On a day forecast for heavy, slow-moving downpours, The Rolls of Monmouth's golf team basked at a generally hot and sunny Herefordshire Golf Club on Saturday 25th August and were narrowly beaten by their hosts in a hard fought contest.

The result was as much a surprise as the weather forecast as Vice Captain, Mike Maguire had assembled the cream of The Rolls golfers for this annual cross-border skirmish.

Club Captain, Dick Bull, playing with the in-form Roger Lord fell at the seventeenth hole to Herefordshire's Captain, John Oldman and his partner, Simon Swancott. Bull had travelled direct to the match following a hard night shift, which dulled his usually sharp game. Lord had no such excuse. Martin Press and Bill Catling were hindered by the soft ground, which forced them to walk the full eighteen holes rather than ride a cart, their usual modus transportus. Drained of energy they stumbled to a three and two defeat to Stevenson and Roulton.

Russell Webb's magnificent coffee service before the game was not matched by his performance on the course. Playing with newcomer Alistair Beedie, who had undergone intensive training in France and Belgium in preparation for the game, they succumbed three and one to Herefordshire's Baylis and Craig.

Energised by an enormous calorific intake at the pre-match brunch, David Lyon achieved a magnificent eagle two on the par four eighteenth hole. Alas it was all to no avail as Mike Fletcher and John Lewthwaite soundly beat him and veteran partner, Tim Barker, on the previous green two and one.

Team Captain Mike Maguire, playing this time with Adrian Clark managed to valiantly hold their opponents Baker and Hartland to a halved game. Maguire has made a speciality of the halved game recently, thus maintaining his Olympic ethic that it is the taking part and not the winning that is important.

However, the highlight of the Rolls' effort was a stunning three and one victory by the young pairing of Luke James and Geoff Walsh, who led from the opening hole to overwhelm their wily opponents Geoff Price and Dave Robinson. Needing only a five at the difficult seventeenth hole for victory, James hit his approach shot to within three feet of the flag for a superb birdie three to make the win even more emphatic.

Maguire, ever optimistic, claimed that this defeat by the narrowest of margins augurs well for the difficult next away fixture at the very challenging Bowood Golf and Country Club in Wiltshire. He determined to think long and hard on his team selection and warned that no one is guaranteed a place without first putting their name forward for this much sought after fixture.