Many of you will by now have heard that Steve Giles, long serving committee member & former club secretary, passed away early on Saturday morning 5th December, at the age of sixty. Steve had been fighting renal cancer, our thoughts & love go out to wife Jackie & family. Steve was secretary at Morris Motors from 1984 having previously been with Pressed Steel & with the demise of these ‘works’ teams Steve joined Headington Amateurs when they replaced Morris Motors in the Hellenic League in 1988. Initially fixtures secretary he took over as club secretary & remained in that post until 2009. He then continued as a committee member making it thirty two years with the club, rarely missing a home game & taking in many of the away games. Steve was also secretary at Oxford Sunday League club Horspath Road.

As well as sec. to Headington Steve was also the secretary for the Phoenix Sports Association, the joint committee for Headington Amateurs & Barton United & was heavily involved in all the work over many years as the clubs moved ‘away’ from & back to Barton Park as the new housing development there incorporated a new ground & clubhouse.

Nominally secretary, like volunteers everywhere Steve did most jobs, mini-bus driver (the team were never late when Steve was driving!) kit man, changing rooms cleaner & fiercely ‘protective’ of match balls. As an administrator Steve was as much a true football man as any player but it is as a friend that we will remember him most fondly.

A minutes silence was held before yesterdays Headington Amateurs Ladies game & a minutes silence will be observed before next Saturdays Hellenic League match (14:00) at Barton Park.