British Junior Championships
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- ENGLISH JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS
- British Under 23 Championships
- Dunlop National Racketball Championships
- English Under 11 Championships
TECNIFIBRE BRITISH JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS – Manchester 2011
27-30 October
The Tecnifibre British Junior Championships were held this past weekend in Manchester where Britain’s top juniors fought for national glory. The event was spread over four days with the U13 and U15’s being held at the Northern Squash Club in Didsbury while the U17 and U19’s played at the National Squash Centre. The event had plenty of tough matches each day as well as showcasing some real talent from the top seeds.
Emily Whitlock (Cheshire) came into the event in excellent form and holding a senior world ranking of 35 making her the top seed and hot favourite. Whitlock was mostly untroubled by her competition as she confidently brushed aside Lauren Tamila (Lancashire) in the semi finals, 3-0 in 17 minutes. Meeting her in the final was Katie Smith (Yorkshire) who had mainly been untroubled herself on her way through the tournament. Smith faced Victoria Temple Murray (Devon) in the semi finals with the match ending 3-1. It was no surprise that Whitlock set a fast pace at the start of the final and she quickly dominated and took an 11-1 lead. The second game followed in the same fashion and Whitlock took it 11-4. Smith needed to get into the game and the third gave her some hope as she took it to a tie break and won 12-10. Perhaps Smith used too much energy competing in the third or perhaps Whitlock just moved up another gear as she immediately regained control and once again dominated the court, 11-1 to Whitlock and 3-1 in 20 minutes as she claimed the Don Sanderson Trophy to add to her impressive collection of junior titles.
Declan James (Nottinghamshire) came into the event as favourite and Boys Under 19 top seed, James had been tested by Adam Auckland (Yorkshire) in the semi finals but came through that match a 3-1 victor in 60 minutes. The number two seed James Earles (Yorkshire) had been in great form all weekend and hadn’t dropped a game leading up to the final, he had a comprehensive 3-0 victory in his semi final against Matt Sidaway (Lancashire). Earles started the final the sharper player and clinical with his shots, he took an 11-5 lead. James fought back in the second and managed to level the score at 1-1 but he couldn’t keep that momentum as Earles came out in the third and upped the pace. James didn’t have an answer as Earles stormed through the next two games 11-3 and 11-5 to win the match 3-1 and take the Don Sanderson title back to Yorkshire.
The Boys Under 17 Final saw the top seeds and long standing rivals face each other as Richie Fallows (Essex) took on Ashley Davies (Derbyshire). Fallows as top seed was favourite and started well taking a 2-0 lead, Davies fought back in the third and managed to grab a lifeline as he won a tie break. The fight back continued and after 90 minutes it was Davies who captured his first national title, 11-9 in the fifth. The Girls Under 17 category had already seen the top seeds knocked out, Eleanor Lake (Gloucestershire) and Alicia Mead (Warwickshire), both 3/4 seeds had made it through to the final. Lake had the advantage going into the final as she has previously captured a national title and that was soon shown with Mead starting nervously. Lakes experience counted and she took control of the match and duly took the U17 title, 3-0 in 23 minutes.
Good friends and county team mates battled for the Boys Under 15 title as Jack Cooper (Yorkshire) took on James Peach (Yorkshire). It was a close encounter with both players giving it their all and showing some excellent retrieving which made for brutal rallies. At 1-1 Cooper hit an outrageous nick to clinch a tie break 13-11 and took that momentum into the next game as he won his first title, 3-1 in 42 minutes. The Girls Under 15 final was also a county battle as Georgina Kennedy (Kent) was pitted against Amelia Henley (Kent). Kennedy had not dropped a game all tournament and she kept that amazing record as she claimed the U15 crown 3-0 in 25 minutes. The Under 13 Finals were total opposites; Elise Lazarus (Essex) took only 16 minutes to cruise to a 3-0 victory over Amy Jones (Buckinghamshire), while Curtis Malik (Sussex) fought back from 2-1 down to defeat Kyle Finch (Hampshire) 3-2 in 39 minutes, both Lazarus and Malik collecting their first national titles.
COMPLETED 2011 DRAWS
For full 2010 event coverage see
SquashSite.co.uk