Warwickshire Golf
Men's 1sts Team v Worcestershire - Match Report
Team Representing Warwickshire:
Rob Bardsley (Moor Hall)
Dan Bardsley (Moor Hall)
Fin Stokes (Maxstoke Park)
Seb Cave (Bramcote)
Warren Bladon (Kenilworth)
Steve Creed (Stratford-on-Avon)
Harrison Long (Moor Hall)
Joel Smith (Stratford-on-Avon)
Darryl Gwilliam (The Warwickshire)
Gary Skipp (Robin Hood)
The second 1st Team fixture of the year was a big one with the opponents being Worcestershire. A team that had also won their first league match of the year. So, we arrived at Robin Hood Golf club knowing a win would give us a great chance of capturing the league title this year. The weather was kind to us again, and the course was playing well, as always at Robin Hood.
Getting the team underway in the morning foursomes were Warren Bladon & Seb Cave. The pair were off to a fast start with a 2up lead early doors. They didn't let their opponents back in and eased to a relatively comfortable 2&1 victory.
The second match saw the Bardsley brothers partake in what could possibly be the most entertaining (for all the wrong reasons) foursomes match of the year. The match went back and forth with both teams holding the lead throughout the match. In the end, the Worcestershire pair won 16 &17 to go 1up and retained the lead on the last hole to win the match. Warwickshire 1 - 1 Worcestershire.
Match 3 was played at a high level, with Darryl Gwilliam & Fin Stokes succumbing to plenty of birdies from the Worcestershire opponents. The match ended on 15 with a 4&3 win for Worcestershire.
The next match to finish was match 5. Home player Gary Skipp played with Steve Creed, and the home advantage (paired with some great golf) led to an easy 6&4 win. Unfortunately, an injury to Gary Skipp whilst hitting an approach shot in the morning could prove to be a deciding factor in the afternoon.
The last match on course was Joel Smith & Harrison Long. A match that was close all the way but unfortunately finished with Warwickshire losing another match down 18.
Morning score Warwickshire 2 - 3 Worcestershire.
In what has become familiar territory for Warwickshire, we headed out in the afternoon trailing from the morning. However, wins from our top 3 players Seb Cave(2&1), Rob Bardsley(4&3) and Darryl Gwilliam(4&3) meant that we had the lead. In match 4, Daniel Bardsley had to retire meaning an early win for the Worcestershire man. Score now Warwickshire 5 - 4 Worcestershire.
Next up was the in-form Fin Stokes. Unfortunately, on this occasion, he was up against someone in the form of his life. 6/7 birdies on the front 9 meant Fin found himself 6 down at the turn. A mini fight back wasn't enough, and Fin ended up losing 5&4. The overall match now tied.
Joel Smith then gained revenge on his opponent from the morning with a 3&2 win, meaning Warwickshire took the lead in the match. However, the matches still on course didn't look in great shape, so it was going to be another tight one.
The 4 matches left out there were Harrison Long, Warren Bladon, Gary Skipp and Steve Creed. Steve Creed was the only one of the 3 with a lead, so having him at No.10 could prove vital if the match went the distance.
Gary Skipp was struggling physically from his morning injury. A swollen knee meant he was struggling to even walk. The team had written him when 5 down with 9 to play but back-to-back birdies got him back in the match. Meanwhile, Harrison Long lost his match on the 16th green 3&2, meaning Worcestershire tied the match 6 - 6.
Shortly after, Gary Skipp's valiant effort came to an end meaning we were 7 -6 down, needing both the remaining matches on course to win. Warren Bladon was AS with 5 to play and his opponent was refusing to give him any chance to get ahead, rolling in putts from 6-8 feet for halves on 14, 15 & 17. In between that, he won the 16th, meaning Worcestershire went down the last with a 1up lead. The less said about the last hole the better, with 1 big error from both players, leading to a halved hole, meaning Warren lost the match 1down which meant Worcestershire had secured the overall win. Steve Creed then followed up the 18th and won his match down the last. Unfortunately, we'd come up just short with the final score Warwickshire 7 - 8 Worcestershire.
Our next match is against Shropshire & Herefordshire at Bridgnorth. With the league still all to play for, a big win could prove valuable.
Rob Bardsley
County Captain
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