HAMPSHIRE captain Steve Williams believes his team’s chances of winning the English County Championship for only the second time in their history depends on being able to keep his seven-man squad as fresh as possible for the 108 holes of matchplay they face against Somerset, Lincolnshire and Lancashire, starting on Friday, at Wychwood Park.

Williams is looking to achieve what his predecessors Andy Bow, Alan Mew and Richard Elmes were unable to do in four previous attempts between 2007 and 2013 – by finishing top-of-the-table at the end of the round-robin event.

All three captains are members at Stoneham and Williams was quick to pick the brains of his clubmates in the search to find the missing ingredient that could create a title-winning recipe when they play at the Crewe club which has in the past hosted events on the Europro circuit.

Steve, who will lead Hampshire out in their 12th appearance in the finals since 1955, said: “In the past some people might have thought we were picking six players and a reserve.

“But after chatting to the last three captains to have played in the event, it is evident we need to make sure the players are as fresh as possible come the final match on Sunday so it is a squad game.

“Obviously, you might get to Crewe and when play gets under way, someone might not be playing as well as you were hoping – and as captain I will have the job of deciding what is the best team to pick on the day.

“That is where having players who can play in different pairings for the three morning foursomes is crucial and why Ryan Henley and Tom Robson are such great players to have to call on as they are very versatile in that format.

“Ryan can play with almost everyone in the squad and Tom has played in a number of partnerships in the league over the years.

“If everyone is playing well, then asking someone to sit out a session – I can play a different line-up in the six singles after lunch - might not go down well.

“But by Sunday, after two days of 36 holes in what could be trying playing conditions and against some of the best amateurs in the country, it can be very tiring - both mentally and physically.

“And in the end, being mentally fresh can be just as important when the English County Championship is on the line on the last day.”

Williams, who had the unenviable task of telling several players they were not in his seven-man squad despite some outstanding performances over the past month or so, is convinced getting the maximum out of his whole squad will be the key to finally winning the trophy last held by Hampshire when Justin Rose was in the team – aged just 16 – back in 1996.

Isle of Wight teenager Jordan Sundborg, who knocked out England’s number one junior on his way to the last eight of the British Boys at Royal Birkdale, and who was unbeaten in both his appearances for Hampshire, Isle of Wight and the Channel Islands in the Daily Telegraph South Eastern Group League, earlier this season, was probably the unluckiest of them all – his stunning 62 in the second round of the Courage Trophy at Corhampton two weeks ago came too late to affect the captain’s picks.

And Blackmoor’s Mark Burgess who made the seven that travelled to Minchinhammpton only to watch his team-mates collapse on the back nine as Lancashire ripped the trophy out of their grasp on the Sunday afternoon in Gloucestershire, has also been a dependable member of Hampshire, IoW & CI’s eight-man league team, and was closest to stopping Corhampton’s England A player Scott Gregory from landing his first Courage title in the penultimate strokeplay event in the county calendar.

After Hampshire came from behind to finish as South East Champions in the qualifier at Hendon back in July, all the talk was of the county trying to persuade the American college coaches of Florida State and William Woods University to release Harry Ellis and Billy McKenzie from their scholarships for one week to fly back to Cheshire.

But once that option was ruled out, Williams still had plenty of candidates to take their places – and he had no hesitation in restoring Stoneham’s Ryan Henley to the team.

Since he became a father for the first time last year, the three-time Hampshire Amateur Champion has missed a number of away games for the county, but he has been available for most of this season.

And after a slow start has shown the form that made him a fixture in the side over the past 15 years.

Henley will be making his sixth appearance in the English County Finals – matching the record jointly held by Brokenhurst’s Martin Young.

Both made their debuts in the event when La Moye staged the championships in Jersey back in 2002, to mark its centenary, and were on the losing side at Cleveland, in Durham, in 2007, Nottinghamshire’s Hollinwell a year later, at Norfolk’s Hunstanton in 2010, and again two years ago at Minchinhampton.

Robson makes his second appearance having himself been at college in the States in 2010, while Gregory, one of the fastest rising stars in the game, who was not able to break into the 2013 team, was an automatic pick for his captain, having finished fourth in the European Amateur Championship in Slovakia, in August, after an indifferent start to his first year as an England player.

The other youngster who has been making waves all year is North Hants’ Billy Watson - last year’s Hampshire Junior Champion, who in his first full season in the men’s ranks won the Solent Salver in August, for the best 72-hole aggregate in the Mike Smith Memorial and the Stoneham Trophy, and also claimed the Hampshire Open at Alresford, in July.

The 19-year-old is a member at the same club where Rose made his reputation - Justin finished fourth at The Open at Royal Birkdale less than two years after helping Hampshire and the islands land the English County Championship for the first and only time in the event’s 89-year history.

Hayling’s Darren Walkley, the current Hampshire, IoW & CI Amateur Champion, was ruled out of the Hendon qualifier because of work commitments but comes straight back into the team, fresh from retaining the county Order of Merit after its creation last year.

And Williams put his faith in the consistency and maturity of another Corhampton player in the shape of Sam Day, last year’s U21 captain, who was Hampshire’s leading points scorer in their four South Divison league matches this year.

Steve added: “Sam has been playing the best golf of his career so far, and although Surrey were unable to help us reach the league final by beating Kent at the end of last month, his performances in matchplay against those two counties and Dorset and Sussex convinced me he should be in the squad as much as any of the other players I have picked.

“Sam has also shown that when he is not playing, he is an excellent lad to have in the team room – I know he really helped our Colts captain Neil Dawson when Hampshire won the South East Qualifying match at Waterlooville – and he also qualified for the Brabazon Trophy this year, and made the cut at Hollinwell, showing his overall play has been very good.

“It was a very tough call to leave out Mark Burgess and Jordan Sundborg - Mark won his last four games for the county and Jordan was unbeaten this year in his four games and did so well at the British Boys.

“I would have been happy to take either player to the finals, but I could only take seven.”

Given the travelling time up to Crewe, Williams’ back-up team - including coach Rob Watts who helped Darren Clarke win the Open in 2011 – and the shortening daylight, Williams is also keen not to overgolf his players in practice on the 7,213 yard course over rolling countryside, having got some inside info on the course.

Williams revealed: “Ryan’s brother Darren played at Wychwood after he turned pro in 2002 while on the Europro Tour, and we have received some good information about what to expect.

“When we get up there on Thursday, especially if the course is wet after all the recent rain, we will try and get a good feel for the course without playing it too much.

“There is talk they might play off some forward tees to speed up play and with less daylight, but we are very conscious of the need to conserve our energies over the three days.”

Hampshire face Somerset on the first day on Friday, and will be keen to erase the memory of the 9-0 whitewash at a windswept Hunstanton on a miserable final day in Norfolk, back in 2010.