THE Army Under-23 side made the worst possible start to the defence of their Inter-Services football crown with a crushing defeat at the hands of the Royal Air Force. Playing at a rain-swept Aldershot Military Stadium, the below-par Reds crumbled to a 5-1 loss as the airmen ruthlessly punished the home team’s defensive frailties. After a cagey opening period the RAF began to assert control and their mounting pressure was rewarded when SAC Gary Lowe fired home shortly after the half-hour mark. A stunning 20-yard free kick from midfielder SAC Lewis Brownhill doubled the visitor’s advantage on the stroke of half time and when AC Ben Fitzmartin scored with a well-directed header midway through the second period the match was as good as over. Sloppy defending by the Army gifted AC Lee Seller an easy fourth before Sig Jay Macanespie (R Signals, pictured above) restored some pride with a tap-in. Seller completed the rout with another strike at the death. The Reds take on the Royal Navy at Portsmouth in their second fixture on March 2. See sport gallery for more pictures.

THE south Moroccan desert awaits Maj Drew Craig (RE) when he takes part in April’s Marathon Des Sables.
Held over six days, the endurance event challenges athletes to run 156 miles while carrying all their personal belongings and food in a backpack.
Craig hopes to raise £10,000 to be divided between Help for Heroes and The Euan MacDonald Centre for Motor Neurone Disease Research.
To sponsor him visit www.rocklore.co.uk/mds_index.htm

THE London District TA and Army Boxing Club raised more than £20,000 for a variety of Service charities at their annual dinner.
More than 300 guests, including ring legend Lloyd Honeyghan, attended the event at Whitehall Palace in London where Army fighters went head-to-head with competitors from the Fitzroy Lodge and Foley Boxing Clubs and gave some spirited performances in a 5-2 defeat.

THE Combined Services Powerlifting Championships will be held at Sir
John Moore Barracks in Folkestone
on March 31.
Novices and first-time competitors are welcome to take part and the closing date for entries is March 25.
For more information about the event, contact Steve Maden on 01303 225503 or 07968 805650.

ENDURANCE athletes Capt Tony Ireland (RLC) and SSgt Phil Marland (MPGS) will travel to South Africa this month to pit their wits against the Cape Epic mountain bike race.
The 800km off-road challenge will see the duo cycling across the country’s outback to raise money for ABF The Soldiers’ Charity and Help for Heroes.
To sponsor them visit www.justgiving.com/the_epic_ride_abf or www.justgiving.com/the_epic_ride_h4h

PREMIERSHIP giants Chelsea are donating 50 free tickets to serving personnel ahead of their Champions League clash with Inter Milan.
The match on March 16 will mark the return of former manager Jose Mourinho to Stamford Bridge as the two teams battle it out for a place in the quarter-finals of Europe’s premier club football competition.
Chelsea is making the offer as part of the Tickets for Troops initiative, which is providing serving soldiers with free entry to a range of sports and entertainment events across the UK.
For more information visit www.ticketsfortroops.org.uk

NOVICE and intermediate windsurfers are being invited to a week-long training course at Thorney Island next month.
The sessions include skill-based coaching clinics, a look at race coaching techniques and help with equipment tuning and will run from April 12 to 14.
For more information call Jon Metcalfe on 07768 988258 or email asawsm@btconnect.com

INJURED soldier Pte Danny Hallsworth (5 Scots) had the honour of presenting the man of the match award at last month’s Six Nations showdown between Scotland and France.
Forward Imanol Harinordoquy received the accolade after inspiring the French to an 18-9 win at Murrayfield stadium.
Hallsworth, who was injured in Afghanistan and is currently based at the Personnel Recovery Centre in Edinburgh, said: “I was really honoured to present the medal even though it was a Frenchman that eventually won it.
“But I agree with the decision, he was the best player on the day.”