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| 28-Jan, Day FOUR, FINALS: |
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[1]
Madeline
Perry bt [2] Laura Lengthorn
8/11, 11/9, 2/11, 13/11, 11/4 (55m) |
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Artemis
Titles for Perry & Parke Steve Cubbins from Edinburgh Two thrilling finals for the Edinburgh crowd to enjoy, with Madeline Perry retaining her title in a thrilling five-game win over Laura Lengthorn and Simon Parke finally winning an event he's participated in for several years, taking his second BSPA title in a row in the process ... Finals photos now in the gallery ... |
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Madeline still the champion One
of the popular theories about playing women's matches PAR to 11 was that it
could shorten the matches between players outside the top echelon, but would
work well for say the top twenty. The women's matches here this weekend
support that theory, and this final was no exception.It was a hard-hitting tussle between two of the world's best, played mainly at the back of the court as both appeared reluctant to go short, relying instead on powerful drives, and plenty of them, to get their opponent out of position. Laura held a slight advantage throughout the first,helped by a few careless tins from the defending champion in the middle of the game. The second was a fierce, intense contest, first one then the other going ahead, but it was Madeline's at the end as she levelled. An
error-strewn game by the Irishwoman as she peppered the tin - "too many
times, that's basic squash" - saw Laura take the lead, and when Madeline
squandered a hard-won 4-0 lead in the fourth with four more tins it wasn't
looking good. Laura led 8/6, got two match balls at 10/8, but Madeline, now
cutting down on the errors, clawed it back before taking the game 13/11 on a
volley kill to end one of the best rallies of the match.And she came out fast in the decider, raced to a 6-0 lead dictating the pace, and even though Laura "likes a comeback", 6-0 is too much in this scoring, and after the longest match of the event, Madeline was still the Artemis Edinburgh Champion. It was a good match. "The best women's final we've ever had, easily," said Simon Boughton, and he should know. And it worked as an advert for PAR scoring too ... |
I
can't say that's my best squash, but at least it was better in the fifth,
and it's certainly nice to win.Neither of us were playing short much, my drops weren't very good but Laura didn't want to take me to the front much. I went through a bad spell in the middle of the match, and told myself I had to change my attitude, I was sulking. I was in good form when I won here last year and played much better, but I've been struggling recently so hopefully this will change things around. |
I'm
really disappointed with the way I played, I don't ming losing as long as I
play well.I've been working so hard on my short game, and it's been going really well in training, but today I just didn't play any drops or anything short. I don't know if I got sucked into the pace of the game, or if I was just nervous. I've had some really good results recently, so this just isn't good enough. I couldn't have given any more physically, but you can't give someone a 6/0 lead in this scoring, like I did in the fifth. |
It's Parky Again ... These
two had contested the Boston Open final in December, with Parky winning 3/2,
and although the scoreline here reads 3/1, that Boston match couldn't have
been any closer than this.Scott started off looking the more composed, as neat and tidy as ever, and held an advantage throughout the first, and for most of the second. By now they were both warmed up, and some fantastic retrieving sprinkled with some well worked out winners from both rackets were being warmly applauded by the Edinburgh crowd. Simon
saved two game balls to sneak the second, and in a third that saw the
intensity buld by the point, saved three from 10/7 down - one with a shot I
can only describe as a backwards backhand flick volley boast nick! - and two
more on his way to a 16/14, and crucial, win."It's their retrieving, their speed about the court, and the changes of direction are fantastic" said one of the spectators behind me, and he was right, this was good stuff. "Are you going to be nice to me this game?" Simon asked the ref at the start of the fourth. He didn't need the ref's help, though, as after Parky went to 5/2 Scott knew the game was up, and the last few points lacked the intensity of the rest of the match as the inevitable approached. So a second BSPA on the trot for Parky, but a first in Edinburgh. What odds on these two meeting next weekend in Ilkley - if they do it can only be in the final ... |
I
had to dig deep to win the second game, and I knew the third was crucial, I
