Week TEN - Tue 04 Mar

TVS Broxbourne  0-5  UniSport Guildford
   Rodney Durbach lost Stephen Meads  5,9, 5,9, 11,9, 6-9
   Danny Meddings lost to Stacey Ross  7-9, 14-12, 6-9, 9-6, 7-9
   Paul Carter lost to Neil Frankland  7-9, 6-9, 7-9
   Adam Long lost to Tom Richards  1-9, 1-9, 2-9
   Caroline Heal lost to Fiona Geaves  4-9, 2-9, 0-9

UniS save the best for last
Ian Robinson reports ...

UniSport Guildford saved their best result for the last match, when playing for a respectable mid table position to finish the season. It has been a long and arduous season deprived of the services of number 1 player and former World Number 4 Paul Johnson, but this was a just reward for some hard working performances by the remainder of the squad. Admittedly TVS Broxbourne who have already qualified for the end of season semi final play offs were deprived of the services of their regular first team players. Nonetheless this match still needed winning and was not a foregone conclusion.

Youngster, Tom Richards, got UniSport off to the best possible start overcoming Adam Long son of team manager and sponsor Geoff Long at TVS Broxbourne. Richards wasted no time in disposing of his opponent in a mere 14 minutes, in which he displayed great pace around the court and too much experience for his opponent, who in fairness deputised at the eleventh hour. This was Richards' first win for UniSport and was a great boost to the team to find themselves 1 - 0 in front so soon.

Fiona Geaves was next on the outside court and her task on paper seemed like a mismatch, a world top ten player against the local girl making good, Caroline Heal of TVS Broxbourne. Time was when the Broxbourne player appeared in Guildford colours, but that did not find any sympathy with the current Guildford player. After a promising start the Broxbourne player found some parity in the rallies but as the first game wore on Geaves established her authority and she made her class tell in losing only 6 points in all to clinch the match. Heal is an athletic player who hits the ball well, but Geaves is a different class and controlled the ball, ultimately creating too much pressure for the home player to resist. The travelling Guildford supporters were delighted to be 2 - 0 in front, believing that it surely was not possible to lose the match from here.

The signs were less promising on the championship court where Stacey Ross was engaged in a fierce struggle with former world top 20 player and Surrey team mate, Danny Meddings. Ross managed to steal the first game 9 - 7 narrowly, while Meddings got into his stride. But this was to disguise the battle that raged in the second where the match went to 14 - 12 in favour of the home player. This was proving to be a huge but rather messy match between 2 players who were desperate to win. There was not much daylight between the 2 players and what daylight there was went largely unnoticed by the match officials, who were playing far too prominent a part in a match between 2 very skilful players that should not have needed such a level of interference. The 3rd game saw a resurgence of Ross's control and he always had his nose in front, but despite a big effort to peg him back UniSport were back in the lead again. Still there were too many collisions between the winners that were now flowing from the rackets of both players. Meddings hit back in the 4th game establishing a lead and never really being threatened for it. Ross had lost the initiative and it looked like he was taking a rest, but with the match poised at 2 - 2 all and against such an experienced opponent that looked a foolhardy strategy. At the start of the 5th, Ross increased his hitting and suddenly found some winners to take him clear, but was pegged back by losing 2 points in one rally - one for hitting the ball down and the other for a conduct violation as the frustrations of the refereeing boiled over. He was undaunted and used that as motivation to press forward to take the game, but by the narrowest of margins. In the end it was appropriate that the match seemed to come to an unsatisfactory end when it should have been one of the many glorious winners that ended the contest. There was some great skill on show for the cognoscenti, but sadly there were also a lot of traffic problems as well.

This set the mood for the UniSport supporters to relax and enjoy the squash for the rest of the evening knowing that at least winning points were already in the bag. Neil Frankland was soon into his stride against veteran National Coach and former British National Champion, Paul Carter who was making a rare appearance as a player in the League. To his credit Frankland stuck to his task as Carter unleashed his bag of tricks on the match. Surprise winners off the service into the front court, guessing and volleying from obscure court positions and winners that were outrageous in their selection as much as improbable in their execution. Frankland stayed resolute and was quick enough if he needed to be to hunt it all down. He managed to build a lead in each game and give himself a platform to clinch it with a little to spare despite the resolve of Carter to contest strongly. This was an enjoyable match with the result never seriously in doubt.

At 4 - 0 Guildford supporters were deliriously happy even contemplating a 5 - 0. This was not going to be easy as Meads had earlier in the season been given a severe lesson in the first leg match. It was not going to be as one sided this time but it was not going to be easy either. Whereas Meads was full of bounce, Durbach was not. The Broxbourne man had journeyed back from America looking like it had been the 'red eye' not business class. Meads was quick to seize his chance, hitting the ball crisply he drove deep and wasted no opportunity to finish in the front court. By contrast Durbach was missing shots that he would normally take for granted and was laboured in his movement. The first game looked like the warm up game for Broxbourne, but Meads was happy to bank it and start again. The second followed a similar pattern. Meads was full of squash and Durbach still looked laboured. The score was the same as the first and it now seemed like this match was not going to become a contest. South Africans are tough competitors and Durbach is made of stern stuff and in case there was any doubt Meads found a revitalised man against him in the 3rd. It was very close, the rallies were lengthening and Durbach was finding his range coinciding with a loss of quality in the shots from Meads and the game was lost 11 - 9. However good order was restored for the Guildford man as in the 4th Durbach ran out of steam and Meads swarmed all over the court harrying him to defeat. This was a good performance by Meads and was just reward for a season spent chasing the tails of some of the world's best ranked players in the League. A 5 - 0 victory represented a terrific night's entertainment for UniSport Guildford even if it was at the expense of TVS Broxbourne who had already booked their place and were more concentrating on the semi finals.

At the end of season UniSport Guildford finish a creditable 4th position in the table with UK Packaging Connaught and Lee on Solent below. As we sign off for this season to check on Paul Johnson's long term injury problems, thoughts turn to next season. It still remains, however, for me to thank all those who have supported the cause this season and hope to see you all again in October.

Week NINE - Tue 18 Feb

UniSport Guildford  2-3  Chichester
   Stephen Meads lt Tim Vail  2/9, 6/9, 9/6, 4/9
   Stacey Ross bt Ritwik Bhattacharya  9/5, 11/9, 9/7
   Neil Frankland bt Ben Ford  9/1, 11/9, 3/9, 11/9
   Mick Biggs lt Chris Tomlinson  9/5, 2/9, 3/9, 5/9
   Fiona Geaves lt Linda Charman  0/9, 4/9, 10/8, 5/9

Revenge ... not on your life
Barry Hitchcock reports

Always aware that there is a great evening's Squash on the menu when we play host to Chichester, we looked at their team, without the likes of Messers Genever, Azlan and Garner and thought for a moment we may be able to get some minor revenge for the 5-0 drubbing we had in Chichester.

Fiona Geaves against Linda Charman was always going to be interesting. Linda had been beaten 3-0 in the Nationals by Rebecca Macree last week and Fiona had lost unexpectedly to Jenny Tranfield. Both have had to re-think things a bit since then. Linda stormed the first in very powerful style. Fiona recovered a bit in the second, but not enough to win it. An improvement in her form combined with a loss of focus from Linda gave her the third, but it was a very strong performance from Linda. Billed as the best women's match we have had on our courts this year, it was probably indeed that but did not really live up to its' full potential.

