Halifax & Huddersfield Union 23 – 13 ERUGC
Halifax Golf Club
Sunday 12th July, 2026
On a cloudless day, high up on Ogden Moor, reigning YIDU champions Halifax & Huddersfield overcame a patched up and spirited East Riding team to maintain their 100% start to the season.
Due to an alarming lack of availability, ER Team Captain Rees Brown brought in some new faces for the long trip to Halifax Golf Club and had to pretty much send out six brand new pairings for the morning foursomes.
The new opening combo was inspired. Tom Duck and Leigh Gawley claimed a serious scalp when they got the better of Yorkshire regular Habib Khan and his partner Josh Bailes by a score of 2&1.
In the second match, Jack Maxey teamed up with Hull’s Blake Ellison, playing his first ER match for some 25 years following much of that time in the pro ranks in Thailand. They ran into a hot Crosland Heath pairing of Hanson and Rushworth and succumbed 5&4.
The home team then pressed on to record wins in matches 3 and 4, with the East Riding pairings of Steve Dale and Steve Sorrenson followed by youngsters George Pepper and Huxley Sawyer (pictured below) finding the terrain and slow greens tricky in the stiff breeze.
In match 5, Mason Sleight of Brough made his debut alongside Olly Beckett. Their similar games proved a strong partnership and they chalked up East Riding’s second win of the morning by a margin of 3&2. They are pictured below eyeing up a putt at the 6th.
In the anchor match, George Clark and Will Storr (pictured below on the 18th) were up three times, but lost balls at 15 and 17 handed the advantage back to H&H. However, the Hull duo dug in and won the last to snatch the half they deserved.
7-5 to Halifax and Huddersfield at lunch.
The singles began with Tom Duck going out first and running into the hot putter of Scot Minto. Despite five birdies of his own, Tom lost at the legendary downhill par 3 17th.
Jack Maxey was not in mood to leave West Yorkshire without a point in match 2 and inflicted Habib Khan’s second loss of the day on the home green in another high quality encounter.
Sadly the match began to slip away from East Riding’s grasp, as the next six matches were all going the way of the host union. The East Riding tail was certainly wagging, with most of the morning’s points scorers heading for unbeaten days, but it always looked an uphill (pun absolutely intended) struggle.
And so it transpired that Halifax and Huddersfield kept adding points to their tally throughout the middle order to reach the magic 19 points (and beyond). Matches 3 to 8 were all wins for the home side with Blake Ellison going closest for ERUGC against the highly rated George Hanson.
Mason Sleight completed a dream debut with an assured 4&2 singles win. Olly Beckett was pegged back late on to only manage a half and Will Storr won on the last. George Clark completed the day’s golf with another half, when his opponent bravely holed from 15 feet at the last to tie the match.
So a 23-13 defeat to the reigning champions, but certainly no disgrace on a quirky course with tiny greens in strong winds.
Thanks to Halifax Golf Club for their hospitality, to Howard Palmer for his team support as always and Tom Elder who announced the result on behalf of President Alan Hutchinson who was supporting the juniors at Rudding Park.
Onward to Woodhall Hills on Sunday 2nd August when ERUGC visit Bradford Union.
Jonathan Clark
ERUGC Press Secretary
