Co. Armagh GC juveniles are the 2013 Craigavon Junior Golf champions after edging out Dunmurry in a nail-biting finish at Silverwood Golf Club.
After a summer long competition that saw Armagh play against Tandragee, Killymoon, Lurgan, Cloverhill and Edenmore, it was left to Kris Calvert to wrap up victory on the 18th green. Club Captain, John Flack, hailed a battling display by the players on the day and also the extended squad - 18 players in all - who helped the team reach the finals. "It was a brilliant finish and huge congratulations go to all the players who represented the club over the course of the summer," said John. "Co Armagh extends thanks to the event organiser John Fitzpatrick and offers commiserations to Dunmurry, who conducted themselves admirably during the final."
This was the 13th year of the Craigavon Junior Golf Trophy, a competition which gives juvenile players in the 13-28 handicap category a chance to develop their match-play skills. Teams of seven play singles matches with each match worth four points.
The early stages of the competition saw Armagh involved in a series of home and away clashes with Tandragee, Killymoon, Lurgan and Cloverhill. Armagh won six and lost two of the eight ties, which was good enough to secure them second place in their section behind Tandragee, and a semi-final meeting with Edenmore. "After some scratchy early performances the group improved rapidly as the summer progressed," said Juvenile convenor Paul Kelly. "We were probably slight underdogs against Edenmore in the semi-final. Most of our team had never played at Silverwood whereas Edenmore had played there in the early rounds. "However, they played very well against Edenmore to claim a spot in the final and against Dunmurry they put all the experience they had gained over the course of the summer to good use."
Special thanks go to Michael Calvert, Neil Cromwell and Art Macrory for helping out on the day.
Co Armagh GC winning Craigavon Junior Golf Trophy team - l-r Jamie Calvert, Shea Donnelly, Kris Calvert, Co Armagh Club Captain, John Flack, Lee Campbell, Daire Mallon, Adam Cromwell, James Thompson