Channel League Standings after 04/09:

Match v Wiltshire Royal Porthcawl 04/09

It was hoped that the improved performance against Gloucestershire would flow through into the wiltshire match and so it proved.

Wiltshire, having won South West week were stern opponents and although the foursomes were tied 2.5 to 2.5 a fine singles performance saw only one game lost, and two halved. The 8 - 2 win meant the final scoreline read 10.5 to 4.5 in our favour.

In the morning foursomes although the top game was tight, (Richard Hooper & Craig Melding finished all square) the other four games were somewhat one-sided but at the end of the morning a 2.5 / 2.5 scoreline was acceptable. Pleasing was the win of Delon Hau & County Champion Ryan Thomas (combined age younger than Ian Flower) 5&4 over strong opposition.

The foursomes gave little hint of what was to come with Captain Richard and Richard "twin" both returning wins. Soon to be followed by Mark Baird and Jack Bush to give four wins out of 4 - heady stuff after the last home match. Craig melding found his opponent too tough but the reversal was followed by Ian Flower winning 5&4, Delon Hau by 1hole and Ryan Thomas, completing a fine day for the youngsters with a 3&2 win. Luke Thomas and Richard "Dicky" Williams securinged halves to give a singles scoreline of 8 to 2 and an overall win of 10.5 to 4.5.

The win reversed the disappointment of the Cornwall result especially as Wiltshire have been our nemesis in recent years as wins have been the exception rather than the rule. But a great performance much appreciated by all.

Match v Gloucestershire Chipping Sodbury 28/08

A much improved performance nearly resulted in a much needed victory but Gloucestershire just held out.

Virtually every game was tight and the result was in doubt until very late on.

Twists in the tail saw matt Phythian's game slip away but at the same time Richard Williams' was going the other way. In the end Craig Melding's win was just not quite enough but an encouraging performanmce augiured well for the remaining matches.

Table as at 22/08

Match v Devon, Exeter August 20th

Late withdrawals and the non-availability of a couple of US college-based players meant a much changed side faced Devon.

However it was as Yogi Berra once said "Deja Vu all over again" - well nearly - as the team went down 4 games to 1 in the foursomes. The only successful pair being Mark Baird and Mark Lewis - both of whom were absent against Cornwall.

With Mark Baird, Brent O'Neill, and Ian Flower recording wins and Mark Lewis a half an unlikely revival was just on the cards when after 6 singles the gap had narrowed to 6.5 to 4.5. However winning all four of the remaining singles was atall order and so it proved when all went down giving Devon a 10.5 to 4.5 victory.

As can be seen from the above table even 3 wins out of three in the remaining matches will not be enough to overhaul current leaders Somerset.

Match v Cornwall Neath Sunday July 31st

The morning foursomes proved key in the match. Home pair Richard Hooper and Craig melding went into the last 1 up but lost the hole and finished all square. This set the tone and at the end of the morning the foursomes had given the visitors a 4.5 to 0.5 advantage.

The hill to climb was bigger than the second at Neath, and so it proved, a better performance in the singles gave an advantage of 5.5 to 4.5 but the overall match was lost 9 - 6.

This represented a severe blow to our hopes of Channel League success. Considering only James Frazer was missing from what would be regarded as the "A-team" this was somewhat disappointing. Home defeats are not easy to take but it is fair to say this was a match that was approached with considerable optimism.

Match v Gwent Southerndown Sunday May 1st

Glamorgan 10.5 Gwent 4.5

For most of the morning the foursomes looked set for a one game advantage to either team. However at the death all games swung our way and to almost everyone's surprise the result was a 5 - 0 advantage. Jack Bush (on his birthday) and Gareth Phillips produced the biggest turn-around, 4 down at the turn they managed a very late burst to take the game 1 up.

The hill up the first must have seemed nothing to the Gwent players compared to the hill they had to climb to pull back the disadvantage. Although the first two matches went our way there was a hint of a possible revival but with Captain Richard Hooper getting the upper hand, local player Mike Hearne edging home and the ever-improving Craig Melding getting a fighting half against Joe Vickery the threat receded. Wins by Ian Flower and Gareth Phillips in tight matches and with Jack Bush celebrating his birthday in style with a 5.4 win meant the County ran out winners by 10.5 to 4.5.

CHANNEL LEAGUE TABLE  2011