GOLF: Of all the holes on the old course at Ballybunion, the 18th is a touch quirky. It measures just 379 yards and, on days like yesterday, all it takes is an iron off a tee that has the Atlantic Ocean as a backdrop and then a short iron approach through a tunnel of sand hills to reach the elevated green.

Yet, for all its idiosyncrasies, it contrives to produce many dramatic moments.

And none more so than that enacted by Mark Campbell, who secured Ireland's hard-earned 8-7 win over England in the Men's Amateur Home International by holing a right-to-left breaking 45-footer for birdie on the last - to halve his match with David Skinns - and keep alive Ireland's prospects of winning the Raymond Trophy for the first time since 1992, when they shared the title with England.

What's more, if Ireland can beat Scotland - 9 ½-5 ½ conquerors of Wales yesterday - in today's final series of matches, in what is effectively a head-to-head, then they will also have achieved the Grand Slam.

Mark Gannon, the non-playing captain, was on the team that last achieved such a feat, at Conwy in Wales in 1990, but he warned, "There's a long way to go. These matches are just so tight, even tighter than anyone could have envisaged."

Yesterday's match certainly went to the death, with no fewer than five of the singles between finishing on the 18th. The morning foursomes had been shared 2 ½-2 ½, and the close nature of the contest was maintained throughout the singles. Only Noel Fox, leading from the front, who finished his match with Gary Lockerbie by firing in a four-iron tee shot to six feet for birdie on the 15th to seal a 4 and 3 win and European amateur champion Brian McElhinney, who had an outstanding 5 and 4 win over Walker Cup player Michael Skelton, had the luxury of winning out the country. For everyone else, it was a day for the hard questions to be answered.

And, when push came to shove, the Irish players were up to the task. Darren Crowe maintained his unbeaten campaign with a one hole win over Graeme Clark - hitting a nine-iron approach to two and a half feet on the 18th for the decisive winning birdie - and Irish close champion Mark O'Sullivan showed nerves of steel when getting up and down from short of the green for par on the last to secure a one hole win over John Kemp.

With Michael Sinclair battling to a halved match with Ross Fisher - the Knock player making a great par four on the last when using the banks of the sand hills to work his third shot to five feet - and Mervyn Owens also achieving a halved match with Richard Walker, in his case losing the last after a pulled tee-shot into the rough, O'Sullivan's win actually meant that Ireland were at least guaranteed a share of the spoils.

But they wanted more, and Campbell, in the only match remaining, was the only player capable of achieving outright victory for Ireland. To do so, he needed to overturn a one-hole deficit with two holes left.

Campbell, who is studying for a masters in psychology at UCD, very nearly didn't get to play the 18th.

Knowing that he needed to get something out of his match, he sent his 25-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole some five feet past the hole, and the Stackstown man was forced to make the clutch putt to keep his match alive. Hole it he did, however, and that ensured he could make the short walk to the 18th tee rather than shaking hands with his opponent.

On the 18th, Campbell hit a three-iron off the tee to the right hand side of the fairway. He was so pumped up that he was some 30 yards past Skinns, but the Englishman applied the pressure by hitting his approach shot on the green, 20 feet from the pin.

Campbell's wedge shot pitched by the hole, but ran 45 feet by.

A couple of weeks ago, the Irish squad had spent a two-day training session at the old course and one of the drills that captain Gannon had insisted on was that the players had to spent a considerable time pitching and putting on and around the greens, but especially the 18th.

"I actually fancied my chances of holing the putt," remarked Campbell, who dispatched the ball some 12 inches outside the hole and, from about six feet out, it never looked like going anywhere but into the middle of the hole.

When Skinns failed to convert his birdie putt, it meant that Ireland had beaten England, and set up a showdown with the Scots, whose win over Wales left them with one and a points from their opening two matches.

Technically, Ireland, the only country with a 100 per cent record, only need to draw the match with Scotland to secure outright victory.

A win, though, would give Ireland the triple crown for only the third time. On the previous two occasions, at Lahinch in 1987 and Conwy in 1990, Gannon was a player.

Scotland, though, can also claim the trophy by beating Ireland.

"We are expecting another close match, an even battle," insisted Gannon, who has made a number of changes for the foursomes where Owens is omitted.

The only pairings that remain the same are yesterday's winners, Kilpatrick/Sinclair and Kehoe/Campbell.