Meanwhile on the other court, local hero Mick Biggs was showing us why all his fans age noticeably over the course of one of his matches. Playing great squash, he took no longer to win the first game than Linda did on the show court. Finding this too easy, he tried to make it difficult playing dodgy drop shots from all over the court. Chris Tomlinson enjoyed them! UniSPORT were soon 2-0 done in matches.

The fight-back was led by stalwart Neil Frankland. He was never really troubled. His clean hitting and alert movement put two games in his pocket quite quickly. He lost concentration in the third and edged a very close fourth to at least put something on the score-board for the home team. Stacey Ross was in no mood to extend his match. Being a bit short of squash recently did not seem to affect his play and he disposed of Ritwik Battacharya without too much difficulty.

The scene was set for the first strings to some and do battle for the vital win. Tim Vale was on impressive form and showed why he has such outstanding results in this competition. He hit absolute winners from all over the court exposing more nicks than an apprentice barber. Backing this up with impressive retrieving, he was soon two games up and really rolling. Steve Meads stemmed the flow (of shots - no blood!) in the third but Tim just went back to the scenario of the first two games and clinched the rubber and the match for Chichester.

Some of the team were a bit wary on the way out. They were watching out for Ian Robinson, our local answer to Sir Alec, and expecting to have to dodge the occasional racket to the head, but unfortunately he was ill in bed and missing his first match in five seasons. We rang the Royal Surrey Hospital next door and stood down the doctors waiting with stitches in hand in case of incident.

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Week EIGHT - Tue 04 Feb

UniSport Guildford  3 - 2  Lee-on-Solent
   Stephen Meads beat Bradley Ball  9/4, 9/11, 5/9, 9/3, 9/5
   Stacey Ross lost Mark Heather  7/9, 9/7, 4/9, 9/1, 11/13
   Neil Frankland beat Ben Howell  9/4, 8/10, 9/5, 7/9, 9/3
   Mick Biggs lost Scott Fitzgerald  3/9, 5/9, 9/6, 3/9
   Fiona Geaves beat Tina Rix  9/2, 9/6, 9/3

UniSport squeeze past Lee
Ian Robinson reports
Injured Paul Johnson, the former world number 4 and UniSport Guildford number 1, watched from the sidelines as his team mates squeezed the narrowest of victories against bottom of the table rivals Lee on Solent.

This avenged the defeat of the early part of the season and gave UniSport Guildford 3 wins for the season so far. Realistically the play off places are a distant dream but certainly a place in the middle of the table is now a healthy possibility and Paul Johnson is the first to agree that this has been a good performance after his long term absence has weakened the playing strength of the team.

Fiona Geaves was first on court after a long flight back from her recent tournament commitments in the States. She was confronted by Tina Rix, the Lee on Solent youngster. Fiona used her considerable experience to stay well in front of any challenge Rix was to mount and only briefly in the second game were there any real scares. Rix found some devastating winners to surprise Geaves, but it was not to last and after this little flurry of winners was over the home player was there to finish the job. A good point well earned in the circumstances. 1 - 0 to the Varsity.

While this was exercising the attention of the main crowd, on the outside court local hero Mick Biggs was putting his 2 game winning run on the line. However he looked tense and never got into his routine until the third game. Littered with mistakes and loose shots, he was picked off at will by the workmanlike Fitzgerald, the Welsh number 4. Biggs was then surprisingly to start playing something like his normal self in the third and for a brief period rescuing the match looked a possibility. Sadly it was not to be as Fitzgerald regained his momentum and that saw him through to a comfortable 9 - 3 in the fourth game. Disappointingly this match slipped away from the Guildford youngster at too fast a rate and no doubt on reflection he will make a note to relax and cut down on his error count, when he did that he was well in contention.

The pivotal matches of the night saw Neil Frankland looking to avenge his defeat in the first half of the season, when he was below par against Ben Howell. On the championship court, there was a necessary alteration to scheduling as Mark Heather made a late arrival at the university, mistaken in the belief that it was a home fixture for Lee on Solent and therefore having to rush up the A3 to take his place in the visitor's team. Inevitably, the number 1 string match was brought forward to allow the number 2 string match to take place on his arrival.

Meads was also looking to gain some measure of ascendancy over the Lee on Solent number 1. Bradley Ball is tall and a massive presence on the court. He was also not moving at his best and after Meads took the initiative by driving hard to the back corners Ball began to edge his way back into contention narrowly winning the second game to level the scores. Meads became increasingly tentative and gave Ball plenty of opportunity to hit his winners from half court, thus the third game slipped away from Meads and the result looked inevitable. However after this scrappy third game where the referee intervened to the detriment of the home player, the fourth saw a fired up Meads stormed into a lead which was the result of some harder driving into the back corners and a tiring but large body on the other side of the court. There were some uncharacteristic errors to aid the cause as well. The UniSport man got off to a good start in the fifth and always had a little lead as a cushion. It was a game where fortunes had changed around and where refereeing decisions had gone against the home player earlier on but now the decisions were turning around his way. Add to that some useful winners and the match went to Meads and UniSport with Ball tiring badly at the end. 2 - 1 for UniSport.

While Meads was playing a captain's match for his team, news was filtering through of a tough struggle on the outside court, where Frankland had got off to a good start and had taken the first game comfortably 9 - 4. However playing patchily is not helpful and just when it seemed the home player might take a 2 - 0 lead his concentration slipped and Howell surged back to claim the second. Howell who is one of the most improved players in the league this season, was then pegged back as Frankland started to get in front, driving his opponent relentlessly to the back before finishing in the front corners. The third game gave the advantage back to Guildford. Again Frankland lost his way and back came Howell but only by the slight margin of 9 - 7, which meant that the visitor was having to work hard to get back on terms. At 2 - 2 however Frankland regained the initiative and took the game to Howell running out a comfortable winner at 9 - 3 and claiming the match giving Guildford a 3 - 1 winning lead.

Ross had the job of trying to claim the extra point for Guildford against Mark Heather. The match in the first half of the season had been a close 4 setter and the fans were not to be disappointed this time either. This was a strange match which lurched between a tie that had the feel of a definite dead rubber to one where winners were traded blow for blow and considerable breathtaking retrieving was displayed to all corners of the court. The first 4 games were the warm up act for the fifth. Games were traded with reckless abandon. Ross in particular was erratic, which probably cost him the match. The first two games although close in terms of points scored were never so competitive. Heather put together some good squash to take the third as did Ross to take the fourth, but they were both aided and abetted by some slack concentration. But the fifth saw the players retrieving unbelievably at breakneck speed, then playing slow and tight down the backhand wall and finally as the match neared the end both players found some outrageous winners from seemingly impossible positions on the court. Ross had 3 match balls 3 but Heather took his second match ball more clinically, which probably summed up the difference between the two players on the night. A 3 - 2 result was a happy night's work for the depleted Guildford team and saw their position in the table rise a place to fourth after all results were taken into account.

On Tuesday February 18th, UniSport Guildford welcome Chichester to the Varsity Centre starting at 7.00pm. This is a local derby match with added spice, as Chichester are having an excellent season and comprehensively beat UniSport at Chichester 5 - 0. Our visitors come to the Varsity Centre flying high at the top of the table, a position which has been well and truly earned. However with the recent run of wins, the players in good form, Chichester's record at the Varsity Centre not as good as it might be, plus there are availability issues with a tournament in America likely to take a heavier toll on our visitors than ourselves, we have to go into this fixture with some optimism. Book early if you want to see a big night of squash.

