PNH Properties
Chichester and
PCL Whitehall Security Surrey Health & Racquets Club will
meet in Tuesday's final of the Premier Squash League (PSL)
at Lee-on-Solent Squash Club - both clubs bidding to win
their first title in the established England Squash league
sponsored by Towergate tlc.
In the first final for six
years between two southern clubs, Chichester will be led by Mohd
Azlan Iskandar - the Malaysian who claimed an unexpected berth
in the quarter-finals of this week's Dunlop British Open
after upsetting second seed Ramy Ashour - while their Croydon-based
opponents will be led by Egyptian Wael El Hindi, the world
No9.
Chichester beat defending
champions Benz-Bavarian Duffield to make the final for the
first time in eight attempts, and Surrey Health defeated
University Sport Birmingham in the other semi.
"It is going to be
fantastic final, with all of the matches difficult to call, and nice
to see the south breaking the north’s stranglehold," said Surrey
H&RC spokesman Tim Garner. "We may have the slight
edge in terms of rankings but the massive Chichester supporter group
that will travel along the south coast are sure to inspire their
players.
"To counter this, our club
is hiring a coach to take our own army of fans down the M3 and so it
is likely to be an electric atmosphere on the night.
"We are confident that we
recruited the right players this year and it was a great achievement
for the club to make the final in only our third season. But second
place is not an option," added Garner.
The final will be staged
in Lee-on-Solent where the host club is celebrating its centenary
this year.
"This year sees
Lee-on-the-Solent celebrate the centenary of its foundation back in
1908," said club spokesman Chris Raleigh. "To mark this milestone
in the Club's history we have many highpoints planned throughout the
year. On 31st May we have our grand Tennis open day with Pat Cash
as our special celebrity guest; on Friday 16th May we are hosts for
the "lost for words" event featuring Lee Beachill and James
Willstrop - this being followed by some live entertainment from the
dynamic duo. On 14th June we will be holding our Grand Summer
Foundation Ball at the Club.
"In addition to the above
we have lots of mini events going on. To be invited to host the
Premier Squash League Final on Tuesday 13th May just prior to our
own "Lost for Words" evening will make the mid week in May a
fantastic week to remember for Squash down at Lee-on-the-Solent,
where we have a long and established association with top quality
tournaments and some principal players."