CLICK HERE FOR THE FLYER

Please find above info and the application form for the 2012 Squash Canterbury Junior Development Squads.   We are hoping to start these shortly, so would love to hear back from applicants by the end of February.

 

Note there have been some format changes made for this years squads.  We have secured Rangiora as a venue and will be now hosting 2 sessions there along with 2 at Squash HQ.  The cost for the 23-week programme is $150 (payable in $50 installments per term).  All levels of player are looked at; players must just be serious about improving their game.

 

If you have any questions please contact Mike Allred on 02102303868 mike@squashcanterbury.co.nz or Tim McVie on 0276880574 tim@squashcanterbury.co.nz

CLICK HERE FOR THE FLYER

 

All players and ages welcome

17-18 February

Squashways

Enter: www.squashcanterbury.co.nz/tournaments.asp

Squash Canterbury Job Vacancy

Administration Officer (Part-time 20 hours a week)

Closing Date: 30 January 2012

 

Squash Canterbury is seeking a part-time administrator to join the staff.  This exciting role will be for 20 hours per week and include a wide variety of tasks including Interclub, Representative, Event Management, Facility Management and other administration.  Squash Canterbury is seeking a can-do person with a passion for squash or sport and can understand the needs of our customers.  A related degree or similar experience is desired.  Knowledge of basic computer applications is essential.  This role will report to the Operations Manager and is based at Squash HQ (formerly Sockburn Recreation Centre).

 

Please forward your interest with resume to info@squashcanterbury.co.nz by 30 January 2012.

 

ROBBIES SUMMER INTERCLUB

 

Please click below for the final standings for Summer Interclub Round 1. Please look at the SIT Platform for the ladder of each division, as this will show all the results.

 

FINAL STANDINGS

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

 

Please be advised that the Squash Canterbury offices at Squash HQ are closed from Thursday 22 December and reopening on Thursday 12 January.  The team at Squash Canterbury wish you all the best for a great holiday and have a safe and happy new years.  Thanks again to everyone for their patience during this disrupted year.

 

NOTE: Summer Interclub commences January 30/31 for seniors and February 13-14 for juniors.  Please contact your club captain to enter in the usual manner.  Entries close January 13.

Richmond and Burnside club junior Theo Zbijowski is having a very busy squash holiday season in England this year.  Theo flies out on Christmas day for three weeks full of squash including the prestigious British Junior Open in Sheffield, January 2-6.  He is in a draw of 64 in the under 17 grade including top players from 28 countries.  Theo, 16, is also working out with top professional and junior England players during his stay, as he strives to take his game to the next level.

 

He won the Squash Canterbury Junior Personality award after a stellar season where he has increased nearly 500 points since January.  Theo works very hard at his game and is a Squash Canterbury High Performance squad member which includes a fitness programme with Legacy Fitness trainer Simeon Joplin.  He finished runner-up in the U17 boys at Junior Nationals and anchored the Canterbury team after a late injury to fellow High Performance member Andrew Ellis.  He is a student at Burnside High School and coaches their girls team as well as helping at Burnside junior club nights.  Ellie Epke is the only other Kiwi to compete at this years Junior British Junior Open in the girls under 15 grade.  Interestingly both were born in Bristol and moved to New Zealand when they were young.

 

Follow Theos progress on www.bjosquash.com

Canterbury/Blenheim teenager Megan Craig has cracked into the Top-100 Womens World Squash players in the latest rankings by WISPA.  Following on from strong showings in Australia including a win in the Caboolture Open in Queensland a fortnight ago, Craig now stands at a career-high 84th in the world.  Canterburys other teenage professional Paul Coll is now ranked 182 in the world.  Both could go even higher as they play more tournaments next year.

SQUASH NZ COACHING AWARDS 2011
The three categories of awards were New Coach, Club and School Coach and District Performance Coach. The nominees are selected by the Squash NZ Coaching Advisory Panel and the awards were presented by National Coaching Director Dave Clarke.

