Leadership led Russley to win

Press, 31 October 1981, Page 22

Leadership led Russley to win

By

BOB SCHUMACHER

Russley’s resounding victory in this year’s Woodward Cup inter-club golf championship contained no element of luck. A plan for success was formulated last year and the club did not have to wait long for it to bear fruit.

After being the dominant force throughout the 1960 s and early 19705, Russley found Christchurch a formidable foe in the middle 1970 s and it was the Shirley players who took a stranglehold on the trophy after Russley’s last win in 1975. However, Russley remained a team in contention, finishing third in 1976 and runner-up the next year. Then the slump came and Russley knew what it was like to be among the “also rans” when it finished in the bottom half of the competition in 1978 and 1979. The first move to arrest the decline of the once omnipotent club was taken at the start of the 1980 season. The team was placed in the care

of the respected Barry Cotton, a big man with a stentorian voice.

But the voice did not rasp harsh commands or utter words of censure. Mr Cotton’s gifted vernacular helped to .coax and encourage his eight players to lift their own games and, for a team lacking somewhat in talent, its equal second placing behind Christchurch last year was especially commendable.

With the spadework done last year, Russley started this season with a determination and a team spirit unmatched by any of the other nine teams.

Certainly Mr Cotton received some welcome bonuses. Two former Canterbury champions, Bruce Taylor and James Angus, were available and a Tasman Freyberg Rose Bowl golfer, Garth Domigan, moved to Christchurch and joined the club.

The team was outfitted with new uniforms, there were “happy hours” , once a week for the Russley interclub teams to boost morale and it was a confident Woodward Cup side which not only looked the part but played it out to a successful conclusion.

The placing of Taylor, Angus and Domigan in the second, third and fourth playing positions, provided Russley with a top order of considerable substance. In total, they played 26 matches for 19 wins and four halves.

. Taylor, who started his Woodward Cup career in 1964, has now made more

than 100 appearances and has. a high success percentage. Angus had just one loss — to Templeton’s Peter Terrace — and Domigan fared even better with seven wins and a half from eight games. He shared the Stan Rich Salver for the best individual record and was unlucky not to win it outright The gangly student missed. the firsts round and his half occurred when he lost the last hole to George Turner (North Canterbury).

Paul Atkinson faced a tall order at No. 1 for Russley and did not have the best of seasons although he halved with the Canterbury Freyberg No. 3, Stephen Street. Neville Griffiths, with only one loss in nine matches, was an ideal man in the middle order and while Geoff Black, promoted in the order from last year, met with five reversals, the solidity of Roger Sisson and Jon Bierwirth at the tail was compensation. Bierwirth’s fine putting under pressure frustrated many an opponent. On many occasions, some of the Russley players had big wins and it was noticeable that they did not retire to the clubhouse. They were on the course offering encouragement to their teammates involved in close finishes.

Harewood, with its mainly youthful team, finished two points in arrears of Russley and a point ahead of the three teams that shared third place, Templeton, North

Canterbury and Coringa. It lost close contests against Russley and Coringa and halved with North Canterbury. The team was admirably led at the top by a more mature Stephen Street. He played the best golfers in Canterbury and finished with six wins, two halves and a solitary loss to Geoff Saunders. Street has made 59 Woodward appearances and has won 37 matches and halved three — a fine achievement. The talented Paul Shearer compiled an excellent record at No. 2 and the experienced Noel Bain had seven wins and a half to be a jointwinner of the Stan Rich Salver. At the tail, David Marks had his best season in five and lan Walsh made an auspicious debut. .For so long, Templeton has languished among the bottom teams. It was second to last in 1978, last in 1979, and second to last again in 1980. Templeton’s climb to third was a feature of the competition and augured well for next season.

Mark Street, a gain from Harewood, gave Templeton a strong player at the top and there were splendid contributions from the reliable John Prebble at No. 2 and Peter Terrace at No. 3. Terrace, a newcomer, shared the Stan Rich salver with Domigan and Bain. He has concentrated on golf for only 'three years but is a versatile sportsman and keen

competitor. His only loss was to a former Canterbury No. 1, Des Turner. ‘ The bottom half did not do quite so well, but Ross Jones showed fighting qualities — winning one match after being 3 down with four holes remaining — and Robert McCaul looked . a young player of much promise. North Canterbury, led by two Canterbury Freyberg players, Jim Lapsley and lan Ross, appealed as one of the strongest sides before the championship started. It managed to hold Russley to a draw but suffered heavy losses against Coringa and Templeton. Lapsley, Martin Stanley, lan Pollock and George Turner finished on the credit side, but there were inconsistent performances through the order, Ross, Dennis Beggs and Neil Robertson not faring as well as the team would have wished.

Coringa, with a typical late charge at the end, retained its position in the top half. Apart from a shock loss against Central Canterbury, the team performed creditably. Sound results from the middle core of Brent Street, Chris Paterson, Andrew Bishop, John Smale and Peter Neal, a veteran of more than 100 matches, brought Coringa its satisfactory placing. The champion team for the last five years, Christchurch, with two losses on the final day, plummeted to sixth. Its top two players,

John Williamson and Ricky Vincent, both reached a halfcentury of appearances, but it was not a season for them to celebrate.

Des Turner, John Parlane, Wayne Tucker and lan Dobson had good records and Joe Whitaker proved the most successful with six wins from nine matches. However, the team did not click as it had in previous years. Turner’s loss to Chris Paterson in the third round was his first since joining Christchurch in 1979.

Waitikiri, which ' upset Christchurch in the second round, failed to flatter and finished ahead of Waimairi Beach, Central Canterbury and Avondale.

The Waitikiri captain, Ross Griffith, had his worst record in 10 years and the top order lacked the necessary consistency. Paul Minifie, who won seven matches in his debut, and Robert McDonald were two young players to impress, and Len McKenzie and David Murphy, both with five wins, made their presence felt.

Waimairi Beach was unfortunate to lose its top player, Fred Poskitt, for the final four rounds, but Stephen Greenall did a magnificent job and John Gregg made pleasing progress. Without Saunders for most of the championship, Central Canterbury was under pressure at the top where lan Carruthers and Jim Davis found themselves regularly on the losing side.

The team’s leading player was the cheerful Bob Pirie. Last year Pirie played seven matches without a win. Playing either at No. 3 or No. 4 this season, he won five matches and halved two. He beat Chris Paterson and halved with Des Turner and Angus. Avondale, as it did last year, tailed the other nine teams home. Its best player

was the veteran, Frank Roberts, who reached 200 appearances for his club. He had five wins and a half. The other records were quite dismal, but two milestones were achieved. Alan Craw-ford-Smith, who had his worst season in eight, and John Hanton both reached a half-century of appearances.