The victorious Ulster squad, from r.t.l.: Darren Warring, Adrian Leeson, Neal Pollock, Connor O'Hare, David Ayerst, Alan Megaw
What an astonishing win for the Ulster team! I had reported already yesterday on the ongoings at the Interprovincials in Galway, and had mentioned that Ulster were in a tight tussle with tournament favourites Connaught. Connaught had taken the lead with Niall Rooney and Ross Lillis making up for Ronan Tully’s close loss at position five. When I returned to the club Darren Warring (Ulster) had beaten Connor O’Shea in a contentious 3:1, and David Ayerst overcame Keith Moran by the same score, giving the tie to Ulster 3:2. Niall Rooney (Connaught) commented that before the match everyone knew these were going to be tight matches, but it was somewhat unexpected that all three of them would swing in Ulster’s favour. But they did and it would set the foundation for Ulster’s tournament victory.
Munster's B-Team: winners of the B-section!
Yet there were more matches to be played: Connaught faced Munster in a bid to keep pressure up on Ulster. Connaught beat the Munstermen handily, and Ulster would require a win over Leinster. Things didn’t begin well for Ulster with Adrian Leeson, who had scored a great victory over Tully earlier, had to pull out injured. Alan Megaw moved up from the B-Team and scored a solid 3:1 win over Pat Morrissey. It was Neil vs. Neal in match two, with Ulster’s Pollock overcoming Leinster’s Brannigan 3:0 – Brannigan being somewhat outraged by having a foot-fault called against him by his teammate Paul Byrne! At position one it was Connor O’Hare playing Dan Zilic (that’s me), and I lost to Connor 2:3 (how nice of me), succumbing 2:3 in an entertaining match! The last two matches were therewith meaningless, but saw an interesting encounter between Paul Byrne and Darren Warring (Warring won 3:1 after losing the first 2:11), and youngster Oisin Logan scoring a famous victory over David Ayerst. Ayerst might have been feeling the effects of two previous hard matches, but Logan put in the best performance of the weekend against the notoriously tricky Ayerst, frustrating the Ulsterman with incredible pick-ups and immaculate width and length; 3:2 to Logan.
Peter Murphy: Connaught B-Team player and organiser
Players relaxing and listening attentively during the presentation
In the B-section Munster took home the spoils, with a somewhat impressive team performance. Strength in depth, and a Knox brother playing at number one saw them win all their matches, leaving Leinster in second position. The two teams had faced each other earlier in a tight encounter – Phil Coleman had brought the score back to 1:2 for Leinster with an impressive win over David Knox, but Dave Borton, Irish international under 50, lost an epic five setter against Munster’s number three. The last rally of the match was particularly impressive with both players diving for the ball, unfortunately Borton doing so in vain.
The day finished with the presentations and words of thanks for the organiser Peter Murphy, the province captains, and of course the players. Thanks also goes to the Leinster, Ulster, Munster and Connaught Squash, without whose funding the event surely wouldn’t take place, and the players who did their provinces proud with some spirited performances. Dan Zilic
Mark Wilkinson of Leinster's B-team: absolutely delighted to represent his province and score a vital first point, following a tough 3:2 victory.
It’s the weekend when Ireland’s four provinces battle it out for the coveted Senior Interprovincial’s title – this time in the wonderful Galway Lawn Tennis Club! On the bright side: all four provinces were able to send down an A & B team each. On the down side: again no ladies’ competition. Also, as in previous years, there is a notable lack of many players in the top ten of the Irish Grand Prix, with no current national team players attending.
Nonetheless, we have already witnessed some cracking matches and the atmosphere at matches has been intense. Personally, I am a big fan of the Interprovincials and am also responsible for managing the Leinster squad. I played the first time five years ago when Derek Ryan and John Rooney were battling out a close tie between Leinster and Connaught. As I mentioned, we have fewer top ten players attending this year, which on the plus side gives some players lower down the ranking a great opportunity to represent their provinces. And it’s great to see with how much passion these players are on court, trying their utmost best to score a point for their beloved province.
