GB&I close gap to two points

Britain and Ireland cut back Continent of Europe's lead to 6-4 on the second day of the Seve Trophy on Friday after two fourball sessions.

Stung into action by captain Colin Montgomerie's criticism of their performance on Thursday which ended with the team 4-1 down, Britain and Ireland overcame a bad start to dominate the continental side at the Wynyard club.

Montgomerie felt his message had got across, saying: "My words had the desired effect, the team were all fired up and raring to go."

In a reversal of captains' fortunes from the previous day, however, both Montgomerie and Jose Maria Olazabal lost.

Montgomerie and partner Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland lost 3 and 2 to Scandinavians Thomas Bjorn and Henrik Stenson, the only undefeated pair so far.

Olazabal and Miguel Angel Jimenez went down heavily, 5 and 4 to Englishmen David Howell and Paul Casey.

Britain and Ireland's deficit might well have been less, though, if Welshmen Bradley Dredge and Stephen Dodd's match had not got off to a bizarre start, with Europe going one-up without finishing off the first hole.

With shades of his fellow Welshman's error in the 2001 British Open, Dredge accidentally began with 15 clubs in the bag and the first hole had to be conceded.

In the end, Dredge and Dodd lost 2-down to Dutchman Maarten Lafeber and Italy's Emanuele Canonica with Dredge claiming his mistake had been the difference between winning and losing.

"It is normally a two-iron or a four-wood, not both, but when I played the first I realised we had both in the bag," said Dredge. "It was annoying to give a hole away so cheaply, that was the difference."

Irishmen Paul McGinley and Padraig Harrington, the pair whose last-hole defeat the previous day enhanced Europe's position to 4-1, got Europe off to the best of starts with a 3 and 1 success over Swedes Niclas Fasth and Peter Hanson.

Then Howell and Casey's 10-birdie haul saw the margin of Europe's lead cut to a single point.

Ian Poulter, having had a difference with Montgomerie the previous night, and Nick Dougherty inflicted a second heavy defeat on Europe, overcoming Jean-Francois Remesy and Thomas Levet, the Frenchmen who had beaten Harrington and McGinley on the last the previous day, 5 and 4.

Almost immediately though, Montgomerie's match ended and then an eagle-two by Canonica on the par-four 15th led to Europe's second point.

Montgomerie had read the riot act to his troops the previous night, including ticking off Poulter for practising when the captain felt he should have been out urging the team on.

"We had to win the series today. Team games need passion and we were all disappointed at our performance yesterday. Now it's game-on," the Scot said.

"Bradley has apologised and we've all accepted that."

The well-beaten Olazabal said: "I got my ass whipped today. Those boys must have listened to what Monty said yesterday.

"I'm pretty happy to still be leading because for most of the day we were down in four and it looked like they were going to turn the tables."

The match moves on to greensomes on Saturday morning and foursomes in the afternoon, finishing with 10 singles on Sunday.

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