Juniors do battle in inter-club competition

Junior squash players from across Cumbria swapped individual ambitions for team honours as they locked horns during the first inter club event of the season.

Many of the youngsters involved in Sunday’s competition were getting their first taste of competitive action outside their clubs with teams at both under-11 and under-15 levels.

The event pitted youngsters from Carlisle, Wigton and a combined Whitehaven and Windscale team against one another in a format where every point counted.

Originally the competition, which is the first of three planned for the season, was due to be held at Carlisle Squash Club in Warwick Road, but due to the flood damage it had to be moved at the 11th-hour.

Players who have represented Cumbria’s inter county teams this season were not eligible to take part in the competition paving the way for more inexperienced youngsters to get a taste of glory.

The event was designed as a way to give new players and those not used to competing in tournaments outside the county a platform.

Coaches and county organisers hope that the competition will push through the county’s next generation of stars, following in the footsteps of the likes of Carlisle’s Adam Goad, an English champion and Whitehaven’s Matthew Harrison, a former number one-ranked player in England at under 11s.

With an abundance of talent on show it was the West Cumbria combined team that managed to pick up the most points in the under 15 group, pipping Wigton’s juniors after edging them out in a closely fought contest.

Carlisle’s under 11s managed to give their club a welcome boost by beating West Cumbria to the top of their group.

Points picked up from Sunday’s event will be carried forward to the next rounds in the New Year.