knew I couldn't let him get the advantage there. It felt like a game we played a few years ago, one would get ahead then the other would find a winner from somewhere. If I'd lost that it would have been hard to come back. I've been coming here for a few years, and although I've played well this is the first time I've made the final, so I'm really pleased to win it, it's a great city to come to and club and the event are really good. |
I
felt pretty comfortable in winning the first game, and I had game balls for
the second and third, I really needed one of those.I knew he was getting tired, but I was too, it was a high-paced game. The third was our fifth really, I felt pretty bad about losing that, and although I gave all I had at the start of the fourth there was just nothing left in the end. I'm getting fed up of losing to him in finals ... |
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| 27-Jan, Day THREE, SEMI-FINALS: |
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[1]
Madeline Perry bt
[3/4] Vicky Hynes
11/6, 12/10, 11/3 (20m) |
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Boston
and Edinburgh reunions ... Steve Cubbins in Edinburgh Tonight's semi-finals saw two repeat finals set up, as the anticipated ladies' climax and an unexpected men's one materialised at ESC. Top seeds and last year's finalists Madeline Perry and Laura Lengthorn maintained their run of 3/0 victories, although both were pushed in patches by Vicky Hynes and Sarah Kippax, respectively. Asked her thoughts on tomorrow's final Laura's single word, tongue in cheek answer was ... "revenge". The men's final will also be a repeat encounter, but of a more recent meeting. 3/4 seeds Simon Parke and Scott Handley both took advantage of opponents tired by this afternoon's exertions and will replay December's Boston Open final, the previous event on the BSPA circuit. |
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Super
Simon How does he do it? Three hectic days running two full BSPA draws (he played in it too) plus the Artemis Graded Championship, tournament director Simon Boughton is still going strong. After the matches died down last night Simon helped himself to the biggest helping of Haggis I've ever seen - it was Burns Night at the ESC, and he did well to not only arrange some food tobe kept back for us, but managed to get us on to a table with nine single ladies! Then, mere minutes later, he was up on the floor performing one of those strange Scottish rituals they call dancing. Mind you, he did look a little worse for wear this morning, admitting it might have been a mistake to accept a late invitation to continue the partying at one of the members' after-Burns-night meetups. Keep going Simon, just one day to go ... |
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![]() Darren Lewis fan club in full swing |
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A match too far for Whippy & Stiffy They'd
both come through five-setters at lunchtime, one to oust the top seed, one
to stem the challenge of the latest Egyptian wonder-boy ... the question was
would they have much left for the semis. First up was Hadrian against Simon Parke. Simon was in the ascendancy from the start, easing ahead from 4/3 in the first to 6/3 then 10/4. This wasn't the Parky of old - "I won't hit a winner if you pay me" - he was picking his moments to go for some lovely dropshot winners, and wrapped up the game with one of them. The second was quick. "Nothing's going up,"bemoaned Hadrian, which was true. But Parky was ruthless, always putting it back where it's hardest to get, firing in some of these new-fangled winners when he could. The pace took its toll on both, Parky was breathing heavily after the second, and mid-way through the third asked the ref if he could have a rest. "If we both agree we can have a rest, surely," quipped Hadrian. The third was the hardest, but Hadrian could never quite close the gap, and true to style Parky finished it off with a crosscourt volley nick ... just like he always does ... Next
up another 3/4 v 5/8 seed clash, as Andy Whipp, conqueror of Alex Gough at
lunchtime, took on Scott Handley, who himself had endured a five-setter to
reach the semi.After an even opening Scott made some unfortunate errors to let the first slip, but from mid-way through the second it was Andy's turn to find the tin with increasing regularity. Scott seemed to sense that his opponent was tiring, played steady squash and took what was on offer. 6/0 in the third quickly became 11/3, and although Andy picked up the pace at the start of the fourth, which was very competitive up to 4-all, a couple more errors saw Andy's frustration get the better of him as he started blasting the ball as hard as he could on every shot. It didn't work of course, as Scott lapped it all up, closing out the match on a stroke to reach a second successive BSPA final. |
This
weekend's the most squash I've played in years, and it just caught up with
