Singles Matchplay - 1st Round

[Thu 26 Jun 08]

Brent Knoll Bowl 2008

[Mon 31 Mar 08]

The Old Cranleighans showed promising signs of form ahead of next week's Halford Hewitt winning the consolation salver at the Brent Knoll Bowl at Burnham and Berrow. After a first round loss against Clifton in appalling conditions the OCs powered to victory over a formidable Erratics side in the opening stage of the consolation salver 2½ - ½. Sunday morning proved to be far more benign and despite a late withdrawal by Andrew Cronk due to injury the team defeated the Old Blundellians 2-1. The deciding match was a tense affair and Whitty / Rosenberg managed to secure victory after a flawlessly played 19th hole.

Winning Squad - The Brent Knoll MORE >>

In the final the OCs had to face last year's nemesis Lloyds TSB, a side dominated by low handicappers and even a former pro. At the top Sweetland and Riddiford were up against it eventually succumbing on the 16th green. The situation at the back of the field was quite the opposite as the Whitty / Rosenberg pairing once again dominated their game eventually securing victory 4&3.

It was now all resting on the second pairing of Crane and Ferguson-Jones who were 1up playing the 18th hole. The bankers slotted home a fifteen foot putt to secure their par 4 leaving Ferguson-Jones a four footer to win the match. The gathered crowd assumed it to be a formality and the engraver had already commenced his work on the trophy. The ball, however, slipped past the left lip and the OCs were once again forced to suffer the agony of extra holes.

Both teams found the fairway off the tee although Ferguson-Jones had cleverly taken a little off his drive to ensure that the Crane was playing the second shot first. This proved to be crucial as a crisply struck 8-iron into a strengthening breeze finished six feet from the flag. The pressure was now firmly on Lloyds and their player thinned his iron through the green leaving a testing chip downwind with little green to work with. Inevitably they failed to get up and down and the OCs secured their first silverware at Burnham and Berrow for decades.

Squad - M Crane, A Cronk, A Janmohamed, M Riddiford, M Ferguson-Jones, O Rosenberg, T Sweetland, A Whitty.