Royals take a big step towards another final

An intriguing second northern derby of the season saw many twists and turns on Monday at L’Ancresse and was closer than the final scoreline might suggest, but the 19-10 win has put Royals in a commanding position with a 16-point lead at the top of the table.

The fact that four out of the five rubbers went the distance was a much better indication of how well the two sides were matched, though, rather than the nine-point margin of victory and the first foursomes clash out on the course put down a marker for how hard fought each would be on a day when every player earned at least a point for their team.

Royals captain Tom Le Huray must have thought he and playing partner Rory McKenna were in for a relatively straightforward evening as they won three of the first four holes against Tom Pattimore and Will Davidson and the gap was an even more comfortable 4 up through 12.

However, the L’Ancresse pairing moved up a gear and birdied the 13th, 16th and 17th to take the match down the last where, from just off the left-hand side of the green, Davidson was not far away from holing his chip. When it failed to drop, though, it ensured that Le Huray and McKenna had finally seen off their gallant opponents.

It was a similar story in the other foursomes rubber as Dave Jeffery and Wayne Harwood earned another win for the Royals, having encountered stubborn resistance from Martellos captain Steve Mahy and Sean Mills.

When Jeffery was the first player to earn a nearest-the-pin bonus point at the 12th having slung in a typically big draw onto the green, it helped put the home duo 2 up.

That was also the score as they came up the 17th, but Mahy and Mills capitalised on a mistake from their opponents to win the hole with a par and guarantee a losing bonus point at the least.

The drama then ramped up on the last where, despite Mills missing the green to the right and Jeffery finding the heart of the putting surface, Mahy came within a whisker of chipping in.

With that par conceded by the Royals, Harwood’s tentative birdie putt came up 3ft short to leave Jeffery with a knee-trembler to clinch victory, but the Island men’s team captain held his nerve to roll it into the centre of the cup.

But while the Royals took the spoils in the foursomes, the Martellos held the upper hand in the singles – albeit only just.

Fresh from finding out that he will be facing Richard Ramskill in the Channel Islands Championship final, Danny Blondel knew he would have his work cut out against long-time Island teammate and fellow four-time Guernsey champion Mick Marley.

The reigning title holder edged ahead early on and led for a decent proportion of their match, but Marley did not go away, a chip in for birdie on the 14th bringing him back to all-square.

A cracking approach into 16 set up Blondel for a birdie that put him ahead once more, but he then three-putted from long range on 17, although just how his par attempt did not drop is anyone’s guess.

Given all that had gone before, it seemed only right that both players parred the last to finish with a half, although Blondel earned an extra point for his side thanks to finishing just 5ft inside his opponent for a nearest-the-point bonus on the seventh.

There was only a one point difference in the other singles, too, as Arthur Evans enjoyed a real ding-dong battle with Daniel Griggs.

The Martellos man came out on top, 2 up, having played some excellent golf and holed a good distance of putts, while Griggs earned three points in defeat with both nearest-the-pins together with his losing bonus for taking it to the last.

For much of the evening it looked as though the concluding fourball would go the distance as well.

The pairs took a ‘NTP’ each, with Dale Rutledge claiming one for the Royals on the seventh before Danny Bisson came up just a few inches of a hole in one at the 12th, and there was nothing to separate them in terms of score as they left that green.

But Rutledge and partner Jeremy Nicolle then upped the ante with birdies on the 13th, 14th and 16th, earning them victory over Bisson and Jake Marshall.