Essex's overseas star Stuart Law has admitted this could be his last season with the county. The 32-year-old Australian crowd-pleaser said on Friday: "No-one has approached me yet about returning to Essex next season. "I will be a free agent then and
The widow of millionaire Tony Fetherston has said she was "very pleased" to hear reports a man had been charged in connection with her husband's death. Tony Fetherston, 67, was shot at his luxury home on the West Indian island of St Kitts by a gunman
West Chelmsford MP Simon Burns says he will back Haltemprice MP, David Davis, in the Conservative Party leadership contest. Tory MPs will ballot for a short list of two candidates - of the present total of five - which will then be put to party members
Gun-toting youngsters are risking lives - including their own - in taking pot-shots at passing cars, police warned today (Tuesday). The strong line has come from detectives after a number of incidents centred around the Luncies Road junction with South
A group of Essex Special Constables failed to beat a bizarre world record. They had set themselves the task of printing postcodes on as many bicycles as possible within four hours. They were trying to beat the current record of 841, held by Lancashire
Visitors are invited to Hopefield Animal Sanctuary for its annual open day this Sunday. Admission to the event on Sawyers Hall Lane, Brentwood, which runs from 1 to 5pm, is £2 for adults and 50p for children under 14. As well as meeting the animals who
Helen Crook found the going tough in both her matches at Wimbledon last week. She and partner Vicky Davies, wild card entrants for the ladies' doubles, had met number 1 seeds Alexandra Fusai (France) and Rita Grande (Italy) in the first round. It was
Colchester United boss Steve Whitton admitted he has almost given up hope of re-signing out-of-contract midfielder Aaron Skelton. Whitton said today (Tuesday): "I spoke with Skelts yesterday and he told me to go through his agent. "That's the procedure
Essex cricket captain Ronnie Irani planned a showdown today (Tuesday) with his outspoken overseas star Stuart Law. Irani and Essex head coach Keith Fletcher were due to meet the Australian for clear-the-air talks following his stinging attack on the county
A respected official at the Crompton Coward Angling Club died while fishing at the weekend. Brian Williams, long-time match secretary and was membership secretary, died on the bank at the weekend, at one of his club's fishing matches. He will be sadly
For the latest news on the V2001 festival in Chelmsford this August, click here: v2001chelmsford.co.uk The funk phenomenon Those Longo Allstar lovelies are back up the big smoke on July 1 for a swish bash supporting the Soul Destroyers. They'll be back
Southend ambulances could be left in limbo as their new base may not be ready before they have to leave their current home. The station is being relocated from Southend Hospital to a new base at Tesco at Prince Avenue, but the timescale of the changeover
A man needed hospital treatment after an incident outside a nightclub. The man, believed to be in his 60s, was involved in a fracas outside the Reflections nightclub in Dovercourt. He suffered facial injuries during the incident on Friday night and was
A former Chelmsford College student has tragically died on the day of his grandfather's funeral. James Cook, 24, died on Thursday morning on the way to his temporary job at Chelmsford Prison. His green MGF car left High Easter Road, High Easter, on a
Police have seized cannabis plants with an estimated street value of £250,000 after a raid on a house in Bradwell, near Braintree. Officers from the tactical team at Braintree went to the house on Thursday evening and found 350 of the plants and a variety
The Raj Restaurant, Mill Road, Maldon is preparing for a mammoth fundraising task - of creating 8,000 chicken biriyani and vegetable curries for charity. The attempt on Sunday starts at 12pm and runs until 8pm and is aiming to raise cash for Essex Air
A glowing report praising the work of staff at Leverton Hall secure unit for young people has been welcomed by Brentwood South county councillor Lionel Lee, who led the fight against it opening four years ago. He joined in the praise, saying: "It's very
Four teenagers have told of their disappointment after being forced to pull out of their long-awaited holiday to Majorca because of coach strikes which crippled the popular resort. The 18-year-olds, all former pupils of Cecil Jones High School in Southend
People living near a Colchester church are angry at moves to lay down headstones in the graveyard as a safety measure. They have spoken to the vicar of All Saints' Church in Shrub End Road, the Rev Chris Newlands, to express their concerns after discovering
Delighted staff at the Epping Forest Volunteer Bureau have begun a search for a full-time youth officer this week after receiving a £10,000 grant from the Jack Petchey Foundation. The money will go towards funding the cost of recruiting, training and
A link road opening up Colchester's multi-million pound Cuckoo Farm development towards the A12 has come one step closer to reality. Colchester Council's planning committee has granted delegated powers to the head of planning services Ian Vipond to give
Ipswich Town fans unable to get hold of a season ticket for Portman Road will soon be able to watch their heroes on the small screen. Sky TV have announced their live match schedule for the first four months of the season, and Ipswich are first featured
A Harwich company has set up a project to help firms with their training. People Wise has linked up with Stansted-based Brettles PR Marketing and Consultancy, to launch the new venture. The newly-formed company, Brettles Learning and Development, will
The NSPCC golf day at Rochford Hundred again smashed all records when £17,500 was raised for the children's charity. That staggering amount took the total to £174,500 since the first event 15 years-ago. Nineteen teams took part in the competition which
The second match in the fortnightly Nounsley Fishery, Hatfield Peverel Tuesday league took place last week, with Bruce Welfare of Browning having to share the honours with Alan Litchford of JP Simano Tackle, both with 63-0-0. Third place went to Bob David
Three Rivers Ladies spring meeting saw the scratch prize go to Lin Rees with Janis Harding collecting the handicap section from Elaine Atkin and Tam Langley. Denise and Gordon Irving won the matrimonial competition from Linda and Bob Bennett with Julia
Stanway Rovers manager Steve Ball will be stepping back out of semi-retirement next season to don his football boots again. Ball, who guided Rovers to within two goals of promotion from division one of the Jewson League last season, is keen to play an
Splashing in the pool, twin tots Amy and Bracken may not have realised the significance of their efforts. They were taking part in a charity swim for Tommy's Campaign -- a poignant dedication to the memory of their sister Fern Tegan who was stillborn.
