POSTMAN Wayne Tilling picks up a lot of interesting information as he pounds the streets – and it has fuelled his thirst for local history.
With a passion for village football, Mr Tilling is piecing together the history of Kidlington Football Club and its numerous homes since the club was formed in 1909.
He has tracked the club’s history back as far as the 1930s and has spoken to a number of former players.
But he is now appealing for Oxford Mail readers to help shed more light on the story.
“I spoke to a few older players who went back to the 1930s when they played in Yarnton Road, ” said Mr Tilling, who is a former linesman for Kidlington and is on the committee of the Witney and District Youth Football League.
“I also spoke to Gordon Norridge, the club’s life vice-president, and everything known within the club has come from him.”
He added: “People remember them playing in Begbroke and then moving to the centre of Kidlington near where the Exeter Hall is now.
“Up until the 1950s most of these village teams did a deal with a local farmer and so there’s no documentation.”
Mr Tilling, 44, said the club moved from the Exeter Hall site in 1970 and he wants to uncover the circumstances.
He said: “My understanding is the land was given to the village for recreational use and couldn’t be built on.
“The council decided they wanted to build on it and there was a referendum. I need to find details of that.”
The Hellenic Premier League club now plays at Yarnton Road, on a different site to that used in the 1930s.
Mr Tilling said gathering accurate historical information was a difficult task.
He added: “There are some references in history books but when you find people who were around at the time they sometimes contradict that.”
Mr Tilling, who has lived in Kidlington fore more than 40 years, is also researching the history of other local clubs including Yarnton FC and Cassington FC, which no longer exists.
His research on all three clubs can be found at kidlingtonfc.org.uk If anyone wishes to share memories, they can email info@kidlingtonfc.org.uk.
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