  :: TSC League Top 5
:: Squash links
|
 Precision Blinds Tankard (Junior & Senior) - Season 2005-2006
Pollards do the Double - 14/01/06
Once again, the popular one day handicapped Precision Blinds Ltd Tankard attracted a full quota of 16 contestants to try and lift the prestigious trophy. Overall, it was to be a joyful day for the Pollard contingency - picking up both trophies in hard fought battles, throughout the day. It was also good to see a few faces returning to the squash scene after a spell away - namely, Stephen Bremner and Jim Sangster. The main trophy winner was Donald Pollard who encountered a number of tough matches en-route to lifting the title. In the first two rounds, county players Stuart Greig and Alistair Miller were disposed of, followed by Neil Mackay (sponsor) in the semi and as there was a large handicap difference, this proved to be a long tussle that made Donald reach into the bottom of his bag for all his reserves. Not to be outdone, and desperate for the silverware, Donald was pitted against his old adversary, Stephen Bremner, in the final. Again, there was a considerable handicap difference for Donald to pull back but the 'fitness minded athlete' put his body to the limit, forcing Stephen to make a number of mistakes and clawed back the appropriate points to secure the trophy he had desired to win from friend Neil, since the opening of the event. As mentioned earlier, Stephen has just returned to the squash setup and with a few more matches under his belt he will be back to the form he is more accustomed to playing. Mairi Pollard is not known for entering too many of the Thurso Squash Club tournaments but hopefully after 'testing the water' in this contest and lifting the Plate by beating Andy Smith, she will be persuaded to enter the rest of the tournaments in the 2005-2006 calendar, which could lead to entry into the Thurso Inter-County and County Ladies' squads. Congratulations to all who took part and hope to see as many competitors as possible, at the final PB Ltd Tankard of the season, in April. Thurso Squash Club would like to thank Neil Mackay, Precision Blinds Ltd for his continued support, which is greatly appreciated.
Scottie was beamed up for this one - 09/01/06
The Precision Blinds Ltd Junior Tankard attracted a good squad of young and enthusiastic squash players into Thurso Squash Club for the opening tournament of 2006. This competition being a handicapped event left things open for anyone to lift the coveted trophy. With this in mind, Lauren Gunn and Lauren Sharp jumped at the chance of silverware holding the girls' flag flying high, were not afraid to mix it with the boys and showed an excellent account of themselves in their matches. The final brought together a couple of the characters within the squash club juniors but a final that everyone wanted to see - namely, Scott Davidson and Mash Swanson. Both show some excellent skills around the court but with Mash also being a Badminton player and strong volleyer, the bookies odds were just stacked in his corner. But Scott, whose only failing was having a couple of interactions with the official, dug deep into all his reserves, played some experienced shots and was not to be stopped taking the winners trophy home for pride of place on his mantlepiece by winning on the last point of the match. A plate competition was also provided within the package, for players who were unfortunate enough to go out in the first round, and as it sometimes transpires, a couple of the stronger juniors were pitted against each other. Martin Gunn and Sean Miller spend a lot of time on the courts together perfecting their skills and as they both knew each others game, there was the possibility of a tight match. On this occasion, Martin pulled away at the beginning and had no intention of looking back. Sean dug deep throughout the encounter but Martin always had the upper hand and finished the tie with a neat boast to add the PB Ltd plate to his trophy cabinet, for this season. Congratulations to Sandy Stewart and Ian Adamson, who continually provide coaching after school on a Monday and from what was viewable in this tournament, there is a significant improvement in the junior style, strength and management around the court - which the seniors will be battling against in the near future. Thurso Squash Club would also like to thank Neil Mackay, Precision Blinds Ltd for his continued support, which is greatly appreciated
Alan gets first Silverware - 24/09/05
The Precision Blinds Ltd Handicap Tankard opened Thurso Squash Club's 2005-2006 Season. A maximum amount of 16 contenders are required for this one day competition and as 15 hardy competitors arrived, it was full steam ahead. With a good mixture of player standards in each side of the draw, matches were always going to be close and go down to the wire. In the main event, Alan Scott and Brian Farmer managed to dodge and outwit their opponents to arrive in the main arena for the final. Alan had a nasty knock to the head in his semi-final clash against event sponsor, Neil Mackay but he scrambled back and amassed the appropriate points to arrive at the final showdown. Brian Farmer is now becoming a firm candidate of having a regular place in the final of ALL handicapped events, within the club and didn't fail himself this time around, either. With a slight points difference in favour of Alan, in the final - it was always going to be tough for Brian to heave back the deficit. But, in his own style of play, Brian began pulling out all the stops to reducethe lead. Alan managed to hold his nerve and secure the title with an excellent volley that only 'Inspector Gadget' would've had any chance of reaching, much to the dismay of his competitor who felt he had ample time to recover from and return a winner. This was Alan's first piece of silverware at the club and was delighted to accept the trophy from sponsor, Neil Mackay. The plate competition was won by young Martin Gunn beating the experienced Colin Paterson. Despite his youth he is always a keen entrant into all tournaments and can regularly be found hitting a ball at the club to improve on his style and positioning on court, which is good to see for the futuer of the club
End-of-Document | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
