"I'd set my heart on winning it again but I was unable to switch dates," lamented the 16-year-old Deane seven handicapper.
Since his victory, John has gone on to represent his club in a number of team competitions and they have high hopes of clinching the Bolton Junior Championship.
A record entry of 103 youngsters will peg up at Sale - a third of them playing off single-figure handicaps - which is also the highest number for the event.
And there are three past winners in the field, including Mere clubmates Gina Brown and Charlotte Wild, the Cheshire girls' champion, who have also captured the JJB M.E.N. women's matchplay crown.
Rossendale's Daniel Butler has seen his handicap plunge from 21 to 12 two years after claiming our title.
But, as with everyone else, he'll be looking over his shoulder at the rest of the leading contenders.
Plus two
Among them are last season's British Boys' champion Matthew Nixon, from Ashton-under-Lyne, and Bury's Ciaran Doherty, who are both off plus two.
They will go out in the same group as the host club's Jonathon Davies at 1.30pm.
Immediately behind are Charlotte, off two and head girl last year; Gina, off one, and Accrington's Nikki Foster, a four handicapper.
This is the 11th staging of the tournament instigated by Martin Wild and it's helped to kick-start the professional careers of Danny Wardrop, who won his first EuroPro Tour event earlier this month; Sean Doherty and Martyn Hamer.
And several amateurs, including Manchester Hopwood's Kelly Tidy and Kamilla Lawton, the Northern Women's champion from Prestbury, have made their mark on the bigger stage.
Wild said: "As somebody who benefited from the now disbanded Manchester Young Golfers' Society, I regard the staging of this tournament as a bit of a personal crusade to ensure the junior golfers of the region have the opportunity to play in a top class event.
"I want to thank all the sponsors for their continued support, without them we would not be able to host such a professionally run event.
"I also want to record my personal thanks to Sale for hosting the tournament - they are an example to other clubs in the region."
The M.E.N. acknowledge the following sponsors: Bodycote, Deloitte, International Sports Management, Nike, Taylor Made, Adidas, Mitsushiba, Ping, Brand Fusion, Sinclair & Rush, Professional Golf Ball Services, Kink Par Corporation, True Temper Golf Shafts, JJB Sports, Callaway and HI-Tec.
The competition is also a Daily Telegraph junior qualifier, with the winner getting the chance to earn a place in the National Final in Dubai (details: juniorsport.telegraph.co.uk)
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