The New Coach Award was won by Nirelle McDonald (Northland) who recently became involved in the game again through the Squash in Schools Program in Kaitaia which saw 60 children introduced to the game. She then completed 4 of the Squash NZ Coach Development Framework modules and visibly applied these techniques to the program. Upon completion she raised funding for equipment and to run another program introducing a further 122 children to squash. She currently runs 4 sessions a week at the club and has converted 60 of those school children into club members as well as helping assistant coaches in the delivery of the junior programs. This is a truly inspiring effort by Nirelle who is a worthy recipient of the award.

The Club and School Coach of the Year was Nick Wiffen (Wellington/Nelson) who is based at Motueka Squash Club. He runs junior night coaching sessions for Secondary Schools children as well as running an advanced squad which has seen players nationally ranked. He also coached 3 teams in the SI Secondary Schools Champs and 6 teams at the Regional Champs. In his spare time he raised money for the juniors and is also the President of the club. One of his young charges was quoted Nick feels like a friend to me rather than just a coach, he set aside several hours of his private time to coach or simply feed my hunger for improvement.

The District Performance Award for 2011 went to Mark Waldin (Auckland) who has had an incredibly busy year. He has coached the Auckland Teams to inter District and National success with both boys and girls teams winning the National Championship. He worked with several Squash NZ National Squad members in 2011 and is the personal coach to Abbie Palmer who recently was part of the Squash NZ World Junior Girls Team. He is on the Squash Auckland Coaching Panel and is a qualified Squash NZ coach facilitator who has delivered a multitude of workshops up skilling other coaches this year.

Squash NZ National Coaching Director Dave Clarke said "the standard of nominations was extremely high this year with nominations up by 100% from the previous year. The Coaching panel would like to acknowledge not just the work of the coaches above but of all coaches who are contributing their time and effort to Squash in New Zealand. Thank you all for your contributions and keep up the good work."

SQUASH NZ CLUB OF THE YEAR 2011
Manurewa Squash Club were selected as the Squash NZ Club of the Year after a year of growth and new initiatives for the South Auckland club. The introduction of the voluntary position of Membership Administrator’ to build quality relationships within the club and community with the goal of growing and developing the game of squash in Manurewa has had a great impact for the club. Initiatives around membership types, volunteer training and recognition, coach development, women’s squash programmes and refurbishments have all helped in the club’s 65% increase in membership in the past year. With more refurbishments planned, online booking currently being installed and more membership programmes planned, the club is set to continue their growth next season. Ernie Dumper, president of Manurewa Squash Club said that without the support of Squash Auckland, the club could not have achieved what they did.

SQUASH NZ PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
Don Cotter was the 2011 recipient of the Squash NZ Personality of the Year plate for his contribution to the history of squash through the continued development of the Squash NZ Hall of Fame and through the history of squash book Long and Short which Don drove the development of. One year ago Don was initiated as a life member of Squash NZ and this year he said he was once more blown away to receive this award, stating in typical Don-fashion, that the award should not be given to him, but to the whole committee of the Squash NZ Hall of Fame.

SQUASH NZ CHAIRMAN’S AWARD
Each year, the Squash NZ Chairman selects a recipient of this trophy, which rewards a significant contribution to squash in the previous year. In 2011, sports journalist, squash enthusiast and author of Long and Short: The Story of NZ Squash Joseph Romanos was selected as the worthy recipient. Jospeh trawled the country, interviewing hundreds of squashies throughout New Zealand to capture the incredible history of sport in what everyone agrees is a fabulous pictorial story of squash in NZ. Joseph was also a founding member of the NZ Squash Hall of Fame and every year works with his fellow Committee members to select inductees to celebrate. Joseph was given his award at the Hall of Fame ceremony on Friday night at Remuera Rackets Club and the interviewer was then interviewed by fellow Hall of Fame Committee Member Grant Smith.

Squash New Zealand would like to congratulate all recipients of the award and also thank those people who took the time to nominate all worthy recipients.

Click on the link below to see photos from the Awards night and also the Hall of Fame dinner.

www.facebook.com/SquashNZ

From the Marlorough Express - By Clay Wilson

After notching her first professional tournament win in Australia over the weekend, Canterbury/Marlborough squash star Megan Craig is hungry for more success.

In just her fifth Wispa (Womens International Squash Players Association) tournament, the 18-year-old produced an outstanding string of victories to win the Caboolture Open in Queensland which finished on Sunday.

