Warwickshire Golf
Mens 2nd Team v Derbyshire - Match Report
Men’s 2nd Team Defeated by Derbyshire
The 2023 season closed with our final league match away to Derbyshire at the magnificent Kedleston Park GC on Sunday 3rd September. Unfortunately Chris Staite had been “told” he had to work the day and he had asked me to take on the Captaincy duties on his behalf.
Due to unavailability in the 1sts squad we had 3 of our 2nd team stalwarts called up, but we still had a strong looking team:
Alex Smith Copt Heath
Alex Spencer Ladbrook Park
Chris Laird The Warwickshire
Jack Sharp Moor Hall
Karl Smith Handsworth
Lee Podmore Harborne
Lewis Watson Handsworth
Niall Collins Robin Hood
Paul Dakin Copt Heath
Rob Holland Moor Hall
The weather forecast was predicted to be the start of an “Indian Summer” and so it was to prove.
After the standard coffee and bacon rolls, the morning foursomes began. Our order was:
Chris & Karl
Jack & Rob
Alex Sm & Paul
Lewis & Niall
Alex Sp & Lee
After watching all the groups tee off I made my way to the back of the 5th green, buggy loaded with drinks, fruit and snacks in anticipation of the hot weather. Things were looking promising as the groups came through as we were up in 2, all square in 2 and just 1 down in the final game. Things then looked even healthier for the Bears after 11 holes as we were down in match 1 but up in all the other 4 games. This situation continued as we reached the 18th tee – we had lost match 1, won matches 2 and 5 and were 1 up in matches 3 and 4. Sadly we were to lose the 18th in both these matches so at lunch we were a little disappointed with only having the slenderest of 3-2 leads.
Notable positives from the morning:
Jack’s unbelievable recovery shot on the 15th – 162 yards through trees with cut to the heart of the green. Clearly this is something he is used to doing!
Lewis and Niall recovering from being down early doors to turning their match around against two of Derbyshire’s long-standing 2nd team players.
We still had a lead.
The singles went off with Chris in the lead as always (due to not only his ability, but also his desire to keep the pace of play moving). As a result, after watching the last pair tee off I made my way to the back of the 9th green to see Chris and his partner making their way up the hole. As the groups were coming through, it wasn’t great reading for the Bears as the matches stood as follows:
Chris 3 up
Jack 3 down (his opponent making 5 birdies in 8 holes)
Alex Sm 1 down
Karl all square
Rob 2 down
Paul 1 down
Niall 4 up
Alex Sp all square
Lewis all square
Lee 1 down
I gave pep talks, as well as further bottles of water/isotonic drinks, to all the players as they made their way from the 9th green to the 10th tee. The heat was starting to take its effect on the Bears as there were several red faces and necks! Things got very tight as the back 9 unfolded. Wins from both the Alexes and Niall along with a half from Chris meant we needed a further one and a half points to win or a point to halve.
Once again the focus fell on Lewis (our saviour at Shrewsbury) as the other games all went the way of Derbyshire. 1 up on the 15th tee he and Sam exchanged holes on 16th and 17th so it was still 1 up to the Bear on the par 5 17th. A magnificent 2 iron approach from Lewis to the back of the green was matched by Sam’s approach. Sam putted first and rolled his ball to inches from the hole for a gimme birdie. Sadly, Lewis’ putter was cold this time and his approach putt came up 5 feet short down the hill and his birdie attempt lipped out. On to the 18th all square. Sam managed a brilliant up and down from off the back of the green for a par meaning Lewis had to hole his 20 footer to halve the overall match. He ensured his ball had a chance, but as it rolled past the match was lost.
We had lost the singles 6.5 to 3.5 and the overall match by 8.5 to 6.5.
Afternoon notables:
Alex Spencer for discovering a very interesting way to play, and win, the 1st hole!
Chris for his approach shot on the 9th. 145 yards from the fairway bunker, uphill to an elevated green was an easy challenge as Lairdy hit his shot to “gimme” distance.
Alex Smith for turning his game round from being 1 down at the turn to winning 3&1 with his usual sublime golf.
Niall for completely dominating in his match.
Alex Spencer (again!) all square after 9, my pep talk in his ears and going on to win his next 5 holes to win the math 5&4!
And now, the usual thanks as follows:
To Dan and his Derbyshire team for playing the match in a fantastic spirit.
To Kedleston Park G.C. for their hospitality and letting us use their facilities - the course was in fantastic condition.
To Derbyshire Immediate Past President Cynthia for her company and hospitality throughout the day.
To the Warwickshire players for their great camaraderie and skill. This season didn’t turn out as we had hoped, but onwards and upwards for the 2024 season.
Neville Gardner
Acting 2nd Team Captain
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