NORFOLK’S senior golfers began their regional title defense with a slender success over Suffolk at Bury St Edmunds Golf Club.

Norfolk took the East Anglian Senior League title in 2021 and maintained that winning feeling in the opening fixture of the new campaign.

The team held off a strong Suffolk fightback to record an exciting 8-7 victory as the match went right down to the wire.

The narrow win matched the feat of the county first team, who edged their Suffolk counterparts 7-5 at Bawburgh earlier this month.

Norfolk’s seniors looked in control at Bury St Edmunds as they built on their 3-2 foursomes lead with a flurry of early points from the afternoon singles ties.

But Suffolk mounted a fine response in the later matches and for a time it looked as if they may turn the tables on their visitors.

In the end it came down to the final game left on the course with Norfolk’s captain John Tavener involved in a nip and tuck head-to-head with Gary Seaman.

The pair were all square playing the long par-4 17th hole, which Tavener won with a superb birdie.

That took the pressure off as it guaranteed the half-point that Norfolk needed to secure an outright victory over their traditional rivals.Also starring on the away side were Jon Baker-Odlin and debutant Iain Reid – both claimed two points apiece.

Fellow Norfolk new boy Steve Dunsire collected a very creditable point and a half from his two games, while Kelvin Burns marked his first appearance for the side by partnering Tavener in a hard-fought morning victory.

East Anglian Senior League result

Suffolk 7 Norfolk 8 (Played at Bury St Edmunds Golf Club)

Foursomes (Suffolk players named first)
Steve Crosby and Trevor Hellyer lost 3&2 to Jon Baker-Odlin and Iain Reid
Simon Goldsmith and Gary Seaman lost 2&1 to Steve Dunsire and John Little
Steve Duffety and Graham Sykes won 3&1 v Simon Butts and Phil Brown
Roger Taylor and John Newsome won 3&2 v Adrian Myhill and Mark Skipper
Roger Nicholson and Phil Smailes lost 2&1 John Tavener and Kelvin Burns

Singles
Nicholson lost 1-down to Baker-Odlin (Dereham)
Smailes lost 2&1 to Butts (Hunstanton)
Goldsmith won 2&1 v Little (Sheringham)
Newsome lost 3&2 to Reid (Eaton)
Sykes halved with Dunsire (Sheringham)
Taylor lost 4&3 to Myhill (Royal Norwich)
Duffety won 3&2 v Skipper (Eaton)
Crosby won 3&2 v Brown (Sprowston Manor)
Seaman halved with Tavener (Sheringham)
Hellyer won 5&4 v Burns (Great Yarmouth & Caister)