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06/10/2004
CHAMPIONS STORM TO SUCCESSFUL OPENER
Howard Harding reports on the opening clashes of the new season ...
Group A:
Manchester/Pontefract 4-1
Nottingham
Lee Beachill
beat John White 9-3, 6-9, 4-9, 9-6, 9-7 (52m)
James Willstrop
beat David Evans 9-6, 9-7, 5-9, 9-5 (33m)
Marcus Berrett lost to Alex Stait 7-9,
7-9, 9-5, 2-9 (38m)
Nick Taylor
beat Duncan Walsh 9-4, 9-3, 9-7
(25m)
Jenny Duncalf beat
Pamela Nimmo 7-9, 9-0, 9-10, 9-5, 9-1 (59m)
Wolverhampton 4-1
Edgbaston Priory
Anthony Ricketts
beat David Palmer 9-6, 15-13, 9-4
Scott Handley beat
Adrian Grant 5-9, 9-7, 9-7, 2-9, 9-5
Mark Cairns lost to Peter Barker
7-9, 6-9, 3-9
Liam Kenny beat Hadrian
Stiff 9-3, 10-9, 7-9, 10-12, 9-5
Shelley Kitchen beat Rachel
Willmott 9-0, 9-0, 9-2
Group B:
Team Chichester 4-1 UniSport Guildford
Mohd Azlan Iskandar lost
to Stacey Ross 8-10, 7-9, 9-3, 6-9
Peter Genever beat
Stephen Meads 8-10, 9-4, 11-9, 9-1
Ben Garner beat Neil
Frankland 9-3, 9-6, 9-5
Tim Vail beat
Jesse Engelbrecht 9-2, 9-7, 10-8
Linda Elriani beat
Alison Waters 9-3, 9-7, 9-0
Team Solent
0-5 Oberthur Strings Tewkesbury
Lars Harms lost to Ong Beng
Hee 6-9, 9-5, 3-9, 9-11
Greg Tippings lost to Alister
Walker 9-5, 6-9, 1-9, 8-10
Shahid Khan lost to Daryl Selby 10-8, 5-9, 5-9, 3-9
Rob Sutherland lost to Chris
Clare 9-11, 4-9, 2-9
Tina Rix lost to Lauren
Briggs 1-9, 0-9, 2-9
Champions Storm To Successful
Season Opener
Title-holders Manchester/Pontefract powered to a home triumph in the
first round of the new season of the National Squash League, beating
former champions Nottingham 4-1 at the National Squash Centre in
Manchester.
Fellow Group A club Wolverhampton also got the new season off to a
positive start with a 4-1 home win in the West Midlands derby against
Edgbaston Priory - the Birmingham club which won the National League
title in 2003. In Group B, league newcomers Oberthur Strings
Tewkesbury picked up a comprehensive first-time win at Team Solent,
beating the Hampshire club 5-0, while Team Chichester, runners-up in
the Group last season, started the new season where they left off –
cruising to a 4-1 home victory over UniSport Guildford.
Manchester/Pontefract were at full strength in their opening fixture,
but Jenny Duncalf was stretched to the limit before overcoming
Nottingham's world No20 Pamela Nimmo 7-9 9-0 9-10 9-5 9-1 in 59
minutes. It was a brave performance by Nottingham-based Nimmo,
the Scotland No1. Unlike Duncalf, who represented England with
distinction, Nimmo was forced to miss last week's Women's World Team
Championships in Amsterdam as the result of a tonsil infection.
Alex Stait recorded a notable win for the visitors over Yorkshire's
Marcus Berrett, but thereafter Manchester/Pontefract regulars Nick
Taylor, James Willstrop and world No1 Lee Beachill led the home team to
a solid victory – Beachill overpowering Nottingham's hard-hitting John
White 9-3 6-9 4-9 9-6 9-7 in 52 minutes after an eight-minute first
rally of the match which was described by team spokesman Taro Nabetani
as "awesome".
The standout match in Woverhampton's impressive win over Edgbaston
Priory was Scott Handley's significant upset over Priory stalwart
Adrian Grant. "Scott simply outplayed him," said Wolverhampton manager
Stephen Russell after the world number 70's 5-9 9-7 9-7 2-9 9-5 victory
over English international Grant, ranked 13 in the world.
There was also a major fight back by Edgbaston's Hadrian Stiff, who
came from 0/2 down to level the match against the home team's Liam
Kenny before the Irish international stemmed the comeback to win
9-3 10-9 7-9 10-12 9-5 in over 70 minutes – the longest match of the
night.
The biggest cheer of the night in Wolverhampton was reserved for league
debutante Rachel Willmott's first point against Shelley Kitchen. The
16-year-old was very much overpowered by New Zealand international
Kitchen, ranked 14 in the world, but after her 9-0 9-0 9-2 hammering
said that she had enjoyed the match but had to leave at 10:30 to get
home to Sussex to go to school the next day!
Fresh from her England success in the Amsterdam World Championships,
Linda Elriani swept to 9-3 9-7 9-0 over Guildford's Alison Waters - a
last-minute replacement for Elriani's team-mate Fiona Geaves – as
Chichester set up their 4-1 win. Guildford saved their best to
last as newly-promoted squad No1 Stacey Ross secured a 10-8 9-7 3-9 9-6
win over Malaysian Mohd Azlan Iskandar, who was also making his first
appearance as top string for Chichester.
After failing to win a single tie last season, Sue Wright will have
been pleased to secure the best result of the night with her 5-0
drubbing of Team Solent away from home. Formerly the driving
force behind the Sue Wright Sports Academy in Bicester, Wright now owns
the Gloucestershire club Oberthur Strings Tewkesbury. Led by
Malaysian star Ong Beng Hee, Strings dropped just three games in their
emphatic win at Lee on Solent to give the league debutantes a maximum
20 points from their first outing (the new points system giving five
points for a tie win, plus a further point for each game won).
LEAGUE TABLES (after 1st
round)
Ties
Matches Games Pts
P W L W
L W L
Group A:
Manchester/Pontefract
1 1 0 4
1 13
8 18
Wolverhampton
1 1 0 4
1 12
7 17
Nottingham
1 0 1 1
4 8
13 8
Edgbaston
Priory 1
0 1 1
4 7
12 7
Duffield
0 0 0 0
0 0
0 0
Group B:
Strings
1 1 0 5
0 15
3 20
Team
Chichester
1 1 0 4
1 13
4 18
Guildford
1 0 1 1
4 4
13 4
Team
Solent
1 0 1 0
5 3
15 3
Contributor: Howard Harding
Club: NO CLUB
Link:
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DEPLETED NOTTINGHAM TAKE ON THE CHAMPIONS
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RESULTS FROM WEEK ONE
CHI CRUISE LOCAL DARBY (AND JOAN!)
CHAMPIONS STORM TO SUCCESSFUL OPENER
INSIDE ROUND ONE
THE SEASON STARTS HERE
INSIDE THE 2004/05 SEASON
NATIONAL LEAGUE OFF TO ANTIPODEAN START
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