With the battle for Ryder Cup places set to begin in earnest in Melbourne this week, European skipper Sam Torrance already sees sound cause for optimism on this side of the Atlantic.

Only the events at The Belfry next September will fully reveal the qualities of leadership the Scot will bring to the European cause. Either way, his attitude is likely to be a trifle more tense than when he last led a European side 10 years ago in the Asahi Glass Four Tours event at the Royal Adelaide club in 1991 where they overcame the challenge of the Japanese, Americans and a combined Australian/New Zealand line-up.

Assessing Torrance's leadership on that occasion, his good friend David Feherty recalled how the Scot greeted each of his players as they came off the course: "Sit down, have a beer and relax."

Torrance didn't do much relaxing at Brookline, where he was assistant to Mark James. But he sees little danger of a repetition of the distasteful scenes which dominated the climax of a thoroughly regrettable clash.

"I believe our situation now can be best compared with 1985," he said. "Two years previously, at Palm Beach Gardens, we had the chance to beat them after years of suffering. And we should have done. It was a magnificent match which we ended up losing by a point.

"Everyone felt so bad when we sat in the team room afterwards because we knew we should have done it. But we took that feeling to The Belfry in 1985 and translated it into a famous victory. We only had to look at each other and we knew. I'm sure a similar feeling will exist this time. Maybe even more so."

That was the glorious occasion when Torrance, who had halved his singles with Tom Kite two years previously, had the immense satisfaction of beating Andy North on the treacherous 18th, for the decisive point. "It was always my ambition to hole the putt that brought back the Ryder Cup but being captain beats even that," he said. "It's the ultimate."

Recalling Brookline, he went on: "Anyone who was in the team room there is going to be really fired up. The power we'll get from that experience will be fantastic. What we've got to remember is not the 17th at Brookline, but the 18th at The Belfry. Brookline's gone. We've now embarked on a new mission."

The Scot has already had telephone calls and face-to-face meetings with his US counterpart Curtis Strange. And both men are acutely aware of their responsibilities in restoring sport and friendship to an event which remains one of the world's most respected tournaments.

"Curtis and I have shared quite a few beers over the years," he said. "I would like to think that we have a good relationship. We wind each other up, with me calling him `old man.' In fact it was only recently that I discovered he was younger than me." Torrance will be 48 in August whereas Strange celebrates his 46th birthday on the 30th of this month.

He concluded: "Whatever the players think of me, they must respect my decisions. They must also understand that I won't sacrifice a point just to give them a game. The team comes first."