Week SEVEN - Tue 28 Jan

Tek Sing Lexden  3-2  UniSport Guildford
   David Evans beat Stephen Meads  9/2, 7/9, 9/1, 9/6
   Tony Hands lost Stacey Ross 9/5, 3/9, 9/11, 9/3, 5/9
    Paul Allen beat Neil Frankland  9/6, 10/8, 9/2
    Chris Smith lost Mick Biggs  2/9, 4/9, 9/3, 7/9
    Rebecca Macree beat Sarah Kippax  9/2, 9/6, 9/6

Defeated, but no longer bottom
Ian Robinson reports

UniSport Guildford lost a hard fought match with Tek Sing Lexden by 3 ties to 2. A weakened Lexden team deprived of the services of some of their strongest players were still strong enough to overcome the visiting UniSport team who were without Fiona Geaves and Paul Johnson. The match was full of excitement and drama as the deciding tie between the number 1 strings went to four games.

Sarah Kippax was deputising for Fiona Geaves and her match with Rebecca Macree was seen as a strong indicator for the future. Nervous on her debut before Christmas, but much less so this time and with nothing to lose, Sarah gave a good account of herself. Taking to the court only an hour after a protracted 6 hour drive from her home to Lexden, it took her time to see the squash ball instead of white lines. However after making too many errors in the first game, she started to trade shots with the World Number 9 and was able to play some accurate drives and some telling drop shots which took her more experienced opponent by surprise. Much more encouraging was the excellent athleticism as she covered the court with deceptive ease and counter-attacked to good effect. Sarah was not disgraced to lose 3 - 0 and every point was well earned. The Guildford fans hope to see a lot more of Sarah in the rest of the season. The reality despite all the promise was a 1 - 0 score to try and catch up.

Neil Frankland was the more experienced player and had rarely lost to Paul Allen in previous meetings, so the form book suggested a comfortable win for Guildford here. How wrong that was to be. The local coach and former junior international played one of the matches where he just could not miss. Everything he tried worked and left the Scottish International bewildered at his misfortune to catch his opponent on such a night. The ball was clinging to the wall on a regular basis, the winners were flowing liberally and points were being accumulated with great rapidity. Credit to Neil, he never gave up trying and on another night might have been able to ride out the storm. It might even have been a different story if the second game had come his way, but it was not to be. Allen was not to be denied, which turned out to be the crucial match breaking tie as it happened - this was seen as a must win tie for Guildford. Guildford were sadly 2 - 0 down.

Tony Hands, player manager of Tek Sing Lexden was matched against Stacey Ross, a match which was greatly anticipated by the fans. The ever popular Tony Hands was matched for skill and shotmaking by his younger opponent. It was a delightful contest marred only by the accidental blow that Hands took to the cheek from a collision with Ross' racket at the end of his swing. There was a pause for the patchwork to be done and the match resumed with Ross 1 game down. He quickly went on to level the scores at 1 - 1. There were few errors, but a stream of shots projected to all corners of the court were taking their toll on the players' retrieving. The third game was pivotal - it was also tiring. It gave Ross the belief that he could take the match depute the hiccup of losing the fourth game when he lost concentration. At the start of the 5th, tiredness seemed to cause some errors from the home player's racket giving the UniSport player a 4 - 0 lead. It was a lead that Hands was never to recover. Despite valiant home resistance to the end, Ross won a notable match. This was to bring UniSport back into the match 1 - 2.

Man of the match as far as UniSport Guildford were concerned was Mick BIggs. Playing in his second match this season after a well earned win in his first, he got off to a storming start against Chris Smith who was a late call up for Lexden. Biggs gladly accepted the errors from the home player and hammered some powerful drives into the back corners to give himself an immediate 9 - 2 advantage. The second game went much the same way with Smith struggling to stop the errors and Biggs hitting enough winners to keep the pressure on him. Due notice was served at the end of the second that Smith was starting to find some form, but still Biggs prevailed. The third game was different again as now Biggs lapsed into error and Smith took advantage. There was a lottery like feel to the game but as the fourth game opened, it became an edgy affair. The eventual winner was the calmer under pressure. This was to be Biggs as the game went to the closing stages. He relaxed, became more positive and hit with more venom in his strokes to see him through 9 - 7. This was never a classic matches but was good drama as the two youngsters searched for a new level of confidence in the National League. Biggs, a product of the university development programme, showed that he is getting better each time he plays. He has now played 2 matches and won them both, which would have been unthinkable at the start of the season. A definite candidate for Man of the Match.

With the match score at 2 - 2 the match between the number 1s was a painful experience for Guildford. The match between the same 2 players in the first half resulted in a comprehensive win for David Evans of Lexden and there was little to suggest that this was going to be anything different. The 25 or so places difference in the rankings here suggests that this was going to leave the Guildford player too much to do. Evans, the tallest man on the circuit at 6' 5" took the first game without raising a sweat 9 - 2. It was hard to see how Meads was going to come up with any answers at all. Evans was everywhere and the ball was mostly where Meads did not want it. However that reckons without the indomitable spirit of Meads, who has always been a gutsy professional. With Evans seemingly cruising, Meads suddenly ambushed him, found some winners that were inch perfect and forced errors out of his opponent. Perhaps Evans had also gone off the boil and with the tie at 1 - 1 there was just glimmer that Guildford hopes were rising. Sadly it was not to be as Evans re-asserted his authority and romped through the 3rd game to take it 9 - 1 playing exactly as he had done in the first. The pattern was the same in the fourth where it began to look like that the pinpoint accuracy of the Lexden man was organising the court sprints for Meads. But once again Meads made a last ditch effort to get himself back into the match. He raised his game but sadly in vain trying to play catch up losing the fourth by 9 - 6.

Guildford picked up a valuable 2 points from this match and are now one place off the bottom.

Next week sees Lee on Solent visit the Varsity Centre when Guildford must be on their mettle to pull away from the bottom of the table and climb for mid-table respectability. Lee on Solent are bottom currently but did put one over on Guildford in the first half of the season. A much more in form performance is expected and with the right home support, the season should belatedly start to bring some successes. Book early for next week's crunch match start time is 7.00pm and it is Tuesday 4th February.

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Week SIX - Tue 07 Jan

UniSport Guildford  4-1  UK Packaging
   Stephen Meads bt Tim Garner 11-9, 5-9, 9-7, 9-6
   Stacey Ross bt Laurens Anjema  9-5, 10-8, 9-4
   Neil Frankland bt Stuart Cowie  4-9, 9-6, 8-10, 9-2, 9-4
   Tom Richards lt Daryl Selby  4-9, 5-9, 7-9
   Fiona Geaves bt Lauren Briggs  9-3, 9-0, 9-3
 

UNISPORT SOAR TO FOURTH
Ian Robinson reports

UniSport Guildford started the second half of the season in rare good form completing an unexpected double over UK Packaging Connaught at the Varsity Centre. Unexpected, because Paul Johnson the Varsity's number 1 is still absent with his back problem and also the debut of youngster Tom Richards who was filling the required under 23 spot in the team at the tender age of 16. The significance of UniSport's victory pushed them up from bottom of the group to 4th as the other match results went in their favour on the night.

First on court was youngster Tom Richards, tipped for the top by the Surrey coaching team, he was up against Daryl Selby who is an experienced junior player just out of the ranks. Selby had too much fire-power and too much experience for the local lad, but encouragingly there were some good signs. It is early to be too critical but the shot selection of the youngster was most exposed. However points were scored and when Selby's concentration went missing in the third game Richards showed that he was keen to take advantage. This was a good performance on debut and another appearance by the Guildford player will be around the corner. A rather too quick and hasty defeat was a bad start but on the championship court Fiona Geaves was about giving the youngster Lauren Briggs a lesson of her own.

