After both our ladies Junior Cup and Challenge Cup teams won already this weekend it fell to Colm Mulcahy and Eddie Lonergan to manage their Barton Cup team to victory this afternoon.
With three matches away however, it was not going to be easy needless to say.
Our first pair out at home was the very experienced match winner Diarmaid MacGabhann who was paired with last years President’s Prize winner Declan Murray. This was a pair that was felt could be relied on with push came to shove and so it seemed as they turned two up, and looking in control of their match. Match play golf can be harsh of course and three losses on eleven, twelve and thirteen had the lads down for the first time in their match.
No such drama for our second pair of Collie Dunne & Steven Bourne. This new pairing obviously gelled well and won nine of the thirteen holes they played today, running out winners by a margin of 6&5.
Away from home, player manager Colm Mulcahy & Liam Moulton didn’t get off to the best of starts. Three down after three, they turned two down but lost eleven and twelve to go four down and, despite winning the fifteenth and sixteenth in a strong fight back lost their match 2&1.
One all….
Our second away pair of Chris Boylan & Rob Tierney had performed excellently away to Woodenbidge in the previous round, winning on the nineteenth and the team management sent them away once again today. They turned one up and a win on the tenth provided a bit of a cushion. They maintained their two hole lead with a series of halved holes in what had become a nip and tuck match but a loss on the fifteenth had our supporters on tender hooks. A win on the sixteenth restored their two hole lead however and put them dormie two up.
Our final pair of Ben Crowley & Gavin Nolan were having a ding dong match as all this unfolded around them. They turned all square, were still all square after twelve and once again after trading holes on the fifteenth and sixteenth.
While all this unfolded Diarmaid & Declan had regrouped, winning thirteen and fourteen. A loss on the fifteenth was followed by a win on the sixteenth to hold a slender one hole lead playing the sometimes treacherous seventeenth. As it happened it turned out to be treacherous for the home pair today and the four players stood on the eighteenth, as they had started on the first, all square. The hole was halved in pars and the players and spectators moved up the lane to the first tee for the sudden death playoff.
So here we are –
One point to each side, our remaining home match going to the nineteenth, dormie two up in one match away and all square through fifteen in the final match, also away. Diarmaid’s and Declan’s match result was definitely going to set the tone for the remainder of the tie. As it unfolded the pair were well up to the task and won the nineteenth with a par and this was closely followed by the deciding match win by Chris & Rob with a win on the seventeenth for a 2&1 victory and an overall tie win for Greystones. Ben & Gavin were one up playing the seventeenth when called in.
Many congratulations to all involved, a great win.
