The First of this year's bi-annual matches between the two clubs sharing the Belfairs Park facilities saw Southend beat Belfairs Park 10-6 to take the Roger Foreman Shield.

There were fears that the match might have to be cancelled when the appalling wet weather closed the course on Saturday, but things improved for Sunday and play went ahead.

First blood went to Belfairs when former captain Dave Smith and Tony Coker beat opponents Alex Macdonald and Paul Kreyling 3 and 1. Mike Price and Brian Hellicar then lost by two holes to Archie Walker and Chris Baker.

The match then swung like a pendulum with a score of three-all after six matches. A strong rally by Southend then followed with them winning the next five matches in a row. This left Belfairs needing to win the last five to avoid defeat.

A convincing win of 6 and 5 for Sid Chaplin and Gerry Reeve against Joe Lamb and Martin Jones helped the Belfairs cause and then Alan Gribbon and Kevin Buck beat Peter Holiday and Mick Burch.

However, Southend's triumph was assured when John Rees and Peter Gregory saw off John and Rob Lovett 4 and 3.

Seasons to be cheerful - the winning line-up from Belfairs Spring Stableford (left to right): third-placed Greg Aldenmattey, captain Glen Bremerman, winner Rod Montigue and runner-up Brian Hellicar

Picture: MIKE NEVILLE

Judith takes silver in Peter Cup

Rochford Ladies held a 36-hole eclectic medal competition for two of their major trophies.

The Peter Cup for the Silver division was won by Judith Scoging with 78-6=72 followed by Jackie Waghorn (88-14=74) and Di Fenn (84-10=74).

The Paul Cup for Bronze players went to Ann Holloway (95-18=77) ahead of June Jennings (107-27=80) and Tina Dye (98-18=80).

Rochford also held a Stableford competition with Sue Packer claiming victory on 29 points from Jill Austin (27) and Susanne Conil (26).

Finer victory at Rochford

Rochford Hundred held their qualifier for the big Millennium Golf Day they are hosting on July 1 involving all the Kindred Clubs.

The men's took the form of a greensome Stableford with the under-55's being led by Paul Hooper and Ivor Finer with a superb 40 points - edging out Mark Franklin and Julien Barrett on countback.

The other four pairs to qualify were Gerry Evison and Peter Richardson (39), Steve Smyth and Paul Hickson (39), Dick Clarke and John Wade (38) and John Tann and Talat Buta (37). The two reserve duos are Mark Fisher and Kevin Jefferson, and brothers Dennis and Dan Bailey.

The over-55's were led home by Dick Jones and Bill Boys (40 points) with the other qualifiers being Trevor Daughtrey and John Longbottom (38), Geoff Meredith and Howard Southwood (37), Ian Harkness and John Harvey (37), Joe Lamb and Terry Green (37), and Les Goodrich and Mike Benn (37).

Reserves are Ken Trollop and Philip Powell and Bob Light and B Fisher, both on 36. The Ladies and Cadets have still to finalise their line-ups.

Weather hits Cup for six

The abysmal weather conditions took a heavy toll on the start of the senior Essex team competition for the Thornton Cup, with six matches being washed out.

Boyce Hill's visit to Forrester Park will now be played this Sunday with the Hanover versus Three Rivers tie on Sunday week.

Crondon Park go to Ilford tomorrow week, but no firm dates had been set at the time of going to press for the Basildon v Woodford and Clacton v Langdon Hills ties.

There were mixed fortunes for local clubs who did get into action. Thorpe Hall crushed Top Meadow 13-2 away and Orsett won 8-7 at Gosfield Lake. However, both Rochford (at The Warren) and Ballards Gore (at Colchester) suffered 10.5-4.5 away defeats.

Castle Point suffered difficulty in finding the fairways at Colchester and trailed 5-0 after the morning foursomes.

Things got better in the afternoon singles with John Sharp, Matt Loveday and anchorman Darren Hudson all picking up wins and Chris Ledger achieving a half. However, Upminster won 11.5-3.5.

The Burstead went down 12-3 at home to Chelmsford, but Billericay rivals Stock Brook Manor enjoyed the luxury of a first round tie.

If Basildon do beat Woodford they will have home advantage for their round two tie with Warley Park on May 7. Thorpe Hall must travel again - this time to Bush Hill Park - while Stock Brook open their campaign with a home tie against Benton Hall. Orsett are at Stableford Abbotts.

Victory at Forrester Park would see Boyce Hill at The Warren, while a win for Langdon Hills would give them a daunting trip to Thorndon Park.

Ilford or Crondon Park host Upminster with Hanover or Three Rivers enjoying home advantage for the visit to Channels.

The friendly match between Essex and Kent, due at Benton Hall, had to be cancelled due to the course being waterlogged.

Pairs Vase Golf Day

The ever-popular Evening Echo Pairs Vase competition is swinging back into action... but you'll have to be quick to book your spot in the line-up.

The date for the 2000 event is Wednesday, May 24 and this year's venue is Boyce Hill Golf Club. In the past, the launching of this competition has led to places in the field for this highly-coveted trophy being quickly taken up, with a waiting list developing.

So, if you want to make sure of a spot in the field for a really swinging day, complete the form found in the newspaper and send it off immediately.

The fee is £35 per pair, and the competition is open to all pairing, male, female or mixed. Those taking part must supply a club handicap on the day. Handicap limit is 18 for men and 24 for women. Society handicaps will not be accepted.

Those taking part are requested to note that pairs will be asked to make every effort to complete their rounds in no longer than three-and-a-half hours.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.