Leicestershire and Rutland savour famous win at Boys' County Finals

Leicestershire and Rutland claimed a historic first win at the English Boys’ County Finals after a day of drama at Furness Golf Club in Cumbria.

The Midlands champions only reached the 2022 national finals by virtue of a countback victory at the regional qualifier.

But after a 5-4 win on day one against Gloucestershire and a 5.5-3.5 defeat on day two against Yorkshire, a 6-3 victory against Kent on the final day of the round robin event was enough to seal the glory for the team in red and black.

If the regional qualifier had been a close shave, then it was only a prelude to the real drama on the Cumbrian coast.

In the end, the winning margin over Gloucestershire was slender.

Having tied Gloucestershire on match points (two wins apiece), Leicestershire and Rutland prevailed on account of winning just a half a game point more over the three days than their nearest rivals (14.5-14).

The moment which clinched the title for Leicestershire and Rutland came when captain Ethan Bell halved his match on the 18th green with Kent’s Charlie Reynolds.

Watched on by the Gloucestershire team who knew what was at stake, Bell made a steady par to ensure Leicestershire and Rutland had secured the 5.5 points in the win against Kent that was needed to climb to the top of the table.

Team manager Dave Deacon was thrilled to make history with his group of lads.

He said: “I’ve got to start by saying what a fantastic week we’ve had. We’ve come to our place which is way out of our depth regarding the course – playing links golf.

“We made it to these finals last year but didn’t finish the job off. In the 120-year history of our county, none of the teams has ever won a major finals so the lads today have done Leicestershire proud.”

Skipper Bell spoke on behalf of the team and said: “It means everything to all of us, I’m just so proud.

“From the start the foursomes went well today and we got off to a great start by winning them 3-0. We just had to get over the line really.”

A feature of Leicestershire and Rutland’s squad all week has been their choice of headgear – the bucket hat proving to be a lucky mascot!

“As soon as we qualified we wanted county bucket hats – we all thought it would look good as a team!” confirmed Bell with a smile.

The day started with all four teams level on match points and the destination of the title anyone’s guess.

The format for each match was three morning foursomes followed by six afternoon singles.

At one point in the early afternoon it looked as if Yorkshire were in pole position to claim their tenth title at this level.

But when Gloucestershire fought back in key games involving Ash Millington, Milan Reed and Ed Fry, the tide turned and the south west champions posted a 5-4 victory.

The destiny of the title still lay in Leicestershire and Rutland’s hands. They knew that if they could win their match against Kent with 5.5 points or more then they would be champions either through game points or as a result of the head-to-head result against Gloucestershire.

Spurred on by England international Frazer Jones who led the way with an 8&7 victory over Jack Swift, the Midlands champions took the spoils.

In the end the deciding factor was game points – the half earned by Willliam Plant in the final game against Kent’s Lucas Dennison proving crucial in determining the way in which Leicestershire and Rutland got over the line.

Gloucestershire finished the week as runners up with Yorkshire third and Kent in fourth spot.

Leicestershire and Rutland 5-4 Gloucestershire

Kent 5-4 Yorkshire

Leicestershire and Rutland 3.5-5.5 Yorkshire

Gloucestershire 5-4 Kent

Leicestershire and Rutland 6-3 Kent

Gloucestershire 5-4 Yorkshire

We are dedicated to growing the game of golf in England. As one of the country’s largest sport governing bodies, we look after the interests of around 1,800 golf clubs and 737,000 golf club members. Golf is our passion. We develop and nurture the game by:

Promoting golf as an open, welcoming, inclusive and fun sport for everyone regardless of age, gender, ethnicity or ability

Inspiring new golfers with our innovative campaigns

Encouraging new golfers to value the benefits of club membership

Working with partners to offer business support to clubs

Staging top-class championships and competitions for all ages and abilities

Coaching national squad players to follow in the footsteps of past graduates including Justin Rose, Tommy Fleetwood, Georgia Hall and Bronte Law.

Iain Macfarlane, Press Officer

Tel: 07703 828938

Email: pr@englandgolf.org