HERTS LADIES ended their five-day bid for the title of English county champions with a stunning 8-1 win over Surrey – seven wins and two halves – but it was Lancashire who in the end triumphed as the Herts final flourish moved them into second place, a re

HERTS LADIES ended their five-day bid for the title of English county champions with a stunning 8-1 win over Surrey - seven wins and two halves - but it was Lancashire who in the end triumphed as the Herts final flourish moved them into second place, a repeat of the previous year.

Yet the Herts team will reflect on their match on the second day against Gloucestershire which virtually ended their hopes, but with a little luck might have left them strong challengers for the title.

As East Region champions competing against five other English regions at Pleasington in Lancashire, they held the host team and eventual winners to a halved match on the first day, and in a ding dong tussle next day against Gloucestershire it was left to the final match to decide the result.

The foursomes were shared - Lucy Williams and Charlie Field won 3&1, Alison Franklin and Harriet Key lost 3&2, and Charlie Douglass and Steph McEvoy halved. In singles Lucy won 4&3, Steph won 3&1, Harriet lost 6&5, Charlie Douglass lost 3&2 and Alison Franklin lost by one hole, leaving Herts one down.

In the final match Charlie Field and her opponent Sian James were all square playing the 18th, and with both on the green the Gloucester girl was faced with a testing 41/2ft putt, similar to one she had missed in the morning.

This time she holed to halve the match and give Gloucestershire victory by five matches to four.

"We had felt confident that we could win the title, but after that setback we concentrated on taking second place," said team captain Jackie Foster.

"The girls were magnificent as they won 8-1, with seven matches won and two halved against Surrey to move us ahead of Gloucestershire into second place."

In foursomes Alison Franklin and Harriet Key halved, Charlie Field and Lucy Williams won by one hole, and Charlie Douglass and Steph McEvoy won 3&1.

In singles there were wins for Douglass one hole, Franklin 3&1, Field one hole, Tina Jeary 5&4, Key 8&7, and a half for Lucinda Mileham.

A day earlier they had achieved the same 8-1 result against Warwickshire, and before that had won a tight match against Lincolnshire 5-4, gaining only a half in foursomes and fighting back in singles with wins for Douglass 2&1, Williams one hole, McEvoy 5&4, Key one hole, and a half for Jeary.

Top player for Herts was Lucy Williams, who was unbeaten in her nine matches, winning seven matches with two halves for eight points.

The title was decided on the final day when Lancashire beat Gloucestershire 51/2-31/2 .

The final result being Lancashire, Hertfordshire, Lincolnshire, Gloucestershire and Surrey.

AS Charlie Douglass was playing in the English county championship on Friday, the Ladies Golf Union announced that she was one of 20 players chosen for the Curtis Cup squad for next year's match in America.

The squad announcement is part of the preparation for the match at Essex County Club in Massachusetts from June 11-13.

As she had previously announced that she intended to turn professional at the end of the season, she will have to decide between that or taking part in the prestige event in ladies' amateur golf.

HANNAH Burke, who has returned for her fourth year at Baylor University in Texas and was unable to play in the Herts county team in Lancashire, was soon in tournament action, finishing joint 13th in a national event in Colorado.

A final round of 69 after rounds of 72 75 gave her a level par total of 216.

She too has announced that she intends to turn professional at the end of her college career.

ANDY CLAPP (Brickendon Grange) was pipped for the Cambridge Meridian Classic by two strokes by Luke Eggleston (Orsett), who had rounds of 69 70 to Clapp's 73 68. Noel Quinn (Whipsnade) tied for third place, 76 67.

STEPH McEvoy has been awarded her Herts County Colours.