Colchester Council has hired a new chief executive. At a meeting of its Cabinet last night (monday), borough council leader Bill Frame announced the new top officer will be Andrea Hill. Mrs Hill, 37, will take on her new job after working as deputy chief
THIEVES have robbed children of a popular attraction in the latest attack on Maldon's Prom Park. The amusement centre in the park has been targeted twice by thieves in the last week. And in one incident they stole the generator used to inflate the bouncy
Police have launched an appeal for witnesses after two young men were robbed at knifepoint in Pitsea. The two victims were walking along an alleyway by the High Road, Pitsea, when they were approached by a man asking for money for cigarettes. Anyone with
Corringham's Paralympics star Danny Crates has become the European amputee 400m champion. Crates, 28, was crowned in Holland after setting a new personal best of 50.23 seconds in the final. The Thurrock Harrier streaked ahead of top rival Sebastien Bach
Essex spent the day in the field on Sunday as Australia settled for a draw to get in batting practice ahead of the First Test. There had been expectation the visitors to the County Ground would declare at lunch giving Essex a second innings. But despite
Southend High for Boys has every right to call itself the top athletics school in the country following an unprecedented double victory in the English Schools' Track and Field Cup Final at Basildon's Gloucester Park. The school came out on top in both
The girls of St Hilda's, Imperial Avenue, Westcliff, have proved themselves tops in track and field. In the Independent Schools' Association's national finals they won three first places through Sam Collinson (1.27m high jump), Charlotte Lafferty (24.50m
A 27-year-old woman was airlifted to Oldchurch Hospital with serious injuries after the car in which she was a passenger collided with a van at an Aveley road junction. The accident occurred at around 1.30pm on Saturday when a white Renault Master van
A proposed European Union clampdown could be the final straw for a road haulage industry which is already buckling under pressure. Rocketing diesel prices and driver shortages are already crippling hard-pressed Essex hauliers, they claimed today (Tuesday
A bid to boost funding at Colchester Sixth Form College will today (Tuesday) be made in Parliament. The move to hold a special debate in the House of Commons follows revelations that the amount of cash per pupil given to the town's four sixth form providers
A naked man pursued a female horserider as she made her way along a country road close to Wickford at around 1pm on Saturday. The woman was riding her horse along Hawks Wood Road when the man approached her and then ran after her as she tried to make
An elephant at Colchester Zoo has become the first in Britain to become pregnant via artificial insemination. Tanya has lived at Colchester Zoo since 1984, and after undergoing insemination treatment earlier this yer is now tree months pregnant, zoo bosses
Former Canon Lionel Webber has admitted misleading the builders of Basildon's belltower with nearly £2m in bounced cheques. And he has told a court hearing into his tangled financial affairs that he now regrets ever having joined the church. Mr Webber
Essex education authority has launched an action plan aimed at tackling 11 recommendations for improvements made by education watchdog Ofsted, the Office for Standards in Education. After a three-week inspection last autumn, Ofsted concluded that "Essex
Vandals caused around £1,000 of damage after smashing wing mirrors on eight cars in a Westcliff street. The cars, all parked in Westborough Road between Brightwell Avenue and West Road, were damaged sometime between midnight and 2am on Sunday. Converted
Two men were robbed and beaten in a sustained attack at Frinton beach. The 24-year-old victims were approached as they sat on the seafront at the bottom of Connaught Avenue. Det Con Mark Youngs, of Clacton CID, said the pair were robbed of £60, cigarettes
A pensioner has died from injuries he suffered after an accident on his bike. Harold Hart, 70, of Mason Road, Clacton, was riding his green bicycle on Bromley Road towards Ardleigh, on June 20, when the incident happened. Police are appealing for witnesses
Visitors to Southend lifeboat station got to see some real action during an open day - when crews were called away to rescue stranded teenagers. Scores of residents and tourists trekked to the end of the pier during the weekend to see the work of the
Hundreds of letters have been sent out to villagers resurrecting divides over a controversial housing development that was axed months ago. Wickham Bishops Parish Council submitted a planning application for 26 homes for the village but in August, 2000
A five-year-old girl walked miles alone along a beach after getting lost. The girl had been on an outing with her Sunday school on Hipkins Beach at Walton when she went missing, just after 1.30pm on Saturday. A group including her mother and wheelchair-bound