me in the end. I just couldn't move at the start, couldn't step onto the ball and take it early, which is what you have to do with Simon. I was quite pleased with how I played in the third, at least I was getting stuck in which was the minimum I wanted to do, but Simon's game is so disciplined, you just can't get him out of his rhythm. The last tournament I played was this time last year, so it's a lot to ask but I'm happy to reach the semis, I'd have taken that if you'd asked me on Wednesday. I'm pleased that my body held up this long, I certainly couldn't have done this last year. |
[3/4] Simon Parke bt
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[3/4 Scott Handley bt
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I
can't do that any more, two hard games in a day. Maybe five years ago, but
I'm not training enough to do that now.Even in the first game I didn't feel I was there, it was his mistakes that gave me that one, but after that I had nothing left. Still, I've been here five times and each time I've gone a round further than I was seeded to. I wanted to win this title but I was just too tired. I'll be back next year though ... |
Top Two Through Again It
will be a repeat final in Edinburgh as Madeline Perry and Laura
Lengthorn maintained their runs of straight-games wins to reach the
final once more.Perry took on Vicky Hynes, and for the first two games it was a good contest, both girls hitting the ball crisply and moving well. From 6-all in the first a couple of innoportune tins from Vicky gave Madeline a little daylight, and she closed the game out quickly. The second was again close, level all the way as the Irish champion strived to contain Vicky, who was picking off some nice winners into the nick. It finished 12/10, but under 'normal' scoring would only have reached 2-0 (to Madeline). Madeline came out firing in the third and Vicky quickly found herself 8/1 down with nowhere to go. In
the second match Laura and Sarah Kippax traded blows for two and a half
games, both using the low, hard drive as their stock in trade. After Laura
took a quick 4/0 lead in the first, the match was quite even throughout.That lead was enough to ensure the Lancastrian took the first, but Sarah started the second stronger and led 3/0 and 7/3. Laura settled to take six unanswered points before doubling her lead, finishing as Sarah lifted the ball out on the longest rally of the match. The third was level all the way to 7-all before Laura played three winners to earn match-balls. One went begging, but a service return into the nick was enough to take the match - something that's not been said about a women's match before ... |
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[1] Madeline Perry bt
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[2] Laura Lengthorn bt
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| QUARTER-FINALS |
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Stiff stops Shorbagy, Whipp axes Alex ... Steve Cubbins in Edinburgh The top four seeds are through to contest the women's semis after three quick and one long matches. Last year's finalists Madeline Perry and Laura Lengthorn eased through in three games, and Sarah Kippax fought off a determined first-game comeback from Frania Gillen-Buchert to also win in straight games. Vicky Hynes was taken the full distance by Adel Weir in a see-saw battle, and she now faces Lengthorn for a place in the final. In the men's quarters Simon Parke won 11/9, 11/9, 11/9 against Alex Stait while Hadrian Stiff came from 2-1 down to end the run of Egyptian wonder-boy Mohammed El Shorbagy. Scott Handley reached his allotted semi-final place with a 3/2 win over Tim Vail, and to round the session off Andy Whipp took out top seed Alex Gough in five, after the welshman saved a match-ball in the third ... |
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Hadrian Stiff
bt
Mohammed El Shorbagy
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Scott Handley
bt
Tim Vail
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Andy Whipp
bt
Alex Gough
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![]() I should have taken the first, I missed a couple of game balls, but then I could have lost in three which wouldn't have been what I wanted. It was a good game, I enjoyed it. I was just trying to get the best out of it, to get my body right after a hard couple of weeks. I've got Sweden, the Nationals and the ToC coming up, so I've got ten days to put my body in order and this tournament was a good step towards that so I'm not overly disappointed. |
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Madeline Perry bt Fiona Moverley
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Vicky Hynes
bt
Adel Weir
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Laura Lengthorn bt
Emma Chorley
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Sarah Kippax
bt
Frania Gillen-Buchert
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DAY TWO |