Following a loss (A) and a win (B), the Leinster A & B teams opt for Chinese food as their secret weapon for day two
Matches started yesterday, with Ulster – playing with Connor O’Hare and David Ayerst at positions one and two – overcoming Munster. Much to my delight, Kevin Knox is back on the scene representing Munster, after having to battle some back injuries over the past months. Ulster won the close tie nonetheless. Connaught are the title holders and were facing my team, Leinster. Pat Morissey of Freshford gave us a great start coming from 0:2 down to beat Ronan Tully 3:2, but it was downhill from there as Neil Brannigan lost to Ross Lillis, I lost to Niall Rooney, Paul Byrne (playing at three) lost to Connor O’Shea, and U17 player Oisin Logan went down to Keith Moran 1:3.
In this morning’s matches Munster beat Leinster 4:1 (I salvaged an honourable point against Kevin Knox at one) and Ulster were still battling Connaught while I am writing. The first two matches between Adrian Leeson and Ronan Tully, as well as Ross Lillis and Neal Pollock, were both huge five setters, with teams sharing the spoils. But Connaught are slight favourites to beat Ulster and set themselves up for a title defense.
In the B section Leinster were able to beat Connaught yesterday evening, but went down to Munster this morning. Therewith it looks like the title race will be decided between Munster and Ulster.
Following the soon to begin afternoon matches there will be a an official dinner and presentation, followed by further festivities in Galway city center – deserved reward for some tough matches. Dan Zilic
Ireland’s sports star Madeline Perry is one of the world’s top squash’s players – but only a few years ago she was told she might never play again following a life- threatening assault. This article from “Beyond” reports on her inspirational story and her dream of making squash an Olympic sport.
As sporting comebacks go, it surely has to be one of the most astonishing around. In 2007, top squash player Madeline Perry nearly died following an attack outside a restaurant in Milan, Italy. The incident, which left her with a severe brain injury and a broken temporal bone in her skull, would have finished many off but not only did Madeline recover, she was back on the court within weeks of the attack.
Astonishingly she even went on to win her comeback tournament, landing the Irish national title in Dublin.
If that wasn’t enough, a year later she reached the semi- finals of the 2008 World Championship, and by 2011 she was ranked number three in the world. Incredible when you consider that doctors told her she might never play top-level sport again.
Madeline, who has been ranked in the world’s Top 10 for the past decade, said: “It took me about 10 months to get back to that sort of level. I had problems with concentration for a long time. I don’t know whether it was a medical thing, or just because something major had happened which made it hard for me to focus on playing squash, when I was thinking about so many other things.
“To have something like that happen and to have to work my way back up there again was tough.But by the time I got to the semi-finals of the World Championship I felt really good physically. And I felt I could probably go on longer in my career than I’d actually wanted to.”
A real fighter all the way, Madeline – who is originally from Northern Ireland but now lives in Halifax having moved there in 1999 – went on to win the 2010 Australian Open -one of the game’s Grand Slams, and only a few months ago she reached the quarter-finals of the World Open in the Cayman Islands.
The 36-year-old has nine WSA World Tour titles and eleven Irish National titles to her name, and has been backing the bid to make squash an Olympic sport for some time now. Indeed, given squash’s huge international reach and popularity, it’s puzzling to think that the game remains a non-Olympic entity. The sport is played by 20 million people in 185 countries, while more than 850 players from 74 nations compete on the professional tour. It is something that clearly grates with Madeline, who for the past few years has worked tirelessly to get the sport recognised as an Olympic event.
In 2009 it lost out on gaining Olympic status at the 2016 Games to golf and rugby and this September will be decision time to see whether it will be included at the 2020 games. When you consider the amazing mental toughness and determination Madeline has had to show to get back to the top of her game, it certainly seems criminal that she was unable to compete in London 2012 last year.