Geaves looked fresh after a good Christmas break and played with a hunger not seen for a while. Briggs was rather outplayed and consequently could only manage a meagre 6 points from Geaves. This was a good performance from the Guildford player to start the new year and as the tournament season gets back into full swing will have done her confidence no harm at all. Guildford had equalised and the match score was level at 1 - 1.

Neil Frankland was already on the outside court, doing battle with his Scottish team mate and bitter rival Stuart Cowie. This is never an open match when these two meet and with the Christmas break doing nothing to help, it seemed that this match was more scrappy than usual. With honours even after the first two games the third became a bitter struggle and although Cowie won it, that proved to be costly as the fourth game was quickly won by Frankland. As both players struggled to gain the ascendancy, the fifth reached a crucial point at 4 - 5 when Cowie was serving. Frankland received a blow to the corner of his eye, causing much blood to pour out of the wound. Frankland was having none of it, he plastered the wound as quickly as he could and then rushed back on to court and did not lose another point as the match was awarded to Guildford on a penalty point for a conduct violation by Cowie. Not a satisfactory end to an unsatisfactory match but the result made it all worthwhile as far as Frankland was concerned and took UniSport into a 2 - 1 lead. The saving grace was that this was played on the outside court where fewer spectators are able to get a view and the majority were spared the spectacle as brutal as it was.

On the championship court Stacey Ross was very sharp in dispatching his winners to all corners of the court as he hurried the tall Dutchman Laurens Anjema all around. Ross never looked in trouble although perhaps a little too careless in his shot selection for the discerning spectator, he always looked the more likely to win. The Dutchman has been in good form on the World Circuit of late and so was a dangerous opponent for Ross. The UniSport player was in good touch with his short game and seemed to be moving quickly as well and never allowed Anjema to dominate from the middle of the court which, with his height, would have caused a lot of problems. An excellent start to the new season for Ross and this gave the Guildford team their first winning points in the league since the first match of the season which was also against UK Packaging Connaught.

Steve Meads had the unenviable task of playing effectively a dead tie against player manger Tim Garner. But with points all important to Guildford, Meads immediately settled down to the task and edged a close but not very lively first game. At the start of the second the visitor traded places with Meads took over the centre of the court and started to dictate play with a good degree of accuracy sufficient to prise the game. At 1 - 1 the rallies were becoming longer and unambitious, at this point it was unusually Garner who lapsed and a close third game was surrendered with uncharacteristic errors. Meads was relieved to claim the 2 - 1 advantage and this gave him the impetus to lead in the fourth as he made for home.

This concluded a profitable night for UniSport Guildford as a 6 point winning haul of points bounced them up to their fourth spot and gives some respite from propping up the table. However let 's be realistic, to continue still without Paul Johnson may see some long hard struggles in the matches to come, but no doubt this result will have given a lot of heart to Meads, Ross, Frankland and Geaves as they try to carry the teams hopes forward always having to play above themselves to bring home the spoils for the university.

The next match is away to Lexden which is a very hazardous journey. Last year's finalists are no easy opponents and winning is essential if Guildford are to make any sort of bid for respectability in the league table at the end of the season. For the moment there is good heart and optimism as the team enter the time of season when, in the past, fortunes have been favourable.

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Tue 03 Dec - Week FIVE

UniS Guildford  1-4  TVS Broxbourne
  Stephen Meads lost Rodney Durbach  2/9, 7/9, 1/9
  Neil Frankland lost Danny Meddings  7/9, 6/9, 9/4, 2/9
  Eric McAlpine lost Alister Walker  9/7, 3/9, 3/9, 0/9
  Mick Biggs beat Philip Nightingale  10/12, 1/9, 9/7, 9/6, 9/5
  Sarah Kippax lost Alison Waters  1/9, 8/10, 5/9

UniS demolished by Broxbourne
Ian Robinson reports

UniSport Guildford's wretched season continues as the team were demolished by last year's beaten finalists TVS Broxbourne. Guildford were short of long term injury problem Paul Johnson whose season is now in jeopardy as his back problem fails to heal. At late notice the in form Stacey Ross made it into the qualifying draw for the World Open which meant that he had to depart for Antwerp earlier than expected. Fiona Geaves was rested to allow for Sarah Kippax to make her debut under the league rule that requires a junior man and woman to play in the NSL matches. By contrast TVS Broxbourne were only short of the services of their inspirational number 1 Mark Chaloner, who was a last minute drop out with a niggling shoulder injury. It is impossible to take on such a powerful team with so much reserve strength in the ranks and have any expectation of success. Nonetheless the performances were brave and determined, if not enough.

Making her debut was Sarah Kippax, who was clearly nervous in the early stages. Once she settled, she played some neat and effective squash. However a one game start was a lot of ground to make up and contesting strongly in the second the new girl for the university was not quite able to cash in and level the games. This left a mountain to climb in the third and meant a long five setter to have any chance of making a winning start. Alison Waters is ranked only one place above the UniSport player nationally, but has 2 years more experience in the National Squash League and it showed. Although clearly tiring the Broxbourne player built a solid lead in the third and went on to close the door to give the visitors an early one game lead in the match. UniSport were not entirely disappointed as Sarah showed some good skills, plenty of grit and determination and looks a good prospect for the future. Experience is what is required now and all at the Varsity Centre will look forward to seeing her play again in Varsity colours in the second half of the season.

Match of the day as far as the home fans were concerned was the first of match of this season in the National Squash League for the much improved Mick Biggs. Clearly nervous and a little short of confidence after a brief injury lay off, Biggs still started strongly. He built a healthy lead in the first game but failed to capitalise on it losing by 12 - 10. This was disappointing as Biggs had dominated the first game and deserved to cash in, however loss of concentration was to prove costly. Confidence dented, Biggs was overrun by an opponent who produced an array of winning shots and quickly pocketed the second game. In the third, Biggs warmed to the task and started to play his natural game producing his left handed shots full of disguise, sending his opponent the wrong way and starting to make the gangly Nightingale cover more court. In so doing Biggs saw the first signs of tiredness in his opponent and now mistakes were starting to come. Biggs managed to clinch the third game 9 - 7 and this naturally increased his confidence. He continued to play in much the same vein finding the side wall with some tight drops and drives and now forcing more court coverage and mistakes out of his opponent. There was a huge roar from the local fans as it was levelled at 2 - 2. Biggs was tiring but now had the scent of a landmark victory in the National Squash League to add to his impressive form in the England Squash graded events of the early season. At the start of the fifth Biggs stormed away to a solid lead at 5 - 1, but then became hesitant as his need to finish the match became more vital. He lost his fluency and was fortunate to find 2 rather lucky shots to edge him nearer the target with the Broxbourne man not giving up, but continuing to fight for every point. The UniSport man, although edgy, still managed to find winning shots when he needed them. Eventually he forced an error out of Nightingale to give him his first ever win in the National Squash League and left him to ponder the impact that this might have on his future prospects. 1 - 1 was a good position at this stage of the match and was probably more than could be expected.