Seeded 10th, she beat the sixth, first and fourth seeds on her way to the final, before downing second seed Australian Maggy Marshall in four games in the final.

Making the world No123s victory even more impressive was the fact all four players she defeated were ranked inside the worlds top 100, the lowest being her first opponent at 93.

Craig, who arrived back in Blenheim on Monday afternoon, said although she had to work hard for all four wins, the quarterfinal victory over top seed and world No60 Sarah Cardwell was the most pleasing. The young Marlburian was staring defeat in the eye at 0-2 and 2-8 down in the third game, but clawed her way back into the contest before eventually triumphing 2-11 9-11 11-4 11-9 11-9.

"It was probably the biggest game of my life. I dont think Ive ever felt like being sick after a game, but I did after that. It felt like that was my final."

She then had to play both the semifinal and the final on Sunday, knocking over Australian junior No1 Tamika Saxby, before beating Marshall to lift the title.

Although it had always been a goal to win her first Wispa tournament, Craig said her desire to do so had risen significantly in the last year. She said the Kiwi women who competed in the Australian tournaments were almost always given a tough draw, making the victory even more satisfying. Her first professional win had also made her hungrier to continue climbing the world rankings, something she felt would require a couple of key things.

With a lack of real competition in Blenheim and the new national coach being based in Auckland, a move north is on the cards. After a break for a few weeks she is planning to make the move in the new year to begin preparing for her first Wispa tournament in 2012, the Australia Day Challenge in Brisbane on January 19.

Adding new elements to her game would also be crucial.

"I can run all day, but I probably need to work more on my attacking and finishing ... instead of them doing all the attacking it needs to be me going for more shots."

The updated Wispa world rankings are released on December 1 and she said she "cant wait until the first of month" to see how high she will rise. A move inside the top 100 ranked players is likely and with a plan to compete in 15 Wispa tournaments next year she hopes to continue her charge towards the top of the world game.

 

CALL FOR INTEREST: JUNIOR CONVENORS

 

Squash Canterbury seeks to appoint a junior convenor for the 2012 season.  This is a voluntary position that fills a vital role in Squash Canterburys structure. You will be working with the District Coach, and reporting to the Operations Manager.

 

Below is a general brief of the position:

 

    Work with Squash Canterbury to appoint selectors (two for juniors).

    Work with Squash Canterbury in setting the selection criteria and the Junior Policy Pathway.

    Appoint a manager for nationals.

    Select the Junior Nationals team, Junior component of the Quad Tournament and SI Junior Age Group Teams Event in combination with the other selectors.

    Assist the District Coach with selecting the High Performance Squad and Junior Development Squads.

    Produce reports for the annual report and the board in November each year.

 

Please forward your interest to the Operations Manager, Piet Van Hasselt at info@squashcanterbury.co.nz by 14 December 2011.

 

 

CALL FOR INTEREST: JUNIOR SELECTOR POSITIONS

 

Squash Canterbury is calling for interested parties for the two Junior selector positions for the 2012 season.  The positions are voluntary and form an important part of our programmes.  The selectors will be responsible to the Junior Convenor.

 

Selectors will assist in selecting teams for the following, where needed:

 

    Junior Nationals.

    Junior component of the Quad Tournament.

    The High Performance Squad and Junior Development Squads.

 

In addition to the team selection role, the junior convenor or one of the two selectors will be required to attend the important games at each major junior selection event. 

 

Please forward your interest to the Operations Manager, Piet Van Hasselt at info@squashcanterbury.co.nz by 14 December 2011.

XMAS GIFT SPECIAL $70
Get Fit and Have Fun
3 months social membership
From 1st January 2012 - 31st March 2012
At Burnside Squash Club
Price includes 1 free lesson with qualified Coach also includes key tag
Offer valid until 23rd December 2011

Contact: Shirley 0212258252 evenings

 

Canterbruy/Blenheim product Megan Craig won her first professional title when she took out the Caboolture Open in Queensland over the weekend. Craig, 18 defeated Tasmanias Maggy Marshall 9-11 11-4 11-1 11-8 in the final of the US$4,000 event.  Congratulations!