Mc Donnell Cup V Forrest Little

Mc Donnell Cup Semi Final vs Forrest Little 26th July 2025

Sutton 3 - Forrest Little 2

This semi-final was always going to be a tough encounter for our brave Mc Donnell Cup team, with 3 games away. A number of players were unavailable for a variety of reasons, and for the fourth match in a row a SGC Inter Club Debut was given to a new player. Congratulations to Shane Doyle on making his debut away in Forrest Little.

As the name Forrest Little suggests there are plenty of trees around the course and these were always going to provide interesting challenges to our players. We were treated to a variety of shots across all three matches. Over trees, Under trees, Through trees, Short of trees and adopting a cautious approach of leaving Drivers / Woods in the bag and hopefully going straight down the middle.

First out in Forrest Little were Johnny Lappin and Shane Doyle who made a solid start and were well in the game coming up to the turn with holes being shared .The Forrest Little pairing began to take control over the early holes of the back 9 and we were playing catch up from then on. The match finally ended on 16 with Forrest Little winning 3 up.

Martin Griffin and Chris Long led us off in the second match and had an eventful first 9, and they were 4 Down after 9. Nothing appeared to be going right for them. Chris even lost the head on the par 5, 6 th hole. (For clarification the head flew off his 7 iron when playing a shot). A quick glance from Martin to the Team Manager coming off the 10th tee, resulted in Martin being told “Go for it, there’s nothing to lose at this stage”. Whether Martin interpreted this to mean “it was a lost cause”, I don’t know but it lit the fire in the pairing and to say they were transformed in the back 9 was undoubted. Martin played consistent “par golf” and suddenly after 16 holes it was “game on”. Chris did not want to be left out either and slotted excellent putts on 17 and 18 to give us a 1 Up win on 18.

Such was the intensity of this game that all supporters had gravitated to this game for the last 4 holes. A special mention to VC Mark Hogan and Gordon Linehan for the live updating of the “Managers WhatsApp Group”, it kept everyone on tender hooks as shot by shot was relayed. This is the fourth interclub game in a row where Martin Griffin starts slowly and only “gets in the groove” when then match is in the balance late on. Any suggestions on how to hit his start button on or before 1st tee should be sent to Michael O’Halloran.

The 3 rd away match saw Dan O’Grady and Tim Savage pairing together for the first time. Tim had started the previous two rounds as a home player. Course strategy was a key consideration for this pair and in a tight match, they were hanging in well and a strong par by Dan on the 15 th brought the game to all square. Forrest Little won the 16th with an unbelievable 2 nd shot from trees ending up greenside. An exceptional drive by one of the Forrest Little players on 17 set up a short approach shot and a par won this game on 17.

So two to one away in Forrest Little was achieved, we had gained the important away point, which was our target. It was now down to the two Home Pairings.

For the second game in a row Robert Lyons Jnr and Bryan Gaffney led out the home pairings and Rob hit the ground running with four straight pars to start off, set the tone for the game. Both players complimented each other very well and were never headed in the match which they won comfortably on the 16 th hole, 4 Up. Could this pairing be the SGC Dream Pairing of 2025? They certainly are well in the running for this award at this stage.

Second out in Sutton were the experienced Fingal Seniors pairing of Brian Nevin and John Flanagan, fresh from winning their match in Howth against Donabate the previous day. This match ebbed and flowed all day, and was the last game standing with the scoreline of Forrest Little 2 and Sutton 2 for completed matches. Live Telephone communication and WhatsApp links were established from Sutton back to Forrest Little by both teams.

Unfortunately the Hogan / Linehan updates were a thing of the past, as they were now waiting patiently for updates on their phones.

Over to WhatsApp

“Sutton are 1 Up playing 17”, “we have a 12 foot putt for a half”….. “Missed” …. “Heading to 18 All Square”…. “ 4 drives in play on 18th - variable lies”….. “FL have the two closest putts on 18 th ”….”We make ours”. “HALF”. “Off to 19th ”

After a slight delay on the 18th green the match progressed to the 19th , Mark Hogan at this stage was starving for his curry in Forrest Little, as the Lady Captains dinner was getting priority as regards food servings.

WhatsApp awakens again: “good drives on 19th ”….. “2 nd shots on lower level on green”. “JF over the back”. “Their par putt misses, we miss, halved in 5s”. Onto the 20 th “Both FL drives onto fairway 120 yards out” “BN drives past them and JF in good shape also”. Onto 2nd Shots…” JF short left, FL 1 30 feet from pin, FL2 Knocks ball down, BN has just provided a piece of magic, ball less than 2 feet from hole” “BN birdies the 20 th for a dramatic win”. “Magic” “BN the King of Greatness”

What a dramatic climax to a long day, Well Done Brian and John. The food arrived in FL at this stage and it was quickly devoured. The formalities were concluded with short speeches by the FL Captain Martin Kelly and our VC Mark Hogan and both managers expressed their gratitude for the assistance provided by each club in arranging the match and conducting the games in a sporting manner. The convoy then left FL and headed for Sutton to join the home team in the celebrations.

Fantastic to reach our third McDonnell Cup Final in three years where Clontarf will once again provide the opposition. Final will be a two legged affair with Sutton at home in first leg. Thanks very much to Mark Logan for managing the team in Sutton and a special thanks to all the supporters who cheered the team on. A special mention for VC Mark, Gordon L, Mark L, and Nicola Hunter for the live updates in the final stages of the matches, the descriptions helped create visions in our heads as the games unfolded. Finally I must show my appreciation to all 18 players who have played in our Mc Donnell Cup run to the final this year.

Let’s do it one more time.

Mc Donnell Cup V Forrest Little

Challenge Trophy

Let’s get behind them as they #PushforthePennant2025