The Lakes Eric Apperly Shield team ventured to the dendrophile’s paradise that is Sydney’s leafy north shore for their final regular season match in the 2018 Eric Apperly Shield. Facing an unbeaten Concord side on a heavily renovated Killara layout (featuring many temporary holes), our lads were out to cause an upset and in the process, keep their finals hopes alive.
Leading the team out for the second consecutive week was the ever-enthusiastic Josh Speechley who once again made a nervous start, losing the first hole. However, a world-class up and down to win the 3rd hole proved to be a springboard for Speechley as he would go on to 4 more holes on the trot. From this commanding position, there was never any doubt in the result as Josh left his opponent “speechless”, winning 6&5. This capped off a stellar season for Josh wherein two matches, he only played 26 holes and was a total of 12 up.
Playing alongside the ever-buoyant Josh was the invariably downcast Cameron Glenday, who was assisted by incumbent member and brother Harrison Glenday on the bag. Despite taking a liking to the constricting playing corridors of Killara, Cameron found himself in a tight, high-quality contest. Neither player could gain an advantage over the first 9 holes, however, a rock-solid par on the temporary 10th hole gave Glenday a 1 up lead. With most of the remaining holes featuring temporary greens, Glenday knew pars would almost certainly get the job done. He proved to be correct as he stood on the 18th tee still 1 up. However, the match remained very much in the balance as both Cameron and his Concord challenger hit wedges to within 8 feet on the final hole. The Concord player snuck his birdie putt in the right side of the hole, but that didn’t seem to bother Cameron who calmly drained a downhill slider for a birdie of his own to take the match 1 up.
Bond Chan has had an inconspicuous season to date, but perhaps he was saving his best for when his team needed him most? It certainly looked to be that way when he won several early holes, yet his opponent would level the match soon after. With everything still to play for on the long par 3 9th (usually the 8th hole), Bond fired a shot straight at the pin, however, it careered over the green like a Thunderball resulting in a momentum-halting lost hole. 3 down with 4 holes to play, Bond took advantage of a rare errant shot from his opponent by finding the green. Some say that 007’s greatest weakness is his flirtatious nature, however, today it was his putter. A 3-putt bogey meant that the hole was squared, leaving Bond 3 down with as many to play. A loss on the next hole signalled Bond’s Waterloo in the form of a 4&2 loss.
Matt Dane appeared to be in the form of his life last week recording a dominant 8&6 victory, yet he understood this week wouldn’t be quite as easy against the top-placed team. Dane found himself in a dogfight as he struggled with his usually unflappable ball-striking, but he was still in the match, all Square through 10 holes. Despite his tenacity, Matt’s weaknesses were exposed on the tricky Killara layout. He would lose 3 consecutive holes, eventually succumbing 3&2.
Adam Coull made a welcome return to The Lakes team after being in Hawaii on Australian representative duty. Clearly rejuvenated from his luau, Adam started strongly to take an early 2 up advantage against his opponent, a state representative. However, the talent of Concord’s top order was evident, as their No. 2 player would drive the temporary 10 hole and cut Coull’s lead to 1 up. Adam however, was as “Coull” as a cucumber in the heat of the moment, defusing Concord’s momentum with a string of pars. Both players were unable to find the 17th green in regulation, yet, our young protagonist held a slender 1 up advantage. Although your faithful writer/manager was nervous, Adam ran like an AC on a hot summer’s day. His chip shot settled less than 3 feet from the pin, and when the Concord player was unable to make his par, Adam calmly drained his putt for a 2&1 victory.
Captain Jayden Brown once again represented us in the No. 1 position, where he would face an elite NSW representative. Despite playing one of Concord’s star’s Jayden found himself 1 up early thanks to some creative shot making and a gritty attitude. However, his luck would soon run out at the mercy of a top-class opponent. Frustrated with play below his high expectations, Jayden was perhaps thinking about the view from the bar as he made several mental mistakes which cost him dearly. Jayden would finish the regular season with a disappointing 6&5 loss.
This young Lakes team can be very proud of their effort today and for the season, a draw against a team that are favourites to win the entire competition is no small feat. At the conclusion of today’s play, our team harboured a small hope of progressing. However, due to an Oatlands upset over Avondale, our team is mathematically unable to reach the knockout stage. The Lakes team will have a bye next week whilst our course hosts proceedings and our team will likely finish a very commendable 2nd.
On behalf of the team, I’d like to take one final moment thank our caddies as well as the supportive Lakes members who wished us well each week. Also, I’d like to thank Teaching Professional Charles Kares for running pre-season training sessions and Paul Sainsbury for all his help behind the scenes.
The Lakes vs Concord
Josh Speechley won 6&5
Cameron Glenday won 1 up
Bond Chan lost 4&2
Matt Dane lost 3&2
Adam Coull won 2&1
Jayden Brown © lost 6&5
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Sam Beck
Team Manager
