Ello, 'ello ... who are the British Police team champions of the Police Review?
Step forward Sussex's finest on the fairways after beating Lancashire in the final. In the quarter-final at The Dyke, Sussex put the cuffs on Essex by 3-2. The semi-final was at Porters Park against Gloucestershire and Sussex came through a thriller.
The first Sussex pair, Jason Turner and Dave Wilson won by 5 & 4. So did the next, Dave Agnew and Robin Fuller. The third match ended by the same margin, but this time Sussex's Andy Gilbert and Steve Paice were on the losing side. Up stepped Duffy Clayton and Paul Norlund for a cliffhanger and Duffy got his team through with a 12-footer. Kit Magrath and Vic Cloney heard the roar and straightaway returned to the clubhouse one up knowing that they were in the final.
Against Lancashire, Dave Wilson and Jason Turner lost 5 & 4 in the opening match, then Paul Norlund and Duffy Clayton squeezed home by 2 & 1. Lancashire edged ahead with the defeat of Dave Agnew and Robin Fuller, but Andy Gilbert and Steve Paice restored the status quo with victory on the last green. It was Gilbert's first win in the competition and drew the cheers of, "about time too."
Gilbert said: "We obviously had a fighting spirit in us and were delighted to come away as winners. Not only did we play well as individuals but as a team. On a personal note I am glad my winning streak returned as things were looking a bit bleak at the beginning."
An unfailing pointer to consistency is the Order of Merit system. Joe Doherty, the Sussex Amateur champion, is the 2001 OM winner by a clear margin from Scott Nightingale, his Worthing clubmate, and current county titleholder.
This is a third OM award for Doherty who has also been three times runner-up. The series of qualifying events ended with his success in the Cissbury Trophy at Worthing. Steve Graham, now secretary manager at Littlehampton, was OM winner in the last two years when Doherty was third and second respectively.
Order of Merit top ten: Joe Doherty (Worthing) 53 points; 2 Scott Nightingale (Worthing) 34.5; 3 Simon Adby (Singing Hills) 28.5; 4 Steve Graham (Mid Sussex) 27.66; 5 Matt Summerfield (Cottesmore) 23.5; 6 Alastair Malins (Paxhill Park) 23.5; 7 Craig McCollum (Haywards Heath) 22; 8 Lawrie Tremlett (Lewes) 21.5; 9 Wayne Hawes (Littlehampton) 19; 10 Dean Plant (Willingdon) 16.5.
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