An annual football match which has raised thousands of pounds for the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal is set to get even bigger after the opposition for this year’s fixture was announced.
Oxhey Jets FC stage their annual Remembrance Match in memory of former player Private Tom Lake, a member of the 1st Battalion, The Princess of Wales Regiment, who was killed on November 20, 2011 while serving in Afghanistan.
The match has previously been played against regimental teams or sides from a military base, including Northwood Headquarters in 2023, but this year the Combined Counties League club will be taking on the Royal Navy’s Under-23 side who are the inter-services champions.
Jets founder and general manager John Elliott believes it is quite a coup to secure a game against a representative team from the Senior Service.
He told the Watford Observer: “I’m really pleased because it’s like stepping it up another gear again. They’re two years inter-services champions which is a big thing because it’s the crown to be the best of the services.
“This game is winning the imagination. When you think how it started, a one-day friendly against the Princess of Wales Regiment, it’s led to so much inter-services interaction with us and so much goodwill.
“I think more is breeding off this game than people realise because of the education to kids who are learning about the poppy as well.
“It’s massive. I think it’s great for the club and the area again.”
This year’s Remembrance Match is due to be played on Saturday, November 2 at the Boundary Stadium, Altham Way, South Oxhey.
The game is due to kick-off at 3pm but this will be preceded by an act of Remembrance which last year began with players from Oxhey Jets Youth forming a guard of honour as the official party was led onto the pitch to a lament played by piper Colin Macdougal.
After the National Anthem, wreaths were laid by Pte Lake’s mother Carol, South West Hertfordshire MP Gagan Mohindra, Luther Blissett on behalf of Watford FC, councillors, the police, football association representatives, the match officials, Jets Youth and both teams.
The Last Post was performed by Colour Sergeant Steve Saleh and members of the Royal Navy Volunteer Band Northwood Headquarters before a record attendance for the fixture of 470 helped impeccably observe a two minutes’ silence.
The Garry Beadle Memorial Trophy, named after the Jets player who died in 2019, was then paraded and presented in recognition of the Northwood tri-services team’s involvement in the fixture.
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