Old Birkonians bring top trophy home
The Public Schools Old Boys’ Golf Association’s coveted Grafton Morrish Trophy is now on display in the foyer of the Lodge. For the first time in the history of the Competition, a team from Birkenhead School’s Old Birkonian fraternity has won it.
The Grafton Morrish is a major amateur golf tournament open to former pupils from all schools who are members of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses’ Conference. Birkenhead teams have been playing in the tournament since 1966 and in total 28 OBs have represented the School in the finals. Birkenhead was runner-up in both 2004 and 2008
This year, 109 schools competed in pre-qualifying during May with the field being reduced to 48 for the finals in October which are held in Norfolk, on the wonderful links courses of Hunstanton and Royal West Norfolk. Unfortunately, Stuart Brown was forced to withdraw due to injury, so the team for the finals consisted of : Carl Adams (1995), Kris Archer (2002), John Hargreaves (1980), Anthony Shields (1998), Marcus Stam (1998) and Phil Whitehurst (1984) (year of leaving BS in brackets).
Their place in the draw was difficult and reaching the final required victories over Aldenham, Lancing, Cheltenham, Solihull and last year’s winners, Clifton. After some very close and nerve-wracking games, they found themselves playing Merchant Taylors’ (Northwood) in the final. With three holes to play, the position was not encouraging because they were two down in one match and level in both the others. Their young guns (Archer and Adams) then used their considerable power to record a 2&1 victory and this changed the momentum in the other games. Both the remaining matches went down to the final hole at Hunstanton with all to play for. The use of a new tee, lengthening the hole to 440 yards, made for an extremely challenging drive into a stiff breeze. In the event this proved to be to their advantage as both Birkenhead pairs, first Hargreaves and Whitehurst and then Shields and Stam found the fairway. Merchant Taylors were then under considerable pressure and this manifested itself in wild tee shots and some over ambitious recovery play. In both matches, Merchant Taylors were forced to concede the hole and the final score-line was a deceptively easy 2.5 to 0.5 victory to Birkenhead, the halved match being that of Hargreaves and Whitehurst.
Team member John Hargreaves summed up, ‘The team were mentally and physically tired after the competition but the sight of our captain, Marcus Stam, placing the Birkenhead School Shield on the clubhouse wall alongside the shields of all the other winners of the Grafton Morrish was truly memorable. The trophy is quite unusual and we plan to display it at School before returning to defend our title in 2012.’
Photo: Team member Marcus Stam hands over the impressive Grafton Morrish shield to the Headmaster, John Clark, for safekeeping.
