JOHN Cockcroft fired rounds of 72 and 66 to scupper the big guns in the

Trafalgar Trophy over his home course Nelson.

But the 18-year-old Lancashire B team player cut it fine - he birdied the last hole to deny Blackburn's John Ashton who led after a first round 68.

Cockcroft, a student at Nelson and Colne College, also birdied three of the first five holes in his bogey-free four-under-par 66.

In contrast, his first round was littered with birdies and bogeys but straight-hitting Cockroft got it right after lunch to hoist himself into the Mitsushiba northern order of merit reckoning.

Scores: 138 J Cockcroft (Nelson) 72,66; 139 J Ashton (Blackburn) 68,71; 141 R Bardsley (Denton) 71,70, M Prue (Hillside) 71,70, P Kenyon (Hillside) 73,69; 142 P Thomason (Nelson) 72,70; 143 A Hamer (North Manchester) 75,68; 144 N Uttley (Nelson) 75,69, S Hamer (North Manchester) 73,71, J Reed (Blackburn) 72,72, G Bretherton (Nelson) 71,73, G Boardman (Castle Hawk) 70,74. BLACKBURN Driving Range's Jeff Mathews shot three-under-par 66 to win the Lancs PGA pro-am at Darwen yesterday.

The exiled Geordie, who competes in the county strokeplay championship first round at Duxbury Park today, won by two strokes from Denton's Mike Hollingworth.

Lancs PGA pro-am scores: 66 J Mathews (Blackburn DR); 68 M Hollingworth (Denton); 69 A Crompton (Haigh Hall); 70 J Hammond (Ormskirk); 71 I Taylor (Stonyhurst Park); 72 S Townend (Wilpshire), M Webb (Mossock Hall), L Notley (Preston), S Astin (Royal Lytham).

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