Win a day at the races

Sandown Park next month hosts one of the top jump meetings of the season.

And United Racecourses, in conjunction with the Comet/News, is offering one lucky reader the chance to see the Diamond Chase Day action at first hand.

The winner will enjoy an afternoon of top-class sporting entertainment with a total of seven races, including the feature race of the day, The Diamond Steeple Chase, which is run over three miles.

The meeting promises to attract top-quality fields offering a compelling day's racing.

Gates open at 11.30am on February 6, with the first race at 1.25pm. Admission to all enclosures will be available on the day. Call 01372 470047 for advanced tickets.

For your chance to win a day out at the races, simply answer the following question:

What is the name of the feature race on February 6 at Sandown Park?

Send your answers on a postcard, with your name, address and a daytime phone number to: Comet/News Sandown Competition, 26 York Street,

Twickenham. TW1 3LJ

Usual Comet/News competition rules apply and the editor's decision is final.

Football

Woking hit five past Epsom

Woking 5

Epsom and Ewell 0

Three goals inside a four minute spell early in the second half ended Epsom and Ewell's resistance in this Surrey Senior Cup 2nd Round tie at Kingfield.

In the first half they had restricted their Football Conference hosts to a single goal and created good chances themselves.

Epsom welcomed back Graham Morris, Nigel Bennett and Richard Sell after injury and illness, but were without Kevin Webb, who was serving a one-match ban after picking up five cautions.

On a remarkably good surface, considering the previous heavy rain, Woking had much of the early pressure, and they had an early chance when Grant Payne slid in to connect with Danny Bolt's cross, but his effort was wide.

They took the lead after 18 minutes, their first goal for over seven hours, when Payne converted a right-wing cross.

Within two minutes Epsom came close to an equaliser. Micky Owen's right-wing cross evaded a crowded penalty area and Tony Boorman, coming in from the left, saw his low shot just miss the far post.

Darren Hay had a good chance to increase Woking's lead but pulled his shot wide, and in a quick break from an Epsom free-kick, Danny Bolt's 25-yarder was wide as the Epsom defence backed off.

Just before the break, Joao Tome knocked down a Boorman cross, but Richard Sell, even at full-stretch, was just unable to make contact.

A dramatic start to the second period saw Darren Hay increased Woking's lead after 50 minutes by nipping in behind the Epsom defence to convert a free kick. Two minutes later it was 3-0 when Bolt's corner was headed in by Hay at the near post.

Robin Taylor added Woking's fourth with a fierce drive from outside the box which Dave Hyatt got both hands to, but couldn't prevent going in.

Andy Rawlinson, recently returning from injury replaced Andy Boxall.

Although four goals down, to Epsom's credit they kept plugging away.

Joao Tome nearly capitalised on a poor Steve West back-pass, but West recovered to hustle Tome out of a shooting chance.

And a minute later Richard Sell's pass sent Rawlinson clear, but `keeper Flahavan was quickly off his line to narrow the angle and block out the danger.

Micky Owen should really have done better from Tome's pass, but his shot was well off target, and Woking added a fifth after 72 minutes, Hay completing his hat trick from Bolt's cross.

Owens sliced another effort wide from Rawlinson's pass, but a brilliant close-range save by Dave Hyatt prevented the home side from increasing their lead.

Rugby

Chips hold out for a win

Chipstead 13

Wandsworthians 10

After last week's bad weather it seemed that last Saturday's league match with Chipstead may have been postponed due to a waterlogged pitch. However, this bottom of the table clash went ahead on a pitch, which under the circumstances held together well.

At the start, Chipstead were fired up and aiming for their first league win of the season, whilst Wands-worth seemed more subdued and uninterested. This was reflected in the score as the home team quickly notched up two tries to leave the Dubs trailing in their wake.

Somehow Wandsworth-ians kept within striking distance of their opponents, and through a penalty by Andy Carter and a try from Will Vogel, they kept any faint hopes of winning the game alive.

Vogel's try came from a maul, as No 8 Cyril Springer fainted to go left, so dragging the opposition defenders wide. Scrum half Andy Brown popped the ball to Vogel, who went over for the score.

When Chipstead scored their last points to bring the score to 13-10, all looked lost for the Dub's. However a final 20 minutes burst saw Chipstead put under immense pressure from which they could not escape.

It looked as though another Wandsworth try was inevitable, but they could not string together that final move that could win them the game.

Although, unusually, Carter did miss a penalty in front of the posts, which would have secured a point.

Hockey

Surrey teams out of the cup

After five rounds of competition, Surrey participation in the English Hockey Cup is finally at end with its last three clubs all losing to superior opposition on Sunday.

Ironically the country's two national league sides had both lost at the first time of asking on entering the competition at the third-round stage - Guildford away to fellow Premier Division Old Loughtonians and First Division Surbiton at home to Premier Teddington.

Old Cranleighans, Wimble-don and Old Georgians had fought their way through the first two rounds and then won at the third and fourth round stages. But the last 16 proved too big a hurdle for all three.

Old Cranleighans played Lewes and came the closest to causing an upset. They could and should have won. Former Canterbury centre forward Mark Smith gave them a 12th minute lead when he got his stick to a superb right-wing cross shot from Don Williams.

But Jeremy Boyse levelled from Lewes first penalty corner in the 19th minute and then gave them the lead from open play five minutes later. Jon Reed equalised within two minutes with a stunning flick from a penalty corner.

Two minutes after the interval, Will Champness put Lewes ahead again with a direct strike from a penalty corner.

The game then became disrupted by a number of temporary dismissals, first Robert Tong for OCs and then Boyse and Jeremy Stannard for Lewes, all within nine minutes of each other.

David Knapp equalised while OCs had a two-man advantage. But once Boyse was back on the field he transformed the game. First he put Andrew Cook through to score in the 59th minute with a sweeping move half the length of the field. Then Boyse made the game safe by hammering home an unstoppable roofer from a narrow angle.

The county's other two contestants went down more comprehensively. Wimbledon lost 0-4 to Teddington in a fixture played at Reed's School. Old Georgians travelled to national league and cup double champions Cannock, where they lost 2-7 but were not disgraced. Stuart Kirk scored with a 31st minute free-play goal and Gareth Notton from a 44th minute penalty corner.

But Epsom at least kept Surrey Cup hopes alive with a 3-2 win at Oxton in round four of the men's Trophy competition.

In South Premier League games on Saturday, Old Cranleighans won 2-0 at Gore Court and Wimbledon 2-0 at Purley Walcountians, but Richmond drew 2-2 at home to Winchester.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000.Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.