Eric McAlpine entered the fray against the young and talented Alistair Walker, about whom much is known except how far his talent will take him up the rankings. The home player flattered to deceive with a decisive start in the first game. Hitting the ball crisply and striking winners, McAlpine stole the first game and looked to have chances. No sooner had the Guildford faithful started to think in terms of an upset then Walker perceptively became quicker around the court hit the ball harder and took away the slim chance McAlpine had. At this point it ceased to be a contest as Walker moved smoothly up the gears hurrying the university man right out of the game. As gamely as McAlpine tried it was to no avail, but then on the comeback trail after a long period of injury it was not without its signs of encouragement. A 3 - 1 loss here restored Broxbourne's lead 2 - 1.

Neil Frankland always looked to have chances against the veteran Meddings, but there has been a run of matches between the two players and the outcome has tended to go the way of Broxbourne. Meddings one of the world's best in his day is still a considerable force in the National Squash League, combining some highly skilful and precise wining shots with an equally skilful use of his body positions. He is extremely difficult to move around. Frankland was completely frustrated and was able to make little real impression despite taking the third game, the result itself was never truly in doubt. Sadly this gave the match to Broxbourne by a 3 - 1 scoreline.

Stephen Meads has been the one to take the real strain of the long term absence of Paul Johnson and again fronted up against the South African number 1 for Broxbourne, Rodney Durbach. Meads had in fact gained a notable victory at Broxbourne last season and revenge was clearly on the agenda for Durbach as well as bagging the extra bonus point for his team in the league table. This was not a good match for the home supporters as Durbach was in good form hitting some excellent winners and smiling ruefully as he enjoyed one or two notable strange bounces much to the annoyance of the home player. As a contest the second game was tight but little else in the match was. Conceding only 10 points Durbach was well pleased with his night's work leaving the UniSport Guildford team to start thinking about a change in fortunes in the second half of the season.

Despite yet another tough night for Guildford, there was major consolation in the win achieved by Mick Biggs despite the fact that it only gained the Guildford team 1 point in the league table. It was highly significant for other reasons. Mick Biggs is a graduate of the University of Surrey both academically and from the squash programme and can legitimately be claimed as a local product despite the accent. UniSport hope that Mick is the first of many and that he quickly rises up the rankings to add solidity to the NSL playing squad. The bonus is that Mick heads up the Varsity Centre first team in the Surrey Cup who have achieved promotion in successive seasons taking them to the brink of entry to the first division. Long may this production line continue to develop.

We go into the Christmas break with a lot to think about. There is no doubt that our number 1, Paul Johnson, has been sorely missed even if he is not winning all his matches, he certainly helps keep everybody else playing in the their correct order and makes winning matches more feasible. We can only hope that Paul Johnson is ready to get back to duty in the second half of the season otherwise it will most certainly hasten the development side of our squad which may not be ideal in terms of overall success this year.

Our second half of the season starts with a home fixture against UK Packaging Connaught, who were the only team we beat in the first half of the season and they just might include the World Number 1 Peter Nicol in their team as they did when we managed out solitary win. It would therefore be advisable to book early to avoid missing such a rather outing by our National World Number 1 and to be able to see him play in Guildford is something not to be missed. See you there then. Phone 01483 689242 for your tickets.

Tue 19 Nov - Week FOUR

Chichester  5-0  UniS Guildford
   Peter Genever bt Stephen Meads  9/5, 9/4, 4/9, 5/9, 9/7
   Moh'd Azlan Iskander bt Stacey Ross  9/6, 7/9, 9/6, 9/5
   Tim Vail bt Neil Frankland  9/6, 12/10, 10/12, 9/4
   Ben Garner bt Ross Norman  9/5, 9/4, 11/13, 10/8
   Susie Pierrepont bt Anne Connell   9/0, 9/2, 9/1

From Bad to Worse ...
Ian Robinson reports

Also see: Genever in Blocka-Beata Drugs Shock

UniSport Guildford's season continues to plummet after a disastrous defeat at rivals Chichester. This is never an easy fixture made more difficult by the continued and long term injury to number 1 Paul Johnson, as well as the internationally travelling Fiona Geaves. By contrast Chichester were at full strength with new boy Malaysian number 2 Mohamed Azlan Iskander making his debut, losing only Linda Charman, a recent US Open semi-finalist, to a calf injury.

Highlight of the evening for the travelling university supporters was the announcer man who made World Championship Boxing sound less interesting than National League squash but when it came to the 'rumble' the university team never there.

In the absence of Fiona Geaves, Sarah Kippax was expected to make her debut for UniSport. Sarah is ranked number 20 in England and only just out of the junior ranks, but disappointment was not far away as Sarah was diagnosed with a kidney complaint and had to withdraw. Club number 1 Anne Connell stepped up and took on the responsibility but was no match for Susie Pierrepont, who was a UniSport player herself last year. Guildford can take some pleasure in seeing one of their former players blossoming in this way but it was discourteous not to recognise the fact and drop a few points to her opponent and former team mate on this occasion. Anne Connell fought gamely but only managed 2 points for her pains but nonetheless will have benefited from the experience.

On the championship court, legend and former World Champion Ross Norman was fronting up to England youngster Ben Garner. The Chichester player started the match at a furious pace which gave the lie to the fact that he has lost to some lower ranked players recently and is not in good form. Hitting the ball ferociously and when necessary into the nick, he never allowed the ageing maestro to settle. Not the quickest of starters these days either, the Varsity player probed for any chance to get into the match, but still the pace was unrelenting. However there was some daylight in the third, which although tight throughout saw the visitor clinch the game by 12 - 10 and that after asking to play set 1 at 8 - 8! The mind games were now becoming a factor but the youngster re-established his powerful hitting and played some sharp nicks to close the day on a combative warrior who still does not know when he is beaten. These was a highly entertaining match, keeping the crowd inspired to the bitter end watching an intriguing contest between youth and experience. On this occasion youth won the day, but not by very much. Warning bells were sounding. UniSport Guildford were 2 - 0 down and 3 matches to play.

Neil Frankland went into battle with Tim Vail on the outside court. There was a frenzy of hitting with the ball flying aimlessly around the court and this suited the home player. Vail settled to the task and took control of the mid court area, forcing the visitor to dig deep too often from the back corners and never allowing his naturally attacking game to surface. Tactically shrewd Vail made it very difficult for Frankland to gain much in the way of attacking opportunities and with that threat reduced it made for an uphill struggle for the UniSport man. The second and third game were won and lost by 12 - 10 but Frankland needed to win both of them. Winning only one he found the rallies immensely frustrating and was never going to have enough in hand to contest the fourth. This made the evening disastrous with UniSport Guildford going down at the earliest stage to a 3 - 0 losing margin and now only playing for single points to boost the league table average.

In form Stacey Ross took on international opposition playing new boy Mohamed Azlan Iskander at number 2 string. Ross surrendered tamely. Never out of the match Ross showed the tactical skills to win the match but was not able to up his pace and take the initiative away from the Malaysian. Lapsing into unforced errors, Ross disappointingly lost the first game. However the pattern was reversed in the second as he collected his skills and presented a case for winning the match by taking the game with a combination of winners and errors from the home player. The third game was again tight but the Guildford man did not look as though he could increase the pace and this caused him to lapse into errors, a pattern which continued to get worse in the fourth game. The Chichester player was a solid performer but on the day it was a weak performance from the most improved player in the Guildford squad. The losing margin had now become 4 - 0.

