Cambs Squash

LAST CALL FOR ENTRIES

League season over and you are still desperate for competition?

The 8th Annual Graded Squash Tournament is being held at St Ivo over the weekend of 17-18th April.
There is prize money and Prince equipment to be won in the 4 events which cater for all playing standards.

Adult description
Grade A – County Players or Division 1 players in County Leagues
Grade B – Middle team player, but not yet County Standard
Grade C – Regular Players representing lower club teams
Grade D – Players who have not represented their club teams

Cambridgeshire U19 Team

Cambridgeshire Boys U19 having cruised their way to the finals of the U19 event were on a high as they started the weekend in Manchester. The top four teams in the country to play off for the title were Cambridgeshire, Yorkshire, Surrey and Gloucestershire.

Cambs were faced with Surrey for their first match and were quietly confident as Surrey hadn’t managed to field their strongest side.

THE RUN –IN

So we are at the sharp end of the season again with the last few matches and then cup semis and finals.
So how’s it shaping? Well for those of you who check out “results zone" you can figure it for yourselves- but for a totally biased and completely predjudised view then here goes-
Div 1 looks like going Peterboro’s way with Hunts County taking 2nd place- they are also scheduled to meet in the Cup Final and that should be a cracker.

Ladies Senior Inter-County 7th + 8th March at St Albans.

Team: 1 Carrie Hastings, 2 Julia Dolman, 3 Mhairi Dougal, 4, Elsje Van Es, 5, Carol Hargreaves, 6, Nicky Hastings

We were fortunate enough to only have to travel to St Albans as there other two teams were Devon and Somerset.

We had hoped to have a team of 7 players to give more players the opportunity to play and to give the chance for Elsje Van Es (aged 16) some senior match experience.

Unfortunately Anne Babtie, Kate Gray and Faye Kowalewsky couldn’t make it and we ended up with a weakened, but keen, side.

This weekend at the National Squash centre our u19 Squad of Sammy Chambers; Daniel McGinn; Robert Dadds; Peter Dickinson and Declan Osborn
play for a 2nd time in the National Finals.

Those of you who follow these columns will know that these boys have won u15 and u17 titles and that effectively next year is "their year" - this year is another warm-up but hey guys if you win it early that would be ok!!

Irrespective of the results these lads have done the county proud and for a fuller preview please review the Youth Scene report in last Saturday's Cambridge Evening News.

Report: Inter Counties Stage II Premier RELEGATION.
Location: Lumb Farm SC, Derbyshire
Date: 7th/8th March 2009.

Match 1: Cambridgeshire v Buckinghamshire.

County U-15 boys step up to second stage matches.

Is there really a Cambridgeshire under-15 inter-county team?
Well the U-15 team may not be as well-known as are the Cambridgeshire elite but they are not Cambridgeshire lite: they have trained hard together and will fight for every point no matter how strong the opposition.

Last November in the first stage matches against Suffolk, Norfolk, and Leicestershire we ended up beating Suffolk on points and finishing second overall. This was down to only a handful of extra games won, despite narrowly losing our actual match against Suffolk.

A VIEW FROM THE (NATIONAL)BALCONY

With the Senior Nationals just completed it was the turn of the top Juniors in the u19 and u15 to compete at the National Squash centre in Manchester from 19-22 Feb.

As seems to be a regular occurrence these days a relatively large party from the Cambs leagues decamped to Manchester for several days.

These championships seem to get tougher every year and a high ranking is necessary just to be accepted into the qualifiers and after 2 tough matches potentially – you run into a fresh seeded player. The lot of the qualifier is not an easy one!!!.

'Get Back Into' - Squash.

Readers to these columns will know that whilst we have had considerable success at Junior and Masters levels we are always looking to enlarge our player base. As such this course could be just the thing for you or someone you know looking to get back into it or improve their skills.

'Get Back Into' - Squash - is aimed at adults minimum age 16, who are either beginners or players who haven't played for a while or are just getting back into the game.

VIEW FROM THE BALCONY

A few well deserved name checks in relation to recent tournaments-

The Nationals

Great to see Sammy Chambers and Ahmed El Refee at the qualifiers- this top-flight experience will stand them in great stead – well done guys.

However, pride of place at the nationals has to go to long time Cambs favourite Carole Page. Of course readers of these columns will know that Carole is no stranger to national success –she already has 4 age group titles.