WYNYARD presented a stuff challenge for the field of top amateur golfers when Yorkshire clinched the Northern Counties title.

The Wellington Course, playing over 7,000 yards, was graced by 42 players and included some notable high achievers over recent months such as Trevor Foster who won the British Seniors Amateur Championship at Royal Porthcawl and Nick Poppleton, the 2018 Brabazon Trophy winner.

Teams from seven counties battled over 36 holes of stroke play with all the scores from their six-man team counting for each round.

Yorkshire will now represent the North of England in the England Golf Men’s County Championship on September 28-30 at Aldeburgh.

Five of the Yorkshire team recorded sub-par rounds on the morning as they came in for lunch with a score of 420.

Dan Bradbury had a five under par 66 and was backed up by Bailey Gill (68), David Hague (69), Ben Hutchinson (69), Poppleton (71) and Sam Bairstow (77).

Yorkshire had a slim three shot lead after the first round with Cheshire hot on their heels with a score of 423, followed by defending champions Northumberland on 428, hosts Durham on 429, Cumbria on 435, Lancashire on 436 and the Isle of Man trailing on 455.

The lowest score in the morning was recorded by Lewis George from Cheshire with an outstanding 65, seven under par for the Wellington Course.

Another six shot three under par or better, namely Ciaran Doherty (Lancashire) 67, Phil Ridden (Northumberland) 68, Andrew Wilson (Durham) 68, Ben Hallam (Cheshire) 69, Matty Lamb (Northumberland) 69 and Jamie Birkbeck (Durham) 69.

The course played very fairly and county supporters who went to Wynyard to were rewarded with a tight finish.

Cheshire showed great consistently in the afternoon, recording a second round score of 425 for an overall total of 848, 16 under par for their 12 rounds played.

Yorkshire had work to do to win the championship for the third time in the last five years and they delivered.

They played consistently in the second round, recording 424 for a 20 under par championship total of 844 and a four shot victory over Cheshire.

In third on 860 was Northumberland with fourth placed Cumbria on 863, followed by Lancashire on 864, Northumberland on 874 and finally the Isle of Man on 917.

A further seven scores in the 60s were recorded in the second round with Ben Hutchinson matching the best of the day round of 65, closely followed by Luke Walker (Cumbria) with a 66, Bailey Gill 67, Ciaran Doherty with yet with another round of 67 to his credit, Lewis George 68, Matty Lamb 69 and James Glenn (Durham) 69.

The scoring from the Northern Counties was simply stupendous on the Par 74 track with 45 rounds out of the 84 played being under or level par. Yorkshire and Cheshire recorded nine of their 12 rounds level or under par.

Lewis George won the best 36 hole score (133) for the second consecutive year, Dan Bradbury for the best morning round (66) and Ben Hutchinson for the best afternoon round (65).

Durham and Darlington’s Andrew Wilson will now head away with England in the Men’s Home Internationals this month.

He will be joined by Poppleton as two of the 11 leading players selected to represent their country at Conwy Golf Club, Wales, from September 12-14.

The team will take on the challenge of Ireland, Scotland and Wales as they bid to regain the Raymond Trophy, which they last won at Ganton, Yorkshire, in 2013.

Since then, Ireland have been the champions – snatching victory from England last year by just half a game point.

Wilson, 24, has had five top tens this season, including sixth place in the Brabazon.