Steve Meads now had to play to salvage some pride. Fresh from his tournament victory in Portugal, this was always likely to be a tough match so soon after winning a major event. Clearly in good form Meads was wrestling with his concentration which got him away to the worst possible start. Genever surprised the Guildford man with some sharp winners off loose play and suddenly Meads was 2 - 0 down. Game as ever, Meads fought back to control the rallies playing much more like his normal self, few errors and tight balls down each side wall and interspersed with occasional winners. Meads kept urging himself on to increase the pace, but never quite sustained it for long enough to get a lead to surge for the finishing line. In fact it was Genever who got to match ball first and Meads who found himself recovering from the hopeless position of 4 - 8 and match ball down. In true Meads style he fought hard to come back but on this occasion and with the match well and truly lost it was not to be and he stubbed his racket on a tight side wall drive to concede a match which was not a classic but had some entertaining qualities.

It can only be said that UniSport Guildford made some supporters very happy but it certainly was not their own. Not having too much go right for them at the moment, UniSport Guildford can only take heart from a similarly disastrous start last year when, at the turn of the season, form dramatically improved and by the end of the season every team had been beaten once. Encouraging news from the injury list suggests that Paul Johnson is back in light training and his back may well be fit enough to allow him to take up his number 1 place in the squad in the new year. His team mates will heave a sigh of relief being able to drop down to play in their more accustomed positions and thereby give the team greater chances to start turning results around.

The last home match of the first half of the season could not be harder welcoming Broxbourne last year's National Squash League finalists as visitors. All your support will be needed, so please put in your diaries Tuesday 3rd December starting at 7.00pm. See you then.

Tue 05 Nov - Week THREE

Lee-on-Solent 4 - 1  UniSport Guildford
   Bradley Ball bt Stephen Meads  9/3, 9/4, 9/1
   Mark Heather lost Stacey Ross  9/2, 2/9, 5/9, 10/12
   Ben Howell bt Neil Frankland  9/3, 10/8, 10/8
   Peter Barker bt Eric McAlpine  9/2, 9/5, 9/5
   Vicky Botwright bt Fiona Geaves  9/5, 9/6, 9/5

Guildford crash to Lee
Ian Robinson Reports

UniSport Guildford crashed to a bad 4 - 1 defeat at Lee on Solent. This was a lack lustre performance against the team at the foot of the table and condemn UniSport to a spell at the bottom instead. Only 2 of the Guildford team managed to engage the contest in anything like a meaningful way and there was consolation in the solitary winning point earned with a spirited performance by Stacey Ross at number 2 string. Guildford are still without their star player and number 1 Paul Johnson, who is on the long term injury list and awaiting the result of an MRI scan on his back.

First on court was the widely travelled Fiona Geaves for the university against the lower ranked Vicky Botwright. The home player has been out of the game with an ankle injury for a lengthy spell and showed considerable hunger for the match. In contrast the visitor looked jaded after a busy period of international competition. Geaves had no fuel in the tank and was comprehensively outplayed on this occasion. No doubt the Christmas break won't come soon enough for Geaves. Always behind, Geaves showed brief flashes of what she is capable of but this was never going to last long enough to rest the initiative. This painful experience for the travelling varsity fans was to be followed by news of another loss from the outside court. 1 - 0 behind.

Eric McAlpine was making his second debut for UniSport having been in the squad in the university's first year of competition. He was taking on the youthful Peter Barker who defected to Lee on Solent at the end of last season. McAlpine fought gamely but needs matches to be truly competitive in the League and that is something he is short of at the moment. He will no doubt be a handful as the season progresses but not on this night at Lee on Solent. He did enough to ruffle the feathers of his opponent but nothing more. 2 - 0 down. This was a disastrous start for UniSport and made the match an uphill struggle from here on. It was rather anticipated that according to the form book the match would stand at 1 - 1 at this stage.

Hero of the last match, Neil Frankland was next on court as he took on the youngster Ben Howell who has hit a rich vein of form recently and notched one or two scalps to serve notice of his ability. The home player is blessed with considerable speed around the court and a raw talent with the racket that is noteworthy. Noteworthy enough to make Frankland think again. The first game disappeared without the UniSport man getting into his stride and a rampant Howell was everywhere on the court. The game descended into a scrappy affair which suited Howell and making full use of the referee managed to claim the second game by the small margin of 10 - 8. In the third Howell again raced away and got to 8 - 4 match ball. At this point, Frankland started to play with something like his normal verve and fought his way back to level, but in the end it was not enough to get him the foothold he so badly needed and the match was lost before he could make any real impression. Frankland gave the impression that he was surprised by the antics of his opponent and that this might well have been the game to size him up for future reference. In any event it was not help to Guildford in this match. This was a disappointing result as the match had been decided with a 3 - 0 winning margin to the home side.

Consolation was badly needed and Stacey Ross immediately went one game down to the tough Mark Heather. The home player fresh from a recent win on the International tour in the States was full value for winning the first game. Ross was always in it and just made too many errors and had an initial lapse of concentration to offset against the promising winners he made. At the start of the second game Ross got into his stride and winners flowed from his rackets aided and abetted by Heather who made some errors. The pattern was repeated in the third game when Ross again hit accurately and made winners as well as forcing mistakes from his opponent. This was a solid 2 - 1 lead and again Ross started the game well in the fourth. Heather however sensed that the UniSport man was tiring and rallied hard but the visitor kept his head and closed out the match with well chosen shots at the right time. This was a strong performance by the Guildford man and showed his improvement because this was a match he could well have lost last season. His court coverage was impressive and it seems to have quickened since last season as he is now taking unsuspecting opponents by surprise. This was to be the one miserable point that Guildford secured and saw some measure of respectability, but not much.

Captain Stephen Meads always takes on court his never-say-die attitude, but sadly his efforts were to come to nothing. Bradley Ball, with his cannonball hitting, was immediately into his stride and the barrage unsettled the steady routine of the Guildford man. He never got into the match having no answers to the attack that was mounted against him, frequently choosing the wrong shots and sadly hastening his own downfall on this occasion.

This was one of those nights to forget, unlike the first match of the season when the World Champion turned out against the UniSport team and the luck went our way. This does not make for a bad side and noticeably some were battled scarred but it does serve notice that UniSport Guildford have some work to do. They will need to be more on their mettle for the journey to Chichester who have always troubled the university side. Chichester are riding high at the top of the division at the moment so be assured of a tough night with some excellent squash. UniSport will look to their loyal travelling fans to help restore the winning formula. See you on Tuesday 19th November.

Tue 22 Oct - Week TWO

UniS GO DOWN FIGHTING
Ian Robinson Reports

UniS Guildford 1 - 4  Tek Sing Lexden
  Stephen Meads lost David Evans  4/9, 3/9, 9/3, 2/9
  Neil Frankland bt  Paul Price  7/9, 9/5, 9/1, 7/9, 9/7
  Ross Norman lost Tony Hands  6/9, 4/9, 9/4, 14/12, 2/9
  Toby Mortimer lost  Lee Drew  1/9, 1/9, 4/9
  Fiona Geaves lost  Rebecca Macree  7/9, 4/9, 6/9

UniSport Guildford fought bravely but ultimately went down to last year's League Champions Lexden. UniSport were without long term injured Paul Johnson their number 1 and also in form Stacey Ross who was otherwise engaged at a World Circuit tournament in France. Tek Sing Lexden however were at full strength including three players ranked in the world's top 20 in David Evans, Paul Price and Rebecca Macree. So last years champions were overwhelming favourites from the outset. Guildford took much heart from their impressive victory at the first round stage and fought bravely but lost by an unflattering 1 - 4 margin.

Toby Mortimer was out of his depth in his match against Lee Drew who is a tough competitor with a good record on the international circuit. Toby also started the match with the handicap of recovering from a bout of flu. He was hastily dispatched and managed only 6 points for his troubles. Toby will learn and it is to the credit of Guildford that after this reverse they still pushed the visitors hard. The other bonus is that Guildford have played 2 matches and played their junior in both of them so that the regulatory 4 matches is half way done.

