Leighton's match-winning results show golf is a game for young and old

For while 17-year-old Georgia Staroscik was helping England schools to a memorable victory over Scotland, Leighton Seniors were showing their younger Club rivals they can still cut the mustard.

Georgia finished an outstanding season with a late call-up for international duty with England Schools, justifying her selection after being crowned Beds Schools scratch champion and impressing in the South East Schools regional championships.

Called-up ten days before the international at Lancaster, Georgia opened her account with colleague Arnelia Curtis (Buckinghamshire) with a last hole win and then won her singles match in style by beating her Scottish opponent with four holes to go.

Georgia, a Leighton club member and a student at Bedford Girls school, contributed two of the five team points in the girls match won 5-4 by England, with the home nation squad of boys and girls winning 15-12 overall. Bedfordshire’s Jack Manley (Sharnbrook Upper and a member at Beds & County), also won his foursomes match but lost his singles by a narrow margin as rain and wind swept across the Lancaster course.

In the last 18 months, Georgia has won the Bedfordshire Schools Under 18 title, been crowned County Ladies Champion, County Junior girls champion twice and the English girls Champion of Champions, as well as gaining her first England Schools Cap. Her international success follows hard on the heels of Leighton’s Ed Stephenson, Andres Valentine and Brandon Waddington being crowned English Schools team champs.

At the other end of the age scale, Leighton Seniors rolled back the years to beat the younger Club team to claim the Mashie Trophy. In a convincing show, the Seniors won four of the five matches and drew the other. Seniors Captain Dave Roberts and John Halstead opened the account with a 6&5 win over Club Captain Jeremy Taylor and ex-President David Hawkins; Denis Leitch and Harry Adam followed by sharing a point in their match against Graham Freer and Jon Woolford; Danny Nairne and Paul Ahmet beat John Preston and Peter Sheridan 3&2, Ian Rimmer and Will Sampson cleaned up with a 6&4 win over Manny Barker and Simon Rossiter, with Seniors Vice Captain Peter Myrants sinking a tricky downhill put on the 18th to seal a one hole victory with David Kingham against Robbie John and Tim Martin.

Leighton’s seniors lost 6-2 at Whipsnade, Gerry Ferris and David Sweetnam and George Bashford and Graham Pellow salvaging some pride before normal service was resumed with a 5-2 win over Buckingham. Harry Adam and David Sweetnam, Martin Broadly and Steve Shepherd, Derek Browning and Keith Camp, Graham Avery and Keith Oddie and George Bashford and David Newby won for Leighton with Peter Myrants and Graham Robinson halving their match.

Tony Conneely and Stuart Mills teamed up to win Leighton’s Bunny Winter trophy with 48 pts, three clear of Andrew Ashall and Daniel Hill. Manny Barker and Ed Stephenson took third place on countback from Paul Atkinson and David Hawkins and Dharm Naveen Diwakar and Simon Rossiter after all three pairs carded 44 pts.