Having been eliminated from the County Cup in the 1975-76 season against Oxford University Greyhounds and again in 1984-85 by Oxford by the "away side win' rule if a match was drawn, Banbury looked forward to a semi-final spot when they drew 19-19 away to Oxford. Not so. On checking with the rule book, it transpired that the rules had been changed and the team scoring most tries in a drawn game would go through.

That was the first of the "moving goalposts' disappointments. Then at the end of the season, having avoided the two relegation places in South West Two, they were still relegated!

Maidenhead, who were relegated from National League Four South were indirectly the cause of Banbury's demise.

Some genius at Twickenham had decided that Maidenhead, a town 30 miles from London, should, having been relegated from National League South, now join South West One and enjoy the delights of the Devon and Cornwall countryside rather than the minimal travel in London and South East One League. This baffling move had a knock on effect all the way down the leagues in the eastern region of the South West Leagues.

Littlemore was another Oxfordshire club to suffer when they, like Banbury, thought they had done enough to avoid relegation from Bucks and Oxon One.

The third instance of "moving goalposts' was, thankfully, a happier one with outline planning permission being granted for residential development on the Oxford Road ground which raised hopes of the club being able to purchase land at Bodicote to move the goalposts, literally, along with a new clubhouse and four pitches.

Sadly one of the club's founder members Harold Sanderson would not see the realisation of this dream. Harold, better known as Sandy, the owner of County Garages passed away at the age of 88.

With the Oxford Road ground up for sale, the club set about trying to generate as much income as possible from the ground during the close season. It hosted Fete 91, car boot sales, a square dancing convention and even the Hungarian State Circus.

While the dancing seemed to escape any controversy, the circus was not quite so lucky and the animal rights supporters set up a picket line outside the main entrance.

Banbury RFC was on the fringe of these protests, but it was in the front line in the news and letters columns of the "Banbury Guardian' during the next two years with what was to become a controversial selling of its ground and move to a new location.

Nevertheless in September 1991 Cherwell District Council approved the change of use of the proposed Bodicote ground from agricultural land to recreational use. This was despite a petition signed by 101 Bodicote residents.

One objector went so far as to say, "Rugby Clubs by definition will attract to the area a certain class of people which will have a detrimental effect on the peace and tranquillity of the village."

Cherwell Council fortunately did not share that view and approved a grant of £30,000 to assist the club in its move.

A slump in the housing market and the consequential reduction in residential land prices, were, however, causing concern to Rob Jones and the Relocation Committee, with doubts creeping in whether the move was still financially viable.

Due to the recession, the value of the land had halved in the three years the scheme had been under discussion and the move still had to gain final approval of the members.

But with the ever-growing expansion of the mini and junior sections, a solution had to be found.

Away from the controversy surrounding the relocation, the club was to have an exceptional playing season, although a string of defeats in the first third of the matches gave no indication of this.

The team came with a late run, however, and with four league matches left it was a three horse race for the title between Windsor, Aylesbury and Banbury. The season went to the wire with a final league game against challengers Windsor who opened the scoring with a penalty from Andy, son of TV personality Michael Parkinson. Dave Hebden may not have had such a famous dad, but he was a celebrity in his own right with a couple of penalties from him and a conversion of a Dave Allen try, topped with an opportunist drop goal from full back Michael Thomas, which were enough to give Banbury a speedy return to South West Two League.

And there were more celebrations to come with a victory over Oxford in the semi-final of the Floodlit Cup and a 26-12 final win against Aylesbury.

Success was harder to come by in 1992-93, the club settling for a mid table spot in their comeback season, but the club was hitting the headlines for other reasons on the news pages of the local paper.

News had filtered through of two major retailers interested in the Oxford Road site in the hope the residential planning permission might be changed to retail use.

The interest led to a clever "Store Wars" headline in the "Guardian' and a bulging letters page.

A national protest group, known as the National Sensitive Sites Alliance offered advice to anyone against the scheme, while one lady correspondent expressed concern that the ornamental trees and shrubs proposed around the project "could hide sex attackers and muggers". Twenty students from the North Oxfordshire College and School of Art joined in the discussion saying they could not live on air, and where could they buy the necessities of life if there was no Sainsbury in the town centre. Another letter suggested it was all a Masonic plot so that there would be more car parking for the Freemasons near their Lodge if Sainsbury moved from their town centre site!

So the debate continued, and it would be the end of the year before a decision was reached.

Meanwhile the relocation committee, having looked at several different schemes, had arrived at the conclusion that the model for the clubhouse at the new site at Bodicote, should be based very closely on the Newcastle Gosforth Club's. A coach trip was arranged for members to see for themselves, and while they were at it, play an Old Nicks game against Newcastle Veterans.

Sure enough, the end of the year did see the final details of the sale of the Oxford Road Ground after 48 years of ownership.

Permission was finally given for Sainsbury to build their new store, and the former agricultural land at Manor Farm was to become the site of the new Bodicote Park, home to Banbury Rugby Club.

Contracts could now be signed, and Banbury RFC was at last on the move.

Chairman of the relocation committee Rob Jones stated, "We have the new ground and must implement exciting plans for making Banbury a focal point for rugby over a wide area, building on the excellent youth and mini rugby structure which has emerged over the last few years."

He emphasised, "There would be no move away from the traditional club values and the principles which have guided the club to its present position," adding, "The members' voluntary participation in running the playing, coaching and administrative side are the essential ingredients, making rugby the envy of other sports."

He remembered too the club's debt to the Clark family from whom the ground was originally bought, particularly the contribution of the late George Clark, a former club president, captain and long standing committee member.

All the excitement away from the playing pitch did not rub off on many of the games, however!

The club had a relegation battle on its hands for much of the season and the uncertainty went to the last game where a 3-3 draw with Penryn was just enough to keep the club in South West Two for another year.

Banbury did get to the County Final for the sixth time where a Henley win was thought to be a foregone conclusion. Win they did 13-12, but the all-conquering Henley were given the fright of their lives.

Banbury Under 11s avenged their senior's defeat when they overcame Henley 28-7 in their County Final, while other County successes came to the Under 15s who beat Grove and the Under 10s who also beat their Henley counterparts, while the Under 13s were runners-up to Bicester.

There was certainly plenty to write about in the newly launched high quality newsletter "In Touch' edited by Steve Wyatt. Sadly the deaths of club stalwarts George Clarke and Gerald Webb were reported, and there was news too of the annual dinner where guest speaker was England and British Lion David Duckham.

So it was goodbye to the Oxford Road Ground after nearly five decades, the last function there being the Tea Ladies Dinner where they were thanked for all their behind the scenes work in feeding an endless stream of voracious rugby players.

Before the 1994-95 season the club made a significant appointment of Director of Rugby - Peter Payne - with the wide ranging portfolio of rugby administrator/coaching co-ordinator/commercial manager.

With the club "homeless' for the season, his first task was to find playing fields for all the different levels at the club from 1st XV through to Mini Rugby.

Banbury School was to be the temporary home for the senior teams with Warriner School and Bloxham School playing host to the juniors and minis. Floodlit training facilities were to be at Banbury United with an office provided at Banbury School's Ruskin House for Peter. Banbury Cricket Club at Grange Road was to be available for after-match socialising and a watering hole after training.

This nomadic life was to exist until the opening of the new Bodicote Park ground on November 5th 1995.

While survival in South West Two was to be the priority, planning for the move was also critical, with advertising and sponsorship to be sold to enable the club to finance itself for the exciting future ahead.

Juggling this planning alongside the day-to-day running of the club was an immense job. On the one hand, Roger Croft was busying himself planning for the grand opening, Bob Mitchelmore was heading up the rugby development committee seeking ideas from all and sundry, while Peter Payne, skipper Jamie Briggs and president Jon Adams had to make sure things carried on as normally as possible.

By virtue of being runners-up to the already qualified Henley in the previous season's County Final, the club had qualified for the first round of the Pilkington Cup, and financially this was a great boost to much-needed funds. The cash flow was short-lived, however, for an away game to the Cornish champions Launceston and a 38-3 defeat meant a speedy return to the bread-and-butter South West Two.

There they struggled for much of the year, finishing third from bottom with only four wins to their credit. The only success came on their end of season tour to the Isle of Man when they came home with the Mylchreest Sevens Tournament.

Meanwhile work had started on both the new clubhouse and the playing areas, one anonymous correspondent in the "Guardian' describing the clubhouse's steel frame as "a monster dwarfing entirely the approach to the village of Bodicote and an eyeful for those houses unfortunate enough to look out on it'.

Who would have thought that all the club was trying to do was provide a worthy home for the town's rugby?

Another "name and address supplied' letter complained that the building could be seen from Middleton Cheney and was "an eyesore".

Making matters worse, contractors cut through a communications cable by mistake, and this too brought the wrath of local residents and the media onto the Rugby Club.

Punctuated by all this, work was slower than expected and it was obvious the facilities would not be ready in time for the start of the following season.

And sadly too, before the start of the season the club lost two popular ex-presidents with the deaths of Sam Kilby and Jim Mitchelmore. Eric Taylor, a life vice president and founder member who played in Banbury's very first game, and Jim Thewlis, remembered by many older members, had also passed away.