A soldier is set to be kicked out of the Army for hitting a woman with a bottle. Benjamin Rhodes did not realise he was holding the bottle at the time he hit the woman, and a court heardhow he would be dismissed from the services if he was jailed. But
Four young Echosport readers will be getting top tips on how to hammer their opponents in the coming soccer season. For the quartet have all won prizes of coaching on the West Ham in the Community summer football courses being staged at Ford Sports and
Maldon Tourist Information Centre may not be moving to the King's Head Centre after all. Earlier this year councillors had given the go-ahead to move the centre from its current position in Coach Lane. But chief executive Steve Packham said a report will
Two great wins on the first day of the pairs competition at the Personal Touch sponsored Southend Men's Open Bowls Tournament were music to the ears of Hadleigh's Lewis Walker and superbly named playing partner Albert Hall. The duo, with no disrespect
Heybridge Swifts striker Kris Lee is a week into pre-season training with Nationwide League Division Two side Cambridge United and is in the best shape of his life. Lee, 22, is training with United in a bid to earn a professional contract. "The first
Southend United chiefs are negotiating an extension on their Roots Hall lease amid a revamp of their plans for a new stadium at Fossetts Farm. Blues directors Ray Osborne and Frank Van Wezel revealed to Echosport that: Southend's Fossetts Farm stadium
ESSEX CARRIERS 149-6 EASTWOOD 153 (Eastwood won by 4 runs) Carriers' opener Steve Rogers battled to 73 not out but still saw his side pipped by four runs in this Reefers 90 league encounter at Belfairs Park. Eastwood reached their 153 total with Patel
A company has been fined £6,000 after a sulphur dioxide leak meant four workers were sent to hospital. Bairds Malt Limited, of Station Road, Witham, which malts barley, admitted three charges brought by the Health and Safety Executive at Witham Magistrates
The thunder of tiny feet will be heard after Colchester Zoo's Tanya the African elephant gives birth. Twenty-year-old Tanya was artificially inseminated on March 1. The father is the zoo's bull elephant Tembo. Curator Anthony Tropeano said today Tanya
Witnesses are needed to a vicious robbery in which a 36-year-old man was left with a punctured lung. The man was stabbed in the back in Springfield Drive, Westcliff, by robbers who stole his £150 mobile phone. Police have only just released details of
A brave duo have spoken of their terrifying ordeal after a robber walked into a convenience store and wielded a carving knife. Student Shelley Moles was stacking up papers at Lacey's, in Kents Hill Road, Benfleet, at around 9.45pm on Thursday when the
Have-a-go heroes, one a 77-year-old woman, stood up to criminals in three separate incidents. A pensioner was shopping in Sainsbury's at Tollgate, Stanway, when one of two females, thought to be in their teens, tried to snatch her handbag. But the woman
Seven protesters were arrested after a carnival and demonstration against genetically modified crops near Wivenhoe. But organisers of the carnival against the crop on Saturday say the event was an otherwise peaceful affair aimed at reminding people they
One man died and two were seriously injured in a spate of accidents on mid-Essex roads. An 18-year-old man from Braintree was taken to Broomfield Hospital, Chelmsford, after he fell from his bicycle early on Sunday morning. The accident happened as three
Essex-based accountancy firm Baker Tillky has grown by 170 per cent in the past five years. A 13 per cent rise in fee income helped boost growth for the firm, which had a £79.2 million turnover for the 2000 / 2001 financial year. Baker Tilly has nearly
Young Benfleet sprint star Katie Flaherty is celebrating her first ever call-up to the Great Britain athletics squad. The 15-year-old Basildon AC athlete will run in the 200m for the Britain and Ireland team at the European Youth Olympics in Spain on
One of the Essex and Suffolk Border League's leading soccer clubs has been saved at the 11th hour - with help from the Evening Gazette. St Johns FC, of Clacton, held an emergency meeting in a bid to fill vital positions on the committee. The alternative
More than 60 organisations and firms took part in Colchester Signpost's third biennial conference. Signpost, the town's resource centre for the unemployed, hosted the conference at its headquarters at the Wilson Marriage Centre. The day-long conference
Southend Athletic Club, who gained promotion last season, won their first ever Southern Men's League division one match when they triumphed at Croydon. There were no stars in the seasiders' line-up - just a superb team effort that ensured Southend made
