little things like that to help out but they were outstanding." Participants battled it out in a wide range of events -- including wheelchair dashes, slalom, discus, javelin, shot putt, archery, skittles and pistol shooting. The hosts enjoyed great success during the keenly contested day -- picking up 30 gold medals, while members of clubs from Southend and Canvey also got in on the act. "It was a competitive day," added Dennerley. "It wasn't a fun day at all -- people wanted to win but everything went well and we all had a very enjoyable time."   more...

Golf: County Colts in league triumph

Essex Colts have completed a great year for the county by winning the northern section of the South-eastern Golf League.   more...

Centenary plans under way

SOUTHEND United have begun planning their centenary celebrations, which will take place in 2006. A committee has been formed featuring members of the club and the Shrimpers Trust, who have already discussed a number of possible ideas. "We had our first meeting last week and it's still early days, but if any of the fans have any suggestions we would love them to get in touch," said Blues' club secretary Helen Giles. A friendly against a Premiership club, a dinner/dance and a statue outside the Shrimpers proposed new stadium in Fossets Farm have already been mentioned, as have further ideas for celebrating the Seasiders 50th year at Roots Hall next season.   more...

County Colts in league triumph

ESSEX Colts have completed a great year for the county by winning the northern section of the South-eastern Golf League. Their success was confirmed at Boyce Hill when they triumphed 6.5 - 5.5 over Bedfordshire. With the senior team having already won their league, the colts knew they needed a draw or win from the last fixture to emulate them. To add to these triumphs, Essex Boys also enjoyed a year to remember by sharing the national championship with Yorkshire. The colts will now take on southern section champs Kent for the overall title, while the seniors meet Surrey. Both encounters are next month. Essex Colts held a 2.5 - 1.5 lead at lunchtime and finally sealed their triumph by sharing the singles spoils at 4-4. Scores (Essex first): Foursomes - Jack Margetts (Warley Park) and Tommy Hunter (Ilford) beat Michael Round and Craig Nield 2 and 1; Lloyd Kennedy (Chelmsford) and Ashley Lucas (Chelmsford) halved with Roberto Liano and Wayne Seymour; Dale Whitnall (Forrester Park) and Craig Lockwood (Channels) beat Charlie O'Brien and Niall Johnson; Adam Burwood (Harwich and Dovercourt) and Rhys Piper (Rochford) lost to Graham Benson and Chris Gill 6 and 5. Singles: Hunter lost to Benson 3 and 2; Kennedy beat Round 2 and 1; Lucas halved with O'Brien; Margetts halved with Johnson; Burwood beat Seymour 4 and 3; Piper lost to Gill 1 down; Whitnall beat Nield 2 up; Lockwood lost to Liano 1 down. This is the second season on the trot that the colts have won all their northern section league matches. Last term defeat by Kent in the overall final was their only setback, but they will be out to reverse that result this time round. The Thornton Cup final, Essex's senior team competition, was staged at Canons Brook and resulted in victory for Chelmsford, who beat Romford 8-7. The county inter-club youth shield final was held at Rochford with victory going to Romford, 4-2 winners over West Essex.   more...

General: 130 turn out for disabled fun day

Basildon Disabled Sports Club held their annual sports day at their Markhams Chase base on Sunday.   more...

Essex,Basildon,Southend Sport

Meadow points harvest is vital

SOUTHEND United skipper Kevin Maher is urging the Shrimpers to kick start their stuttering season at Notts County this weekend. The former Tottenham Hotspur trainee missed Saturday's undeserved 2-1 defeat against Wycombe Wanderers with a one-match ban but is relishing a return for the 18th-placed Seasiders at Meadow Lane. "Hopefully I will be selected because it was very frustrating having to watch last week," said Maher, who is expected to replace Lewis Hunt in the centre of the park. "But it's going to be a very hard game for us even though Notts County are down the wrong end of the table right now. "They were in a higher division last season and I'm sure they will be looking to get back on track against us, so we will need to be at our best because we need a good result to get our season going again." Maher also admitted the Blues were determined to claim a vital victory as they strive to surge up the early League Two standings. "We are not where we would have liked to have been in the table at this stage but it's not disastrous yet," said the 27-year-old. "The league is only eight games old so there is still an awful long way to go. "If we had won on Saturday, like we deserved to, then we would have been in the top half of the table and everyone would be looking towards the play offs. "So if we can get another few wins on the spin and get some consistency going then we can still get back in the pack for sure. "And we're all still confident of doing that as, in the last five games, we've been playing well to be fair." During the impressive sequence of performances however, the Seasiders have failed to convert their dominant displays into match-winning scorelines -- something Maher is keen to turn around. "The results haven't been as good as they should have been in that spell and, although we've been unlucky in a couple of games, it's something we need to sort out," he said. "We need to try and stay positive and just improve on a few bits and pieces here and there because there isn't really a lot wrong. "We do need to start converting more of our chances though and we all know that. "But that's not just the forwards; it's everyone. In fact it's about time I got a goal to be honest!" added Maher.   more...

Southend,Echo News

Leigh: New fight for flats plan

Defiant developers have sparked fury by resubmitting plans for 17 flats at a landmark site in Leigh rejected by councillors just weeks ago.   more...

Rochford: Council's dismay at 'weak' rating

Angry Rochford district councillors have dismissed a Government report which branded their council as "weak".   more...

Shoebury, Maldon: Council fined over lake death

A council has been ordered to pay £200,000 for breaking health and safety rules at a popular swimming lake where a Shoebury man died.   more...