Hampshire Golf Team (left to right):Scott Gregory, Darren Walkley, Alan Mew, Martin Young, Steve Williams (County Captain), Mark Burgess, Barry Morgan (County President), Billy Watson, Tom Robson and Ben Wall.
SE Group League Final
The Warren Golf Club
Sunday 5th October 2014
Andrew Griffin reports from The Warren Golf Club..............
Hampshire lost out to Essex on Sunday at The Warren by 6.5 matches to 5.5.
Captain Steve Williams' plans for the weekend had been ripped up by two late withdrawals which forced him to promote North Hants' Billy Watson from reserve into the eight-man team at The Warren GC.
And an injury in a fall which left Royal Jersey's Gavin O'Neill seeking hospital treatment meant the Channel Islands champion could not fly to Southampton on Friday night to join up with the squad.
Luckily Williams was able to call up another former Hampshire captain, in the shape of Alan Mew, fresh from his debut for England in the Senior Home Internationals.
But the disruption caused by the loss of O'Neill and The Army's Haydn Reay, who pulled out with a reoccurrence of an ankle injury, meant two new foursomes partnerships had to be formed in practice on Saturday afternoon.
Although Rowlands Castle's Tom Robson and Martin Young from Brokenhurst Manor rattled off the first point with a 4&3 win over Essex captain Alex Woodward and Bobby Keeble, the remaining three foursomes were all decided on the 17th - with all three points won by the home side.
Corhampton's Scott Gregory, the beaten English Amateur finalist in August, and Hayling's Darren Walkley had been four down but fought back to lose by two holes.
Watson – winner of the English Junior Champion of Champions, at Woodhall Spa, two weeks ago – was sent out with Hayling's Ben Wall but they lost by the same margin and Mew and Burgess lost the 17th to go three down against Todd Clements and fellow veteran Mark Stones, who was also a late replacement in the Essex side.
Williams responded by sending out the big guns at the top of the order needing to quickly close the 3-1 lead Essex enjoyed over lunch.
Robson was too strong for Ricky Lee, winning 2&1 and Gregory and Young were in a race to get back to the clubhouse.
Gregory beat Arthur Leonard 4&3 and Young, who had been five up at one point, beat the hapless Keeble 4&3 to give Hampshire, Isle of Wight and the Channel Islands a 4-3 lead, playing in his seventh final since 1999, the only other time he had been on the losing side before.
Walkley's miserable weekend continued as the parkland layout failed to suit his game and May squared the match with a 3&2 win.
Williams was pacing the fairways keeping tabs on the bottom four matches and with Hampshire up in two and level in another, the fight-back was very much on.
Mew, a former European Tour and European Seniors Tour member had too much experience for Stones although he was taken down the last before claiming his point with a one up win.
Wall, 2 down after 11 against Woodward, then watched in horror as the Essex skipper thinned a chip on the 12th from 25 yards straight into the hole and having found sand off the tee short of the green on the short 13th, then holed his birdie putt from the front of the green. If the hole had not got in the way, it could have easily ended up half as far past. A disconsolate Wall then hit his iron to eight feet on the par three 14th only to miss the putt and watch Woodward scramble a par having overshot the green by 25 yards.
That information was soon relayed to Williams and if he ever felt it was not going to be his team's weekend, he then saw Watson miss a four-foot putt to win the hole and go in front on the 16th.
The Hampshire Junior champion then went one down after three-putting the 17th and even a birdie on the par five 18th was not good enough for a half with Essex's Gary Oliver also making birdie at the hole which gave Essex the title.
Burgess had surrendered the lead on the 12th and then endured a ding-dong battle with Todd Clements, who holed a crucial eight-footer on the 15th to go one up after the Hampshire ace had struck back with a 20-foot birdie on the 14th, having lost the 13th after finding tree trouble on the 12th to go one down.
By the time they walked off the 18th tee, Burgess' team-mates were gathered by the 18th green knowing the game was up, and despite their advantage in considerable strength in-depth over Essex, had to admit they had been outplayed on the day.
It was Hampshire's first defeat in the final since an embarrassing day at The Neville against B.B&O. back in 1999, after outright wins in 2000, 2002 and 2012 - plus two ties in 2001 and 2009.
Williams, who had sent his team off warning them to guard against complacency, said: “We fought hard in the afternoon but it was always going to be a tough task after losing the foursomes like that.
“I pay tribute to Essex's play and congratulate them on their victory. I know they were keen to beat us after our victory over them two years ago.”
ANDREW GRIFFIN
Golf Writer, Media and PR Consultant
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