A boy was airlifted to hospital yesterday after injuring his neck playing with friends during a rugby tournament in Thame.

Two other boys were also injured in games at the Chinnor Rugby Club Mini Rugby Festival and taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.

Oxfordshire Ambulance Trust said the 11-year-old boy, who was a member of a Cheltenham Rugby Club team, was taken by air ambulance to Stoke Mandeville Hospital, near Aylesbury, suffering from an injury to his neck.

The trust said the injury was not said to be serious and the decision to use an air ambulance was taken because all road ambulances in the area were busy at the time.

The injury happened at about 12.30pm yesterday. Chinnor RFC's under-sevens coach Malcolm Ayers said: "Some boys, who were not playing at the time, were messing about on the sidelines.

"They were just killing time, chasing each other around. The lad who got injured was tackled by his mates from behind.

"Fortunately we have two orthopaedic surgeons who are members of the club who attended to the lad very quickly."

Junior section chairman Andy Seaton added: "Conditions were difficult for rugby yesterday, but at all levels the game is played with safety in mind, especially children."

The exact nature of the other two boys' injuries was not known, but neither was thought to be seriously hurt.