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26-Jan, Day TWO: The Busiest Day Steve Cubbins in Edinburgh Two 32-draws, two rounds in each, BSPA Fridays are pretty hectic ... The Women played their first full day of PAR scoring, making a noticable difference to match times. Two upsets as Frania Gillen-Buchert kept Scottish hopes alive and Emma Chorley advanced at the expense of Rachel Wilmott. One stunning upset in the men's event as Mohammed El Shorbagy took out second seed Stacey Ross, and nearly a second as Jesse Engelbrecht's comeback against Tim Vail failed at the last ... |
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| MEN'S LAST 16 DRAWS & RESULTS |
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Shorbagy
takes out Stacey
... Match of the day in the men's last 16 was undoubtably Mohammed El Shorbaggy's 60-minute 3/2 win over second seed Stacey Ross. The BJO U17 champion came from 2/1 down to set up a quarter-final meeting with Hadrian Stiff, who ended the comeback run of John Rooney in straight games. No such problems for top seed Alex Gough, although Darren Watson, aided and abetted by his 16-strong fan club from Leicester - kept the slightly under-the-weather Welshman on court longer than he would have liked. Gough meets Andy Whipp for a place in the semis. 3/4 seeds Simon Parke and Scott Handley enjoyed comfortable passages into the last four, Parke with a straight-games win over Joel Hinds while Handley gratefully accepted a walkover against the injured Jon Tate. Parke meets Alex Stait and Handley plays Tim Vail, who squeezed through in the last match of the night, fighting off a comeback from Jesse Englebrecht to win on a no let to Jesse at 11/10 in the fifth ... |
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Mohammed El Shorbagy bt Stacey Ross Super
Shorbagy
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Alex Gough bt Darren Lewis
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Simon Parke bt
Joel Hinds
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| WOMEN'S LAST 16 DRAWS & RESULTS |
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Most
Quick, One Long ... Eight matches for the women's first round with just one that reached the half-hour mark. Using PAR scoring to 11 most of the matches were over quickly, although to be fair most of them would have been quick using standard scoring too. Analysis of the marking sheets showed that most games would have been unfinished under standard scoring, so match times were definitely reduced. There were two upsets, as Emma Chorley took out 5/8 seed Rachel Wilmott in straight games, underlining her recent rapid improvement under the tutelage of Jonah Barrington at Millfield. The second came in the longest match, by far, when Scotland's last hope Frania Gillen-Buchert hauled herself back from two games down to beat Deon Saffery in a thriller that kept the packed and noisy gallery on tenterhooks until the end. |
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Frania Gillen-Buchert bt [5/8]
Deon Saffery
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Emma Chorley bt
[5/8] Rachel Wilmott
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![]() Frania GB & Deon |
![]() Two of Jonah's best ... Shorbagy & Chorley |
![]() Weir beats Mears |
| MEN'S ROUND ONE: DRAWS & RESULTS |
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No surprises in the early matches, although
with top seeds Alex Gough, Stacey Ross, Simon Parke and Scott Handley
all just back from the states, their opponents were probably hoping for a
bit of jetlag effect. Parke and Gough won easily enough in three, but Ross was tested by Chris Truswell - after taking the fourth 12/10 Stacey commented "I really wanted to win in three, but I'm really really glad it didn't go to five!". There was a welcome return to winning ways for John Rooney, playing competitively after a two-year layoff with chronic fatigue syndrome, while Joel Hinds and Mohamed El Shorbagy kept the youngsters' flag flying as they advanced to tonight's last sixteen. All the Scottish hopefuls departed in the men's event with Simon Boughton, Chris Small and Alan Clyne all losing in the final batch of matches. |
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![]() Shorbagy sails on |
![]() Pashley & Khan |
![]() "It looks good until you see me play!" Truswell |
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John Rooney bt
Keith Timms
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Tom Pashley bt
Shahid Khan
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Joel Hinds bt Chris
Tasker-Grindley
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Stacey Ross bt Chris
Truswell
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Alex Stait bt Alex
Ingham
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WOMEN'S ROUND ONE:
DRAWS & RESULTS The first 'official' women's matches par to eleven ... |
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Caren Lawrie bt Moira Atkinson An all-Scottish clash, with Caren on top
throughout... |
Carrie Hastings bt Claire Kidd This was a really close tussle, with
Claire's hard-hitting style just losing out to Carrie's more precise game
... |
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Back ...
