Former Witney Town footballer Kevin Alder achieves another sporting goal when he makes his EBA Middleton Cup debut for Oxfordshire in the crunch clash against Berkshire at Suttons BC on Saturday.

Alder, Town’s goalkeeper in their Southern League days in the 1990s, will be looking to provide a safe pair of hands for Oxon in their final Group 3B match.

The West Witney ace is one of two debutants in the team along with Banbury Central’s AJ Docherty.

They replace Shaun Claridge and Mark Charlett, who drop out.

The new recruits come into skip Mark Sykes’s rink with Docherty at lead and Alder at No 2.

Keith Holloway switches from Sykes’s rink to lead off Howard Watts’s four in place of Claridge, while Ian Snowdon takes over as skip from Charlett.

Other positional changes see George Moon moving from No 2 on Sykes’s rink to bowl at No 3 in Snowdon’s side, Nick Rae-Welsh moving to No 3 in Watts’s quartet and Richard Redford taking the same spot in captain Greg Moon’s rink.

Following the surprise defeat by Middlesex in their last outing, Oxon need to record a winning margin which is better than or equal to second-placed Hampshire – who host basement boys Surrey – to ensure they finish top of the group and qualify for the next stage.

By coincidence, Oxfordshire met Berkshire in the Home Counties League at Three Mile Cross last weekend and slipped to a 12-shot defeat.

They will be hoping their Middleton Cup team can exact swift revenge.

Oxfordshire (v Berkshire, Suttons BC, Sat): AJ Docherty, K Alder, J King, M Sykes; A Wise, P Sharman, S Richens, A Prew; K Holloway, N Lewis, N Rae-Welsh, H Watts; J Philpott, B Lambourne, R Redford, Gr Moon; M Nash, S Timms, Ge Moon, I Snowdon; C Whitehead, M Petersen, R Clanfield, B Sparkes.

OXFORDSHIRE suffered defeats in their two latest friendlies, going down 145-117 to Monmouthshire at New Tredegar BC, before slipping to a 125-105 loss against Hampshire at Cove.

A 50-game badge was awarded to Bloxham’s David Lines against Monmouthshire.

RESULTS

Monmouthshire 145, Oxfordshire 117 (Oxon rink scores): C Weller, P Astall, A Hall, I Whelpton won 25-22; S Tolhurst, T Bacher-Holst, A Hunt, J O’Shea lost 28-16; D Lines, K Williams, G Watts, H Franklin lost 24-16; A Braden, K Clayton, N Satchell, H Payne lost 26-16; P Christmas, P Cross, S O’Keefe, J Lucas lost 35-6; D Fowler, B Buckingham, R Claridge, D Wedge won 38-10.

Hampshire 125, Oxfordshire 105 (Oxon rinks scores): S Gibson, P Cross, D Bullock, M Andrew lost 31-14; E Fry, P Beckett, T Beaumont, R Claridge won 30-15; B May, I Hale, N Satchell, I Whelpton won 21-16; A Fleming, K Clayton, A Melville, B Buckingham lost 20-11; R Jackson, D Steel, M Jones, J O’Shea lost 25-13; M Gleeson, T Backer-Holst, G Coggon A Ley lost 18-16.

OXFORDSHIRE Under 25s thrashed Wiltshire 140-97 in a friendly at Carterton BC.

Oxon won on four of the six rinks, with Remy Clanfield’s four of Helen Campion, Sam White and George Schwab leading the way with a thumping 41-7 victory.

Oxfordshire 140, Wiltshire 97 (Oxon rinks scores): J Woodward, C Swatton, L Wilkin-son, S Cooper won 23-21; K Bateman, C Gilkes, D May, G May lost 22-12; H Alder, L Witcombe, D Wakeman, S Muir won 24-15; J Hopkins, E Gilkes, J Jordan, S Hastings won 22-12; J Flitter, W Soden, R Full, D Wakeman lost 20-18; H Campion, S White, G Schwab, R Clanfield won 41-7.