Golf: Draw won't soften us up

RICCARTON, the 2005 winners, won't be fooled into thinking they've got an easy path into Saturday's final of the Evening News-sponsored Dispatch Trophy at The Braids.

The Baberton boys face Temple Seniors in tonight's quarter-finals, with the winners then taking on either Temple or Barnton Hotel.

Third, Silverknowes, Harrison and Carrickvale are the teams in the other half of the draw and any one of that quartet could go on and win the event's 112th staging.

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But Riccarton's Andy Laurence insists it is being disrespectful to the other four teams to claim they are in the easy half of the draw.

"We're enjoying the banter about that," he said. "It's not our fault that we're in the other half of the draw from the likes of Silverknowes, Harrison and Carrickvale.

"All we can do is try and beat the team that's in front of us and next up are Temple Seniors.

"That certainly won't be a pushover and, if we are lucky enough to win that one, Temple or Barnton Hotel will certainly be tough opponents in the semi-final."

Laurence, Stephen Marshall and Ian Gourlay were all in the winning Riccarton team six years ago, the odd man out being Chris Purves, who has come in for Grant McCall.

"The conditions this week have been a great leveller," said Marshall. "But we had a great win against Cramond on Tuesday and we're delighted to be in with a chance again.

"Three of us have been there and done it before and we know it's about trying to grind out those last few wins."

Laurence turned out for Harrison instead in recent years and he admitted: "I'm just glad they let me back in the team!"

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The added incentive for the Temple Seniors quartet of Iain Stavert, Ian Macaskill, Ian Fraser and Neil Hamilton is the chance of a head-to-head clash with the top Temple team. "That would be good," admitted Stavert, who played for Revenue GS in the event for a long time. "And I am pretty confident it wouldn't be a cakewalk for them."

Temple lost to RICS in the last-eight a year ago, having been semi-finalists in both 2008 and 2009.

On paper, they certainly have a team that is capable of lifting the trophy for the first time.

But Stuart Smith, Keith Millar, Gus Santana and David Miller will know they'll need to be on their game against Barnton Hotel.

Varun Varadharajan and Stephen Buckley are proving useful debutants, as is Stuart Crookston in the Third team that takes on Silverknowes in the first match out tonight.

"The last time I played up here was as a 16-year-old in the Lothians Boys' Championship," said the 43-year-old.

He had a spell in the professional ranks, during which he was attached to a club in Kent, Lothianburn, Brechin and Harburn before being reinstated as an amateur. "I'm really enjoying my Dispatch Trophy debut," added the one-handicapper at Bathgate.

"And, if we keep playing as we have been, then I think we could be hard to beat."

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Carrickvale, bidding to regain the trophy after seeing their three-year winning run ended by Silverknowes 12 months ago, face a tough task tonight against Harrison.

That will certainly be the sternest test so far this week for Simon Hermiston, who has come into the Carrickvale side for Scottish cap Allyn Dick.

"I've had a big pair of shoes to fill up here, that's for sure," admitted Hermiston. "Having said that, I felt I settled in quickly and myself and Davie Ewen played quite well in our first two matches.

"We were a bit scrappy the other night against Hailes but hopefully we can do better against Harrison."

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