Fiona Geaves was just back from the World Team Championships in Denmark where the England team went down to Australia. It looked like Fiona had left her best form in Denmark along with her concentration. Her opponent smarting from not making the trip and one place lower than Geaves in the World rankings was all about revenge. She set off at a storming pace threatened to run away with the first game, but Geaves managed to peg her back recovering a 7 point deficit to level the score only to lose her way and gift the game to Macree. The second followed a similar pattern, this time the home player was not able to catch up and surrendered this game for 4 points making too many errors. Again in the third Macree, looking hungry and determined, opened up a lead and although Geaves tried hard it was never going to be enough to get into the match. In the end this was a 0 - 3 defeat which was to disappoint the home fans as Geaves was out of sorts losing to an opponent with whom she went to 10 - 8 in the fifth in their last match in the league back in January. This was a 0 -2 deficit but then the 2 best matches of the night followed and were so nearly to take the match score back to 2 - 2.

First Neil Frankland took on World number 16 Aussie Paul Price. This was always going to be good to watch especially as Neil has been in such strong form since the Commonwealth Games and in fairness Price is making his way back to his best form after a lingering ankle injury. Both are shot makers and intent on attacking at every opportunity. Clearly there was some rustiness in Price's movement and Frankland took full advantage after finding his bearings in the first game The home player was totally relaxed and found some devastating shots in the front of the court which initially surprised the visitor. The second and third games were full of winners that were often unplayable and were mingled with some errors from Price giving Frankland a lead and a platform to launch an assault for the decisive game. Price fought hard and equalised with a hard earned fourth and then in the fifth it was a question of the home player building a lead and trying to edge nervously to a well deserved victory. Very happy Guildford fans applauded the home player's win and quickly turned to the championship court to check progress. Now the score was 1 - 2.

Ross Norman that legend of the game, now 43 made his debut for Guildford in the National League. Playing at number 3 in the team. The former world champion looked in great physical shape and was a daunting presence on the court for Tony Hands, player manager of the opposition ironically in circumstances where Hands would normally be considered the veteran. In an edgy first game Hands managed to find winners and eke out a first game advantage and in similar style also took the second. It was at this stage that the former World Champion rolled back the years and showed for all to see why he is such a legend of the game. Clearly not as fast as in his prime, he controlled the rallies, moved the ball to all corners of the court and started to work the visitor hard enough to produce errors. There was a hint of tiredness about the Lexden man and Norman in typical fashion set about exploiting it. There were also some more extravagant winners from the Kiwi who bagged the 3rd game. The crucial 4th game was even all the way to game ball but at that point both players, realising how important this game was to be, raised their level and the result was a nervy equaliser to the home player by 14 - 12. At 2 - 2 it was to prove too far to travel for Norman and he did not start the 5th well This was confounded by a fresher looking Hands and some skilful winners from his racket to give the game, match, and victory to Tek Sing Lexden. There was a standing ovation from the crowd for a hugely entertaining match and a rare opportunity to see one of the greats of the game go through his repertoire and so nearly confounding everyone by gaining a win that was never realistic on paper. Tek Sing Lexden now had the match 1 - 3.

The effervescent Steve Meads is never one to let the side down and engaged his match with much relish against his sparring partner and Welsh World ranked number 15 David Evans. Steve was no match in terms of the rankings but is ever game and attacked from the start. Evans, the first Welshman to win the British Open championships, was however in fine form and being tall looks like a man with telescopic arms immoveably rooted to the centre of the court. He never allowed the ball to go the back wall and kept hustling Meads to sprint around the four corners of the court at a speed that was inadvisable. In the first 2 games as well as Meads played Evans was better not helped by the fact that as sparring partners Evans seemed to have an intimate knowledge of Meads' placements before he hit them. Meads was playing well but he hit an immovable force, the only respite coming in the 3rd game when caused by more attacking play from Meads and a little less intensity from the opposition the game was pocketed at 9 - 2. This was to be the only ray of hope as Evans re-established supremacy and raced to a convincing 9 - 2 win in the 4th. Evans has been bedevilled by injury in the last period but here played as well as this observer has seen. If there is more to come then he will threaten the world's very best. Overall Tek Sing Lexden, although made to fight for it, won 4 - 1 and are beginning to look like the team that won the League Championships last season.

As for UniSport Guildford the next match is away to Lee on Solent on 5th November. This is never an easy fixture and all travelling support will be most welcome along with a favourable medical report from Paul Johnson's doctors.
 

Tue 08 Oct - Week ONE

UK Packaging  2 v 3  UniSport Guildford
   Peter Nicol beat Stephen Meads  9-6, 10-8, 9-6
   Tim Garner lost Stacey Ross  9-4, 5-9, 13-15, 3-9
   Stuart Cowie lost Neil Frankland  8-10, 12-10, 1-9, 7-9
   Steve Richardson beat Toby Mortimer  9-4, 10-8, 9-6
   Carla Khan lost Fiona Geaves  1-9, 9-7, 3-9, 9-2, 0-9

WINNING START FOR UNISPORT
UniSport Guildford made a winning start to the National Squash League season by beating UK Packaging Connaught by a narrow 3 - 2 margin.

Victory was in the face of all the odds. UK Packaging were led by World Number 1 and recent Commonwealth Games Gold Medallist, Peter Nicol, while UniSport were deprived of their Number 1 and Commonwealth Games Bronze Medallist, Paul Johnson. This was a bitter blow as Nicol does not often appear in the League and Johnson has been a consistent performer.

The Match was to start badly for the visitors as Steve Richardson was to hand out a lesson to the young Guildford player in a 3 - 0 demolition. Richardson was too experienced and strong in power and strategy for Mortimer who will doubtless learn from the experience needing to remove such a high error count from his game.

This was a swift and bitter blow as on the championship court World Number 10 Fiona Geaves for Guildford was struggling to string her best form together against a player ranked some 20 places below her. The games that Geaves won were not close but then as a result of winning a game seemed to lapse into error promoted by some lusty blows from Carla Khan, who cannot be discounted as a future world prospect if she continues to improve. Geaves was always calling the shots when she concentrated but the lapses were a grave cause for concern at times. This was a match that should not have gone to five sets but when it did the Guildford player knuckled down and cruised home without dropping a point. Match all square at 1 - 1.

There was always going to be considerable interest in the number 3 string match as this pitted the number 3 in Scotland, Neil Frankland of Guildford, against the number 4 in Scotland Stuart Cowie. There was not much love lost in a contest that showed some pleasing skills but there was always that edge of rivalry that made for an intriguing match. Frankland who was prominent at the Commonwealth Games for Scotland looked a very determined man as he has clearly added some competitive edge to his game after the busy summer. In the narrowest of first games Frankland edged home after trailing, but when he needed them there were some decisive kills that were not as convincing in Cowie's repertoire. The second game followed a similar pattern with neither player able to establish complete authority. After a jittery struggle the home player levelled the match again by the narrowest of margins. This was to put paid to Cowie's chances as he had gambled too much energy in trying to clinch either or ideally both of the first two games and his resistance quickly drained away. He made a valiant effort to get back in the match but physically Frankland just had the edge and was able to finish the match with a 9 - 7 fourth game. Now Guildford had gone into a 2 - 1 lead.

