If you leave Hereford and drive for twenty minutes through twisting country roads you climb up some undulating Herefordshire hills, patched with green deciduous woods and fields of sheep with fattening lambs until you eventually arrive at Herefordshire Golf Club.

The golf club itself is a well kept secret among Herefordians as it is tucked away in unspoilt countryside, which overlooks neighbouring valleys and in the distance Clee hill in Shropshire can be spotted.  With thanks to the Herefordshire Golf Club this fantastic course with a beautiful backdrop had kindly been donate to Spinal Research WMB for the day to raise money to help fund a cure for paralysis.

Although it looked like the heavens may open at any time, thirty-one teams of four entered the Team Stableford Competition. The first team teed off at 9am and the last team came through at 3.10pm. There were four prizes for the best team scores; golf bags kindly sponsored by Julian Parry, the club’s pro, golf clothing, golf umbrellas and other golf merchandise. There was also prizes for the longest drives and closest to the pin. On their return to the club house each team member enjoyed a delicious buffet prepared by the catering staff at the course.

A day like this wouldn’t happen without the myriad of volunteers who make it possible; we owe a huge vote of thanks to all those who helped out on that day – specifically Dorothy Johnson whose legendary scoring experience made our day much easier.  Sue Hart too - advised and assisted with everything all day long; Linda McKenzie was in her element – surrounded by admiring golfers, some of whom would have liked to take her back to Wales!  Ben Matthews and Heather Salisbury manfully stuck it out on the 13th encouraging players to take part in the Special Competition, whilst Neil Jenkins was a legend helping Colin on the first.  Last but not least – Chrissy Prydun who was just there helping with everything, but particularly the putting competition.  Without the input of volunteers, charity golf days wouldn’t be possible, so once again we would like to say a huge ‘THANK YOU!’ to everyone who assisted us.

Just over £4,000 was raised during the day. Colin and Val Javens who run Spinal Research WMB are absolutely delighted with the outcome.

‘We owe so much thanks to Herefordshire Golf Club, the participants, sponsors and all of our volunteers – with out them this fantastic outcome would not have been possible’ says, Val Javens, the event organiser.

The Royal Oak Suite at the Emirates Stadium was the venue for the 4th Cranfield Sportsman’s Dinner. Approximately 140 guests attended the evening and as they sipped their champagne they overlooked the famous Arsenal Football pitch. The Palm Court Trio, a wonderful wind instrument Band created an ambient atmosphere as the guests gathered during the Reception. The Trumpet sounded and guests were invited into dinner.

Professor Michael Osbaldeston, Director of Cranfield School of Management, gave the opening speech, portraying the history of the association between the Colin Javens Spinal Injury Trust and Cranfield’s MBA Students. He welcomed everyone to the evening prior to the beginning of the scrumptious three course dinner.

Colin’s short speech ended dinner and heralded the beginning of our Charity Auction. Philip Allwood, our esteemed auctioneer for the night, took to the stage to auction seventeen fantastic lots ranging from a holiday in the Seychelles to a tandem sky dive with the Red Devils. Philip’s delivery had the audience transfixed to each lot and the gathering were well entertained with his sharp wit – one of the many highlights of the night.

The hammer coming down for the last time was the cue for Richard Dunwoody, our keynote speaker to entertain our guests. Richard talked about his career in the saddle and of his recent conquest of ‘Shackelton’s route to the South Pole’. It was nothing short of inspirational.

Colin and Val would like to express their sincere thanks to Philip Allwood, Richard Dunwoody MBE and to everyone who supported the event or who donated a prize to the auction. They are also incredibly grateful for the ongoing support from Cranfield School of Management and in particular Vinayak Krishna and Philip Oh (MBA students 07/08) who have donated so much of their time to spearhead the organisation of this event, whilst undertaking a challenging MBA at Cranfield. The final total raised is still to be confirmed. Many thanks.