and hoping for good news It was good to see a familiar face in Edinburgh ... John Dale. You may remember that the North-East star who won several National Junior titles and was a regular on the BSPA circuit, survived a brain tumor a few years back, then three years ago moved on to a coaching position in the USA. So it was nice to see John, now 30, again, but the main reason for his trip back home - he was coaching Jon Tate to victory in the qualifiers -came as a bit of a shock. "I started a new coaching job at Casino Heights in Brooklyn a few months ago, working with Julian Wellings, Fiona Geaves, Stefan Casteleyn and Meredith Quick," said John. "It was going really well, then I started to get back pains. "I got it checked out and they found two tumors in my back. So I came home to the UK to get full tests, and although I haven't had the results yet the doctors think it might be some sort of blood cancer. "Casino Heights were great, they paid for the flight home and they've held my job open, so hopefully I'll be able to go back there soon, we'll just have to see." We hope so too John, and on behalf of everyone at SquashSite and on the BSPA circuit, here's wishing for the outcome we all want ... |
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| 25-Jan, Day ONE: |
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Back to the Bearpit Steve Cubbins in Edinburgh The Artemis Edinburgh Open is under way at Edinburgh Sports Club, with a full complement of qualifying matches on Thursday evening. BSPA events are getting larger and larger draws these days, so while you used to feel unlucky to have to play on the Thursday, these days you're relieved to get a bye. So, Alex Gough, Stacey Ross, Simon Parke, Scott Handley and Tim Vail, plus all the girls, arrive tomorrow, while tonight saw some some stiff competition to make the men's last 32. The later stages will be played out on the club's famous 'bearpit' court, but with the early rounds covering five courts, bear with us as ever as we bring you snippets of the action ... |
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![]() The corridor gossip ... |
![]() Hardball Doubles |
![]() Burns Night Sold Out! |
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Chris Small bt Joe Lee 11/5, 11/7, 12/10
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Jon Tate bt Andrew Birks
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Jesse Engelbrecht bt Nathan
Cole He played well, he played a consistent
length and got in front of me, but then I got 'the eye of the tiger'. |
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Will Newman bt Paul Tuffin I'm over here from New Zealand for a couple
of months, playing here, Ilkley and Manchester, also doing some training and
getting some games in ready for our season. It starts in March, and we have
tournaments every weekend plus three PSAs in a row, so it's a hectic few
months. |
![]() Rooney always in front |
![]() Tate in five |
![]() Jesse pounces |
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John Rooney bt Stuart Crawford
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Joel Hinds bt Kris Meadows
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"I
had an overnight travel to get here and felt a bit stiff in the first, but I
managed to get into it after that. |
I was 10-nil up in the third and he got a nick
at the back of the court. That would have been my first 11-0, and I was
looking forward to that. I've got an easy one next ... Scott Handley! |
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Four
Men, Five Hips and 296 Years ... You don't get to see hardball doubles much in the UK ... only if you come to Edinburgh. When
you first see the doubles court here you're taken aback ... there's a
badminton court marked out inside it, and the height of the out of court
lines on the side walls made me drool (I should point out that last year I
played in the 'C' event, and served into the illegally low roofs of the
'normal' courts at least 50% of the time ... well, if you've been practicing
lob serves for 30 years it's difficult to adapt!).Anyway, apart from the dimensions, what struck me as I walked past on the way to the bearpit was the age of the players. Look at the photos, and you'll realise that this wasn't the fastest action I'd ever seen on a squash court. But then, given that the combined age of the four players was 296, what else would you expect! "We've been playing since about 1955," George told me afterwards. "There's Tuesday and Thursday sessions, some of us play onece a week, some of us twice. It's reliable, when someone says they'll play, they play!" There were four players and five original hips on that court tonight - "I had my hip replaced last year," said George, "and was a bit wary about my first game of tennis until I realised that between the four of us there were only two original hips ..." It's like they say ... once you try squash you're hooked! I'm just looking forward to coming back next year when they break the 300 barrier! |
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16-Jan-07: Gough goes for one better in Artemis Open Last year’s beaten finalist, World No. 21 Alex Gough, and World No. 6 Madeline Perry top the seedings at this year’s Artemis Edinburgh Open Squash Championships to be held at the Edinburgh Sports Club on 25-28 January. Gough
is seeded to meet England’s Stacey Ross in the Men's Final. Irish
number one Perry is once again seeded to meet England’s Laura Lengthorn,
World No 12, in a repeat of last year’s Ladies Final. The home challenge is
led by Scottish international Alan Clyne and former Scottish
International Helen Macfie. Artemis, the Edinburgh based investment management company, are sponsoring the event for a seventh consecutive year. The event remains the richest on the BSPA Head UK Grand Prix with a prize fund of £10,000.
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Established in 1997 as an owner-managed
business, Artemis manages an asset base of £13.5bn*.
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| Artemis Edinburgh Open 2006 | ||
![]() Edinburgh Sports Club |
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![]() www.artemisfunds.com |
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Men: £7k Women: £3k |
26-29 Jan 2006 |
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