HAMPSHIRE will bid to complete the South East double for only the second time in their history when they face Essex in the second-ever Channel League Final.
The two teams meet for a second-year running but Hampshire captain Harrison Pake will be hoping to go one better than Lawrence Cherry, whose team were beaten by a point at North London’s Mill Hill Golf Club.
Cherry was absent seven days after his team had won the South East League Men’s Final for the first time in 11 years with a comfortable 8½-3½ win over Berks, Bucks and Oxfordshire, at Kent’s Wildernesse.
Coach Kev Flynn and vice-captain Pake were forced to draft in an 11th hour replacement and summoned promising junior Charlie Preston for his Channel League Final debut, with no chance to get to know the course.
This weekend, Hampshire are having to make the long journey to Norwich to face Essex at Wensum Valley Golf and Country Club.
The venue was a regular early season stop on the now defunct EuroPro Tour, which the likes of Brabazon Trophy winner Darren Wright, from Rowlands Castle, has played a few times.
It’s a longish, wide-open course that suits the big-hitters, but a number of the holes have water features that can catch out overly aggressive players, with playing from the fairways a much safer option.
Pake has missed a couple of the late season events such as the Courage Trophy and the Hampshire Open, which he finished runner-up in, plus the County Foursomes, which saw two of his squad from earlier in the summer lose a play-off, having got married abroad last month.
Waterlooville’s James Pinhorn and Hockley’s Mitchell Bligh missed the final South Division win over Kent, in August, which booked their place in this month’s final, but Pake has put a lot of faith in the partnership of Hayling’s Rich Harris and Joe Foster.
Pake was playing his cards close to his chest over his selections, after Essex fielded a less than full-strength first-team as Toby Burden’s won the Daily Telegraph Salver for the 11th time in their history, at Northwood GC six days ago.
The newly-crowned English County Champions only fielded one of their team that claimed victory at the English County Finals for just the second time since 1926, as two of their players returned to the USA having been given special dispensations to play by their colleges.
With England Golf’s South Eastern Group rules stipulating that to be eligible for the Channel League Final players must have played no more than twice in first-team league matches – or the South East Qualifier, which Essex beat Hampshire by a couple of strokes at in July.
That rule means Essex are unlikely to have any of their first team in their eight-man team.
Pake has more options with both North Hants’ Hampshire Order of Merit winner Rob Wheeler and current county champion Sam Parsons, from Blackmoor, eligible for selection.
Although they were members of Hampshire’s first-team squad at certain points during the season, they did not play in more than one league game each, and neither was in the six-man team that lost out to Essex at Brighton’s Devil’s Dyke GC.
Blackmoor’s Sam Parsons (left) and Aman Uddin after Essex took the title last last year’s Challenge League Final Picture by ANDREW GRIFFIN / AMG PICTURES
The Challenge team skipper was keeping his opponents guessing about his line-up, and also has the option to include North Hants’ Hampshire Junior Champion Albie Beeston, who impressed Pake a lot during his debut in the final division match less than two months ago.
North Hants could have three players in the eight who will line up against Essex, who claimed the South East Colts League title five times in the last nine years it was competed for, with four of those victories coming against Hampshire.
Between 2014 and 2016, Hampshire held the trophy, although in 2015, it was shared after the two teams tied at Rowlands Castle, when North Hants’ Neil Dawson was manager of the team.
Parsons, who was a member of last year’s losing team at Mill Hill, was on the winning side in his first season playing Colts golf, back in 2016, when Hampshire – then managed by first-team player Tom Robson, claimed the trophy at Seaford, in Sussex.
Pake’s squad travelled up on Friday night to avoid having to practice after spending four hours plus driving around the M25 and up the A13.
Harrison explained how his team plan to complete their preparations, even though he was not prepared to name his line-up.
He said: “Driving up on Friday gives us a good chance to get a good night’s sleep, and have a chilled morning before the practice round.
“I am comfortable with all the lads taking their own views on how to play the course when we get there for our practice round. Everyone sees it differently, and whatever they feel is the best way to win a hole, I am happy with.
“Also, conditions make courses play different, so we can’t relate it to years gone by when some Hampshire-based players have seen it on the EuroPro Tour.
“I have full confidence in everyone’s ability to make the right decisions and hit the right shots when they need to. I have let the guys do their own thing as I didn’t see any need to change or add any extra sessions in beforehand.
“We also have county secretary Richard Arnold and his assistant Chris Harrison, who are both PGA qualified professionals – they are brilliant at giving us some thoughts about strategy and course management in the build-up.
“Having them around on Sunday will also be a massive help. They do everything possible to make sure we have what we need, including refreshments and snacks during both rounds.
“It’s a long day, and requires a lot of concentration and stamina, especially if the weather is not great.”
Essex had to beat Bedfordshire away from home in the last North Division match, last month, to reach the final at Wensum Valley, having won one, drawn one and lost one of their other three matches against Middlesex and Bedfordshire.
Surrey, Hertfordshire and Berks, Bucks and Oxfordshire (BB&O), who all pulled out of Colts golf a number of years ago, have not entered the South East Challenge League, now that the competition is no longer restricted to players aged over 18 and under 26.
•Live scoring from the Channel League Final will be availabe at Hamsphire Golf
Colts manager Tom Robson with the South East League trophy after beating Essex at Seaford GC, in 2016. Picture by ANDREW GRIFFIN / AMG PICTURES