FORMER England World Cup winning rugby boss Sir Clive Woodward evidently thinks very little of his North Yorkshire roots.

The former Easingwold Grammar School student devotes barely a page of his six-inch thick autobiography Winning! to his time in our beloved county.

Sir Clive says he was being looked at by York City and Everton before his dad, a squadron leader at RAF Linton-on-Ouse, decided that playing football was no way for an officer's son to behave and promptly packed him off to a naval school in Wales. Having seen City recently, Woodward senior probably had a point.

Anyway, Sir Clive's book is part autobiography and 90 per cent business manual. We had to take a course in small business just to understand the flow-charts.

The crux is, rather confusingly, that when you win you can lose, and when you lose you can win. It's all about a higher purpose or Winning! as Sir Clive puts it. Understand?

If it hasn't got an exclamation mark, it's not important in Woodward's world. So presumably, Clive - given our rather dismal display Down Under last summer - there's also losing and...

STILL on a sporting theme, an observant colleague spotted 80s snooker legend Terry Griffiths during the UK Snooker championships dining in the style to which he is accustomed - snacking on a sausage sandwich at Jenny's in Walmgate.

Griffiths, never known for his swift play on the green baize, apparently adopts a familiar style when it comes to eating lunch. Luckily for its staff, Jenny's closes before 2am.

WATCH out for the large Volkswagen camper van which has set up residence in Ratcliffe Street, near Burton Stone Lane. Stuck on the back, in letters so large no one could miss, is the missive: "This is not an abandoned vehicle".

THOSE drinkers are an educated bunch at the Three Cups, in Stamford Bridge. Not content with fine wine and liqueurs, they are being asked to turn their hand to poetry as well.

Landlord Chris Jones wants to bring out his guests' creative sides by composing a book of poems, limericks and stories about life at the inn.

He has put a collection of pens and paper by the fireside, hoping the roaring flames might provide some inspiration for those of his visitors with an urge to muse.

"As the nights draw in, people tend to sit around and be a bit more contemplative, so I thought we could tap into their creative side," Chris said.

"It's nice and cosy at the inn by the fireside, and the perfect place to settle down and write. Once guests have written their poetry, I will cut out the best ones and add them to a book which will be available on the bar."

We're particularly looking forward to seeing some of the late night efforts.

BLINDINGLY obvious fact of the week: Tesco Value jars of peanut butter feature the following allergy advice - "contains nuts".

Updated: 09:09 Tuesday, November 30, 2004