St Peter's York,
Squash History

The first ever inter-school match was played at Queen's Club between Haileybury College and St Peter's on January 5th 1926. Haileybury won by two matches to one, but J.N. Bullen of St Peter's was deemed to be much the best individual player.

Matches were:
M Wordsworth(Haileybury) lost to J.N. Bullen, 9-15, 7-15. M.E.C. Chassiron (Haileybury) beat G.A. Delgao 15-12, 15-11. J.G. Edmiston (Haileybury) beat N.R. Dobrée 18-16, 15-7.

The same issue of our school magazine "The Peterite" has a detailed account of other games in the Public Schools' Squash Rackets Championships at Queen's Club, the opponents being York Garrison, Bedale Hunt and Liverpool Racket Club.

The Head Master who was a squash international was Samuel F. Toyne who had been a Master at Haileybury before coming to us. (He was also a first class cricketer.)

The history of the school written by Angelo Raine says that new squash courts were built at the school in 1913 at the cost of Mr Toyne, who presented them to the school as a thanks offering for peace in 1919. They were covered and electrically lit, and during the war were put to military uses. Mr Toyne captained England against America.

The same paragraph in the history records that in the Annual Public Schools Squash Racquets competition of 1923, a Peterite, E.G.H. Mack, was only beaten in the final, and in 1925, J.N. Bullen won the Northern Championship for those who had not competed in the Bath Club Cup.