Madeline, who trains at Queens Sports Club with other World ranked squash players, said: “Last year was tough watching the Olympics and thinking ‘here I am at the prime of my career and I’m not involved.’ It was pretty depressing, to be honest. “Squash is a huge sport and to have the chance to represent my country on the world’s greatest sporting stage would be amazing, not just for me, but for all players around the world. Sadly it will be too late for me now to perform on such a stage, but I will keep working and promoting the sport in the hope that one day it will become the Olympic sport it deserves to be.”
Madeline has spent her life travelling the world playing the game she first started aged 11 and was recently No 1 Seed at the Tournament of Champions held in a specially built glass court in the centre of Grand Central Station.
But modest Madeline says it is not the fame and fortune she craves. She said: “Celebrity and fame is a very powerful thing but squash players don’t have that. We just have to try and build the profile of the game. This year will be hugely significant for the future of squash as the International Olympic Committee decides in September whether to add it to the roster for the 2020 Games.”
It might be too late for Madeline to play in that but if anybody deserves to see the sport achieve Olympic status it is the plucky Irish woman who loves making a racket about the game.
On Friday 15th and Saturday 16th February Dublin City University Squash Club had the pleasure of hosting the annual Squash Inter-Varsities 2013.
The event was attended by students from seven other universities across Ireland, namely National University of Ireland Galway, Royal College of Surgeons Ireland, Trinity College Dublin, University College Cork, University College Dublin, University of Ulster Jordanstown, and Queens University Belfast.
Approximately 140 people participated in the competition which was played in the Dublin City University Sports Complex and ALSAA.
Over the two days the high level of squash was brilliant to watch and there were some very tight matches in all divisions. The Men’s D was won by University College Cork. Trinity College Dublin came away with the trophy in both the Men’s C and Men’s B divisions.The Men’s A final came down to University of Ulster Jordanstown and University College Dublin. Both teams battled for the win, with the first three matches going to 3-2 in favour of UCD. It was no easy win for them, but UCD deservedly took the trophy home. In the Women’s B competition it was UCD again who picked up the trophy, with convincing wins in all their matches. It was the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland who came out on top in the Women’s A.
Overall, the event was a great success.
Winners as follows:
In the Men’s Events:
In the Women’s Events:
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Please note that the Irish Open O35 and O40 has changed date to the weekend of the 22nd/23rd March
Entries are invited for the Irish Open Mens O35/O40 Tournament to be held in Mount Pleasant Squash Club between between Friday, March 22, 2013 to Saturday, March 24, 2013
Tournament contact: John O’Connor
Phone:01 6251145
Email: [email protected]
Tennis legend
Roger Federer is backing Squash to be added to the Olympic Games programme in 2020.
“I think it’s a wonderful sport. It’s unfortunate some sports don’t get the opportunity to be in the Olympics,” said Federer. “I think squash would deserve it. They run a great tour and they have great players and characters. I’d personally be very happy for them.”
The 17-time major champion had the opportunity to meet women’s squash world No1 Nicol David at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam. Federer expressed his support to David and revealed he played the sport growing up.
“I used to play it a lot when I was younger every Sunday with my dad,” Federer said. “I started with a wooden racquet like I did in tennis. I’ve always been a big fan of the sport.”
Federer and David conversed over dinner. David, a native of Malaysia and resident of Amsterdam, was thrilled to spend quality time with the Swiss superstar.
“It was exciting. He’s such a great guy and true champion,” said David. “He’s so down to earth. He showed us what it’s like behind the scenes to be a tennis player.
“It’s very similar to squash,” added the 29-year-old from Penang who has topped the women’s world rankings since August 2006. “So it’s been great to spend time with him.”
When asked if she played tennis, David said: “I’m a tennis fan but not a player. I follow Roger’s progress and he definitely brings the sport up to another level.”
