"A Game of two halves Brian"

Or may be 13/18ths.

Railway trophy today. Winners and runner ups from all Winter Stableford qualify for todays final. With people dropping out about 12 of us played.

Stuart Robinson was bouyant and confident. I was just happy to have qualified, perhaps that's why he's off 4 and I'm off 16.

Anyway, the weather was good, so.........

First decent weather....

First Trophy of the year to contest.....

First Sob story of the year!

So Jeff Dean, Chris Brayne and myself set off for the first tee. Bit of a nip in the air, but not a lot of wind and the sun is starting to break through.

Chris is the colourful one with bleached "punky" hair and colourful outfits, today is Lemon Zest yellow!

Three decent drives all in play. Mediocre second and 3rd for me, but a solid 2 putts for me and 2 points.

Nice Par for Mr Brayne.

Three awful teeshots on 2 especially mine. Back a bit stiff and don;t get through the ball, top it short of the water, but in the hazard area. Managed to move ball onto the green from within the straw, two putts for a point.

Hit the fairway on 3, long way back and a bit of a "stinger" through the back of the green, but a good lag putt and tap in for par! That's made up for the 2nd!

A decent bogey on 4 followed by a safe drive on 5 and I'm left with a tough shot, not sure whether I can carry the fairway bunker. Go for it and end on the bank in front of the green, two putts, Par. Thank you very much!!!

6th sees a safe bogey, could have been a bit braver with the putt, but 2 points is good.

Bogey on 7 sees another 2 points and then to the Nemesis hole (on the front nine anyway)

Hit best drive of the day and left with shot of about 120 or so, but with bunkers to carry and a tight pin. The safe shot is to play long, but I've started to strike the ball well, so it's a 9 iron that just clears the bunker and leaves me a 10 foot putt. Lip out, but a good par for another 3 points!

Steady bogey on 9 and it's 20 points. I've had the honour since the 4th and Jeff is not on his game today. He's on 12 points and Chris is slightly better on 16.

Chris tells me I have 20 points, I reply quietly, "I know".....He comments on how I should sound a bit more up beat.

I suggest that having played this course for so long, I don't count any chickens before the hatch! Many a time I've had a good front 9 and indifferent back 9. When I qualified for this competition, I scored 23 on the front, but only 16 on the back!

It sometimes works the other way though. I won the inuagrual Concorde Trophy with 13 on the front, including a 4 pointer on the 9th, and 25 points on the back!

Still back to today. I've been pulling my driver left into the pond for the past 3 or 4 rounds, but today, nice smooth swing, timing perfect and that extra snap sends the ball straight down the middle and leaving me about 130 to the pin.

Into the wind and the pin is tucked bhind the bunkers on the right.

Still , stick with the "keep it simple" game plan and aim to take the bunker out of the equation.

Block it a bit and it hits the bank on top of the bunker, kicks right and rolls into the bunker. A kinder bounce and it would have birdie time.

Hit a good bunker shot out and lip out for par, still a 5 and one point is sufficient. Keep the blobs off the card!!!

Simple par on 11, gives me 3 points, back on track!

Good drive on 12, block second and I'm left with a tricky shot. 150 yard carry into the wind, then another 30-40 yards to the pin. Trouble is I'm in the rough and there's a tree is in the way to get over as well!

LAy up would be sensible, but it's not a bad lie and I can probably crash something over.

I'm going for it. Needs to be a good connection and a solid hit!

Top it, under the tree, running towards the stream, pulls up, perfect lay up distance!!! Not quite what I meant!

Great chip past the pin, bit too tentative on the downhill putt, but another 2 points.

Drive safe on 13, on in 3, two putts for another solid 2 points. (Stop rehearsing your acceptance speech in your head!)

To the 14th. Since making this the Captains Charity hole, making all of the water hazards in play for a donation of 50p, I must have gone in nearly every round. Sometimes twice.

There is a lot of water on 14, but is should'nt be as tough as I make it.

Having pulled drives down the left the past few rounds, I go for the shorter carry on the right, but cut the tee shot slightly and.......................straight into the ditch.

Never lands short and bounces over, never hits the far bank and stays in play, straight in! Find the ball, so I may still be able to retire it by getting it all the way around the 18 holes, but it's unplayable, so take a drop.

Still got more water to get over, so play safe and get it over, but end up in bunker. Up and down for 2 points? Well I get the ball out well, but just lip out from about 10ft, still it's a points. Just getback in the groove on 15.
Poor drive and I'm in the hazard. I can play it, but it's plugged so hack it out. A good chip gives an outside chance of a bogie and 2 points. Hit a good putt, but just ends up bang online, but on the very edge of the hole. 1 point again!!!

Poor drive on 16 and trying to force the 2nd, I'm in the hazard to the left of the green. This time I can't play it, so have to drop under penalty. Playing my 4th I again give myself a chance of 2 points, but miss from about 12 feet!

Two pars and I can still play to handicap, but on 17, I hit a low tee shot and it just catches the fence protecting the swans nests in the pond and stays in the hazard......ball lost. Would have liked to retire that ball as well.

No points!

So to 18 godd drive, but hack my way up the course, end up in greenside bunker and manage a point....takes me to 32 points. Just 12  on the back 9.

Shake hands with the others, commiserate with Jeff who has had a nightmare, congratulate with Chris, who hung on for 31 points.

Suddenly remember, I've got bets on with Trevor Brennand and Bob Aston.

As I trudge up from the 18th, I can see Trevor outside the clubhouse.

He's got a fiver in his hand, which is a good sign, but he must havfe beaten 32! He's got 31!!!!! Result!!!!

At least I've got a fiver to pay Bob with!!!

Get in the clubhouse, leader with 43 points is Stuart Robinson. 2 under par gross. Good knock, too good for me even if I'd played better in back 9.

Quick pint and then back to see Cov on the Box against the Foxes (Leicester!)

Big derby game, with Leicester potentiallly in for the play offs, whilst we are flattering to deceive!

Saw us putting on a pitiful display in the first half at the "Walker" stadium. We were 2 down, but to be honest, it should have been 3 or 4. That said, their second was a bit iffy as the ball may not have crossed the line, but we were lucky to have scored nil!!!

Decided to go and walk the dog with Wife and Kids at half time and came back expecting us to be another few goals down, but lo and behold, Captain Mustard's (Chris Coleman, get it!), half time team talk must have made a difference as we had pulled a goal back and despite the 100 mile an hour pace of the Derby, we were playing some good stuff.

With 5 minutes to go we score, although it could have easily been disallowed for offside we got an equaliser! Perhaps the Lino was making up for his error with the second Leicester goal! Amazingly, we managed to hold on for a draw. We have lost so many games in added on time this year.

So it was definitley a day of "games of two halves!!!"