St George's Hill Top PSL Tables For First Time
Roundup from Howard Harding

Surrey club TWP St George's Hill recorded the most decisive win in Tuesday's second round of the Premier Squash League (PSL) by beating Covers Chichester 4/1 away from home to top the Group B table for the first time in their fourth season in the world's most prestigious squash league.

The Weybridge club, unbeaten this season, is one point ahead of county rivals Surrey Health & Racquets, the 2008 champions who beat Exeter Diamonds 3/2 to also maintain their unbeaten record.  Avon club Probuild Bristol put paid to a Surrey hat-trick by overcoming Surrey Storm Guildford 3/2 at home.

There was dramatic action in Group A where all ties finished 3/2 - and defending champions LEBC Group Chapel Allerton reclaimed pole position in the tables by beating league newcomers Newport.  Despite a better 'matches won' total, the Leeds club shares 32 points with East Midlands rivals MB Nottingham, who were 3/2 home winners over Esporta Oxford - while fellow Yorkshire club Pontefract recovered from 2/0 down to beat former champions Benz-Bavarian Duffield, from Derbyshire.

St George's Hill team manager Danny Lee was delighted with his club's performance in Chichester.  Dominique Lloyd-Walter put the home side ahead with an 11-7, 5-11, 12-10, 11-3 over Lauren Briggs - but Danny's son Joe Lee brought the visitors back into contention with a straight games win over Robert Downer and Hungarian number one Mark Krajcsak continued the fightback with an impressive win over Chichester stalwart Tim Vail.

Rising England star Tom Richards clinched victory for St George's Hill with a straight games win over fellow countryman Robbie Temple, before Mohd Azlan Iskandar and Daryl Selby - both having just returned from PSA Tour duties in Hong Kong - fought out a weary top string battle, which Selby ultimately clinched for the visitors 12-10, 10-12, 4-11, 11-5, 11-3.

"We've persevered with a young squad ever since our arrival in the PSL - and this is now beginning to pay off," said Lee senior.  "I'm really pleased with the team's performance tonight - across the board - and there's a great team spirit too."

Surrey Health & Racquets brought former world number one and world champion Peter Nicol out of retirement in their bid to beat west country side Exeter Diamonds.  And, despite not having played a competitive match since his previous appearance for the Croydon club in April 2007, 36-year-old Nicol showed that he has still not lost his touch as he beat promising Devon 21-year-old James Snell 11-6, 12-10, 5-11, 9-11, 11-3 in 64 minutes.

"Pete was moving well and played with such accuracy," said Surrey Health team manager Pete Smith.  "James tried to play a fast game at the beginning but Pete stuck with him - and eventually won the fifth very easily."

It was two-all when the top strings went head-to-head - and there was revenge at stake for the home side's Peter Barker, whose last meeting with Stewart Boswell was in England's deciding match in the world team championship play-off for third place against Australia earlier this month in Denmark. 

London left-hander Barker, higher-ranked than the Australian, went down in four games - but, in Croydon, recovered from a game behind to despatch Boswell 8-11, 12-10, 11-6, 11-4 to clinch a confidence-boosting win for himself, and a tie-winning result for his hosts.

Barker's England team-mate Adrian Grant was also called upon to pull off a tie-winning triumph when facing PSL newcomer Mohd Ali Anwar Reda, from Egypt, in the decider for Probuild Bristol against Surrey Storm Guildford.  World top 20-ranked players Laura Massaro and Mohamed El Shorbagy had provided two important wins for the home side - England's world No9 Massaro making her Bristol debut - but former touring professionals and  Guildford stalwarts Stephen Meads and Stacey Ross, on the eve of his 36th birthday, had levelled the tie.

It was the longest match of the night, but Grant beat Reda 11-5, 8-11, 11-6, 11-8 in 44 minutes to give the Avon club its first win of the season.

There were two more tie-winning performances by England internationals in second round clashes in Group A.  Newport, the first Welsh club in the PSL this decade, were poised for a maiden victory when Australian international Aaron Frankcomb took on former LEBC Group Chapel Allerton team-mate Alister Walker, the England number five.  Frankcomb got off to a flying start and took the opening game - but Walker bounced back to take the match 9-11, 11-3,11-3, 11-2 to take the Leeds club back to the top of the Group A tables.

It was a case of '11 times lucky' for MB Nottingham's second string Renan Lavigne when the French international faced Chris Ryder with visitors Esporta Oxford leading 2/1.  Long-time Nottingham player Lavigne had 11 match balls against his English opponent - six in the third game - before finally clinching victory by an 11-4, 11-6, 12-14, 10-12, 12-10 scoreline.

A Dutch/Australian battle brought the night to close when four-time Dutch champion Laurens Jan Anjema beat Cameron Pilley 4-11, 11-5, 11-9, 11-9 to give victory to Nottingham.

The tie between Pontefract and Benz-Bavarian Duffield had all the ingredients necessary to ensure a satisfied crowd from the beginning of the night through to the end.  They first saw a long-awaited revenge victory for England comeback queen Tania Bailey over Dutch star Vanessa Atkinson in which Bailey made up for defeats in last month's British Open and World Open to finally overcome the former world champion 11-9, 4-11, 11-4, 2-11, 11-8 - and put visitors Duffield into the lead.

Retired Pontefract star Lee Beachill began the comeback for the hosts, showing signs of the brilliance which once took him to the top of the world rankings by beating Duffield's Andrew Whipp 11-4, 10-12, 11-6, 11-5.

But it was left to current England hero James Willstrop to nail the tie victory:  Only days after recording one of the best wins of his career in Hong Kong, where be beat reigning world champion Ramy Ashour, Willstrop saw off New Zealander Martin Knight 11-5, 11-5, 11-3 to ensure a 3/2 win for Pontefract.


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