STOKE by Nayland moved a step closer to the Mail On Sunday Classic finals with a closely-fought victory over Bentley.

They won 3-2 in their sixth-round match on the Constable course.

Paul Nuttell opened up for Stoke and did well to take the match to the 17th but he eventually lost 2&1.

Trevor Warren marked his match debut with a strong 4&3 victory, while Ian Collett won 3&1.

Ian Smith claimed a 3&2 victory to seal their win.

In the final match out, play-off player Martin Cotton was four up after seven holes but was pegged back to all square, by the 13th.

And the Bentley player then took a one-shot lead on the 16th which he held onto until the 18th, to win one-up.

Julian Lamb’s Captain’s Charity Day saw164 players take part in the progressive stableford competition.

The winners were Kyle Worster, Dan Mills, Patrick Pace and Steve Mills with 119 points, after they finished three clear of the rest of the field. A raffle raised an impressive £4,734.09 for St Helena’s Hospice.