Young Southend tennis player Matthew Pearce made a name for himself at the LTAEast Region Junior County Tournament in Norwich. The 10-year-old, who plays at Southend Leisure and Tennis Centre, came third in the regional event. Matthew beat other junior
Ipswich Town boss George Burley has confirmed the club are in talks with former Norwich City shot-stopper Andy Marshall. Marshall, rated as one of the best keepers outside of the Premiership, is seen as an ideal replacement for the Blues' England star
A ground-breaking identity card scheme is being launched this week by a group to combat under-age drinking. More than 30 pubs and clubs are part of Colchester's Pubwatch scheme, most of them in the town centre. Pubwatch will start issuing its own identity
Premier Division The season reached the halfway stage on Saturday and High Roding maintained their lead at the top with their seventh win of the summer. They made 286 for five at Hatfield Peverel who had no answer to Danny Rowe who hit an unbeaten 133
Finger-lickin' good! Toni Czogalik, two, from Canvey, was one of hundreds to tuck into cooling ice-creams during the Castle Point show. Older youngsters had the chance to take their first driving lessons while tired fathers enjoyed a traditional ale in
Shoebury Park 127 Trinity 119-6 (Shoebury won by eight runs) Shoebury Park retained their Active KO Cup in the Sirco Southend Evening Cricket League after a close-run final with Trinity. On a perfect summer's night at Garon Park, Trinity were made to
Are you entering a non-smoking pub? You may soon be able to find out as Maldon district pubs are being urged to display signs stating whether they have non-smoking facilities. With it being illegal to smoke in public places in some parts of America, landlords
Former Canon Lionel Webber has admitted misleading the builders of Basildon's belltower with nearly £2m in bounced cheques. And he has told a court hearing into his tangled financial affairs that he now regrets ever having joined the church. Mr Webber
Two separate homes in north Essex have been damaged after runaway cars crashed into them. In Colchester, a High Woods house faces partial demolition after an automatic car crashed into it. The elderly home owners, who were just feet away from the impact
Maldon Promotions Group is offering £100 to any organisation which would promote it in a float in the town's carnival next month. Town centre manager, Marion Wells said they are interested in any voluntary group, school or pre-school who would include
Basildon AC's Rob Smith warmed up for the weekend's British under-20 championships with second spot in the British Milers Club 1,500m in Solihull. The highly-rated young distance runner, from Billericay, finished second in the B race in a time of 3:50
The captain of Colchester United's glorious FA Cup squad of 1948 and former manager of Halstead Town has died. Bob Curry, died at his home in Halstead last Saturday. He was 82. He was born in Gateshead, County Durham, and upon leaving school was signed
Two players were missing when Colchester United's footballers reported back to Layer Road for pre-season training yesterday (Monday). Striker Steve McGavin and midfielder-cum-defender Aaron Skelton were both absent. But there was better news concerning
The days of merry olde England came to life as crowds flocked to Witham medieval fair. The fair, held at St Nicholas Church, Chipping Hill, Witham, on Saturday, raised funds for the upkeep of the church including installation of a pipe organ and redecoration
Police are appealing for witnesses following an arson attack that caused £30,000 in damage to the Bayleaf Indian takeaway restaurant in Ongar High Street. The incident, which took place between 11pm on Thursday and 3.45am the next morning, resulted in
Children from nine Basildon district junior schools got a taste of the national summer sport at a kwik cricket festival. Kingswood, Willows and Greensted sent two teams each and there was one from Bardfield, Merrylands, South Green, Rydene, Vange and
A builder whose van was vandalised in his own driveway has offered a reward to catch those responsible. John Moody said more than £3,500 worth of damage had been caused to his Ford Transit van. Scratch marks had been left of the bonnet and sides and tyres
A development of six homes and garages in Mile End, Colchester, has been approved despite the opposition of nearby residents. The scheme for Turner Road and land next to 13 Thornwood was given the go-ahead by Colchester councillors. The council received
Motorist Lindsay McIntee left Southend Magistrates' Court in tears when she failed to convince justices she got drunk after deserting her car. McIntee, of Waarden Road, Canvey, was found guilty of drink driving and banned from the road for two years.
Health officials from the Port of London were today (Tuesday) in hot water after a serious blunder over the south Essex cockle ban. On June 8, fishermen were forbidden from catching shellfish - including cockles, mussels, oysters and clams - in six fishing