World Squash Federation President N Ramachandran was delighted by the tennis star’s endorsement: “It is fantastic to have Roger Federer supporting Squash’s campaign to join the Olympic Sports Programme.
“His endorsement means a great deal because he is a true sporting icon who knows what it means to compete at the Olympic Games.”
Modern Pentathlon survived yesterday’s International Olympic Committee vote on the sports to play a part in the 2020 Games. The one that has to fight for its place alongside seven other prospective sports is wrestling.
The amateur sport which features in the Olympic Games and has done so since the 8th century has been overtaken by the brash professional version in recent years.
There are around a dozen clubs in operation around the country and Ireland does have an Olympic heritage sending Gerry Mortina to the 1956 and 1960 Games where he came fourth as well as a number of other competitors down the years.
The sport is presently strongest in the US where it has a strong college base and there will be a likely surge to retain its position when that choice is made in Argentina in the autumn. Among the sports battling to replace it is Squash. The sport made an important choice yesterday in creating parity of prize money between the men’s and women’s events at the US Open this year.
Equality is important within the Olympic movement with new sports only chosen if they offer equal access to both sexes. The greater reach of Sevens Rugby among women was a determining factor in that variant of the sport being chosen to make its Olympic bow at Rio in three years time.
Reproduced from ‘Sport for Business’, February 13th 2013
Intervarsity rivalry will be heating up this weekend as hosts DCU Squash Club and Frank Donnelly take on the mammoth task of organising the 2013 Squash Intervarsities Competition between the 15th – 16th February. The event is sponsored by Campus Property Ltd and Irish Squash.
115 Students from eight universities – DCU, UCD, TCD, RCSI, UCC, NUIG, Queen University Belfast and University of Ulster will be competing throughout the weekend.
Matches will be played in the DCU sports complex and ALSAA sports complex with competition beginning on Friday 15th at 1pm in DCU. Matches will conclude by 7pm on Saturday 16th.
Irish Squash would like to wish all the players the best of luck and we look forward to some great matches!
World No.1 David, took on a confident No.8 seed Ireland’s Madeline Perry, who impressed crowds with her enthusiasm early on in the tie. Maintaining a high-pace, the Irishwoman kept her opponent moving, and found a tight working drop to put the pressure on David in the early exchanges. The Malaysian was happy to wait for her own opportunities however, and countered Perry’s efforts at the halfway point to stretch out a lead for the first game.
The second game saw a similar pattern as Perry raced out of the blocks, cutting the ball short and making David scramble to retrieve. Again at the halfway point, David began to assert herself on the court. Intricate line and length combined with precision drop shots gives the Malaysian a two game lead.
Perry again starts the new game powerfully, an increased pace followed by some accurate short play gave the experienced Irishwoman a four-point lead early on. Varying her short and long shots, she slowly adds to her lead with David struggling to find her foothold in the match. ‘Resilient’ is one word to describe the world No.12 in this game, and she certainly deserved a comeback game.
David gathered her composure in between games, and returned to court refocused as she took an early lead. She slowly added to her lead as the rallies progressed, denying Perry any cheap points and making the Irishwoman work for every inch. Perry hit the tin to give her opponent match ball, before deep crosscourt nick ends the contest in the Malaysian’s favour.
Final:
[1] Nicol David (MAS) v [2] Raneem El Weleily (EGY)
Semi-finals:
[1] Nicol David (MAS) bt [8] Madeline Perry (IRL) 11-6, 11-7, 4-11, 11-7
[2] Raneem El Weleily (EGY) bt [3] Alison Waters (ENG) 11-9, 11-9, 11-5
If you are lucky enough to be representing Ireland in Squash you will shortly be able to wear the latest new designs – shown below. All of this sportswear is manufactured using the latest high performance fabrics ensuring breathability, perspiration transfer and evaporation and comfort. The New National kit is provided by Samurai Sportswear and will also be available to purchase online through the Irish Squash website.
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