As Peter Nicol was the last match on court and thus a certain point lost for Guildford, it was down to Stacey Ross at Number 2 string to try and play above himself to gain the win for the University. The form book suggested that Ross had no chance against the vastly experienced player manager of Connaught Tim Garner and as the match unfolded nothing suggested anything different.

Garner hurried into a one game lead with errors from Ross after a promising start and some astute play from the home player. Ross came out at the start of the second and reduce the error count and tightened up his play managing to engineer some winners from some good approach play. Having established a lead in the second game, he was never seriously challenged for it and the tie was level at 1 - 1. As the crowd realised that the match depended on the outcome of this match the tension was palpable and as a result the players collided in the middle of the court more than before. The score crept slowly and painstakingly upwards but neither player found it easy to break clear. The referee became more involved as the game wore on and only added to the confusion in the tension of the moment. Eventually more by good luck and no little desperation, Ross had a huge and successful wipe at a serve and gaining the serve managed to clinch the game at 15 - 13. In the 4th Garner found himself behind and did not get back on level terms with Ross closing the game and match out 9 - 3.

This was not an attractive match to watch but it lacked little in the way of drama and more importantly for UniSport Guildford the winning points were in the bag before the star attraction could enter the fray.

That most professional of warriors Steve Meads had the dubious pleasure of taking on the World Champion with near enough 30 places separating them on the World list. Meads confessed to looking forward to the challenge and to his credit fought hard to make this a contest. In the end a brave fight was subdued by a master class from the best player in the world. The score reflected well upon Meads but the state of the match allowed Nicol to be more extravagant of shot than he might have otherwise been had the result really depended upon it. A pleasant and enjoyable evening watching the world's best player was a fitting end to a good night for UniSport Guildford.

The season is now underway and the next challenge brings last year's League Champions Lexden to Guildford on Tuesday 22nd October starting at 7.00pm. As Guildford have made a good start to the season and the visitors are the reigning Champions, it is advisable to book early, tickets are available from the Varsity Centre on 01483 259242.

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Tue 12th Mar - Round TEN

OFF THE BOTTOM AT LAST!
Ian Robinson's end-of-season report
UniSport Guildford earned their beer on the night against a resolute Chichester team. Great rivals, this derby match saw the continued good run of UniSport Guildford turn their winning run into a 4th place finish in the National Squash League after languishing in 6th and bottom place for most of the season. On the night, winning consigned rivals Chichester to that place after competing strongly all season and manager Peter Crabtree to buying the beer for Guildford in a side bet which completely reversed the predicted result. Mathematically, UniSport Guildford were in with a chance of making the play offs but then again what do mathematicians know about sport. It did not work out appropriately and neither was it something the Guildford fans were expecting in reality. This was a performance about pride and everyone of the UniSport Guildford players delivered in huge measures on the night, leaving the supporters to rue the vagaries of their favourites dual commitment to the International tournament circuit and the National Squash League.

First on court in the ladies match was Fiona Geaves against Tania Bailey. The Chichester player, a former world junior champion and considered a major threat to all, before a nasty injury break hindered her progress, was clearly not completely injury free and seemed to be holding something back. This was all the encouragement that Geaves wanted and was on to her opponent's frailty very quickly. Harrying her opponent from corner to corner, Geaves would not let Bailey rest and in the end was a conclusive winner conceding only 9 points. This was just the start Guildford wanted and gave a big boost to the team 's morale.

On the outside court Neil Frankland was doing battle with Surrey County team mate Ben Garner. It was a titanic battle and one where fortunes ebbed and flowed with the young strength and power of the Chichester man winning the day. A heavy legged Frankland was on top of his game with touch, skill and winners compensating for his comparative physical deficiencies. He hit some deft winners and dominated many of the rallies. It was the toughness of losing the 3rd game and, by a similar margin, winning the 4th game that eventually told leaving Garner clear to bludgeon his way to victory. This was the narrowest of margins for the Chichester man who can count himself relieved and surprised at the strength of the opposition from the in form Guildford man. Now the match was 1 - 1.

Steve Meads went looking for his win in a rich vein of form also. He was a recent winner of a Malaysian world circuit event and looked very confident against an opponent who, often, is wrongly underestimated. Russell is a gifted shot maker and a solid tactician and Meads was so confident that he got the best possible start. Building on an early lead Meads managed to hang on and gain the initial ascendancy and this was exactly what was needed. The expected onslaught of winners started to appear early in the second game with Russell, flamboyant in his headband, spraying winners liberally low over the tin and into spaces that had not been there in the first game. Meads again quickly regrouped and, after some outstanding retrieving in the second game, made the rallies sufficiently tough to take some of the wind out of Russell's sails. The UniSport player managed to establish some measure of control taking the third game 9 - 4. Meads, deft of shot and playing with such confidence that all his shots had an extra bite of accuracy played his way to match ball with some difficulty but then the final assault was launched by Russell. With the benefit of a 'dodgy' refereeing decision and a lucky shot, he forced his way back to equalise and take the 4th game into a play off. Tension was high after both players, tiring quickly in a gruelling and fast tempo match, struggled to find the advantage, but it was Meads whose nerve held and managed to squeeze the winning points for UniSport Guildford out of Chichester.

On the outside court, Stacey Ross who has enjoyed a successful season for Guildford gave his best performance of the year against an opponent who had comfortably beaten him 3 - 1 this time last year. Ross was always in charge of the rallies and never really looked like losing while he maintained his pace and accuracy. He served notice that he is increasingly becoming a player to be reckoned with. Both players hit the ball with great power but the greater athleticism and control of the ball gave the advantage to Ross whose tactics were better on the night as well. There was a loss of concentration for brief periods in the match something Ross will have to address at higher levels but overall this was a performance that left Vail with little hope of making an impact and in the end such was his frustration that Ross was able to count on errors as well as his own supply of winners to take the points. UniSport were celebrating the win a 3 - 1 margin at this stage, but the sweetness of that win would only be complete if and when the university favourite Paul Johnson gathered his point for victory as well, something that is never assured against Peter Genever.

Johnson played convincingly to take the first game but thereafter the self doubts crept in and he found himself pegged back by his own loose play and the enhanced accuracy of Genever. It was a close struggle for the second game which went to Chichester but it is hard to see why the Guildford man's performance dipped so badly for no apparent reason. The same doubts were present in the third game as Johnson continued to hit loosely into bad areas of the court and Genever aided by penalty points and his own good shots was able to take the game. The Guildford supporters who have endured one or two nightmares with their favourite son were shaking their heads in disbelief. Johnson got well behind in the 4th game and it looked all up when Genever was first to match ball. It was a touch of real skill in that Johnson found an extraordinary drop shot to save match ball and then hit a winner to level and force the tie-break that he manage to squeeze the game and take the contest to a decider. After initial uncertainties, Johnson was able to relax and started to produce some of his better shots to move clear and ran out the winner by a 9 - 3 margin. It was not pretty but very gritty by the Guildford man and the fans went home happy with a 4 - 1 win over a very doughty Chichester team.

At the end of the season a 4th place finish is a good and respectable achievement. It is facile to think of the 'what ifs' but there is plenty of food for thought. In the end what counted was that when it mattered Guildford consistently managed to field their strongest team in the last 3 matches. Team spirit and confidence started to rise and accordingly results started to come. We beat every team once this season - we need to beat each team twice if we want to gain recognition in the semi-finals and beyond. A huge thanks to all those faithful supporters who have travelled to all our matches and hopefully this is a season that comes with its rewards even if that does not as yet include silverware.

See you next season.