2022 U18 Severnside Trophy

2022 U18 SEVERNSIDE TROPHY

It was the 50th anniversary of the Severnside Trophy which was held at Whitchurch Golf Club, Cardiff, the venue of the very first event held in 1972. The tournament is contested between Glamorgan, Gwent, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire and is a 7 man individual matchplay team event. The round - robin format takes place over 2 days with a match on the first afternoon followed by 2 matches on the final day with a maximum of 7 points available in each.

Following a 2 hour journey to Cardiff on Thursday morning our first match against Glamorgan was a difficult start. Although the games were tight on the front nine, the tougher back nine coupled with the developing wet conditions made scoring difficult and a strong home team gradually took control and eventually completed a 4.5 to 2.5 victory. There were wins from James Humphries and Philip Krone while James Ilsley was unlucky not to win his game but achieved a good half a point for the team.

The Gwent team were having difficulty fielding a full team and following our victory against them on Friday morning by 6-1 it would prove to be a void game, as it was for all the other counties matches against Gwent. This meant that the tournament was now a triangular between Worcestershire, Glamorgan and national finalists Gloucestershire. Due to our defeat the previous day and the withdrawal from the competition by Gwent, we could not now retain the Trophy we had won on the previous 2 occasions. Nevertheless, our last match in the afternoon would have a significant influence on which county would be crowned champions and a victory over national finalists Gloucestershire would be an impressive achievement.

James Ilsley and James Humphries continued to lead from the front as they had in each of the previous games and were impressive in achieving victories by 1 up and 5&4 respectively. In the remaining 5 matches the signs were not as encouraging but the last 2 holes proved to be important for Worcestershire. Elliot Jones, Dan Wakeman and George Stephens had suffered narrow defeats so it was down to captain Philip Krone and Tom Lennon, who were narrowly behind in their games, to fight back over the last few holes. Philip who had a tough match made a fantastic birdie on the 18th to halve his match which meant that Tom Lennon had to win his game to ensure that we did not lose a second match. He birdied 17 to go 1 up and a good decision to lay up after an indifferent tee shot on 18 proved significant as he was able to hit the green and 2 putt to halve the hole and win the match 1 up. This win ensured we avoided defeat and drew the match 3.5 to 3.5 and meant that Glamorgan won the trophy.

It was a long and demanding 2 days. All the players fought exceptionally well despite the disappointment of knowing we couldn't retain the trophy before the final match. Particular congratulations go to James Ilsley who was unbeaten and achieved 2.5 points out of 3 and to the impressive James Humphries who achieved a 100% record and displayed some very impressive skills over the 2 days.

There was a special presentation dinner following the final match to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the event. Former Walker Cup player and captain Nigel Edwards was the guest speaker who shared some of his numerous experiences in the amateur game and offered some words of wisdom to the younger players in the audience.

Our appreciation goes to Whitchurch Golf Club for hosting the event and especially club manager Ian Veale and clubhouse manager Christian Bannister who were extremely helpful and accommodating due to our unique requirements. Congratulations to all the County officials and players who took part this week for all their efforts and impressive performances over the 2 days. Our thanks also go to all the Worcestershire team for their exceptional play; to President Ian Rone who joined the team on Friday and to the valuable contribution of Kevin Fee for his support for the team and as it turns out the lessons he gave our boys on the pool table!

We look forward to next years event in Gloucestershire and trying to regain the trophy once again with potentially an almost identical team to this year.

Final result:

Glamorgam 2.5 points (2 wins, 1 draw)

Gloucestershire 2 points ( 1 win, 2 draws)

Worcestershire 1.5 points (1 win, 1 draw, 1 loss)

Gwent 0 points

Full results: