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Aug 2010:
Cameron Confidential
Will Mather catches up with world #17 Cameron Pilley |
 When I think
of the professional squash game, there are those who
epitomize the player’s role and Cameron Pilley is an
excellent example.
A sponsor’s dream, the crowd pleasing, fast-paced, attacking
game of the tall Australian is bettered by his casual,
humorous and approachable manner with the crowds who flock
to watch his matches.
I thought we could learn a little more about the friendly
Aussie from Yamba with the reputation of being the ‘crowd
favourite’. Read on!
Will Mather |
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Cameron, tell us about your upbringing.
When did squash come into the picture?
I’m one of three kids: Morgan, Heather and myself, born to
Sue and Steve Pilley and I was born and raised in the small
town of Yamba (pop. 5000).
Squash came into the picture extremely early! Both my
parents played socially and when I was 2, my mum would roll
a ball towards me and I could hit it back to her. My parents
bought the local squash club when I was about 10 and we
lived next door, so on rainy days I'd just go to the courts
for a hit.
I played my first tournament when I was 6 and although I've
played squash tournaments from as young as I can remember,
my life has always revolved around sports.
I competed in soccer, cricket and golf tournaments at a
decent level and also played hockey, touch footy and went
surfing whenever I could! Growing up in Yamba I spend a lot
of time at the beach.
When did you know you were going to pursue squash
professionally?
Well there was never a moment where I made my mind up that
being a Professional squash player was what I was going to
do. It sort of just panned out that way. I was always pretty
handy on a squash court and enjoyed it so I just kept
playing!
The year I started playing in the U'19's was the year I
started training. I REALLY wanted to make the Australian
Junior Men's Team so I started putting in the hard yards.
Throughout juniors I was never one of the top Australian
players, just in the top 8. When the selection series events
came for picking the team, my training had paid off and I
won 2 of the 3 tournaments.
After the World Junior Championships in 2000 (I lost to
Borja Golan in a massive 5 setter!), I was offered a
scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS).
Getting this scholarship was enormous for me - I used to
idolise players in the AIS - and it was an opportunity for
me to give the Professional Tour a go.
I loved playing squash, loved being in the competitive
environment, and I was good at it; so why not keep playing?
Who are your sponsor(s)?
My only sponsor at the moment is Karakal. I use the Karakal
Pro 4SL racquet with Karakal Nano Fusion string and always a
yellow or white Karakal grip!
You are another in a long line of talented Australian
squash players. What has Australia done so well?
 For starters Australia is a very sport orientated country -
we play any sport we can get our hands on! I think the state
of squash in Australia is solid at best. Like a lot of
places, squash had a boom in the 80's and since then numbers
(and clubs) have dwindled.
To our credit we have always had players at the top of the
game in spite of this but then again, it's not where it used
to be or where it should be. A stepping stone from juniors
to professionals which has helped me and many others
tremendously is the AIS (Australian Institute of Sport).
It provides a full time training base, accommodation,
financial support, physio's etc and full time coaches to
work with. I think the area that needs the most assistance
and support is at the grass roots level. Getting the game
back into the public eye and introducing it to hundreds of
thousands of kids across the country.
You mentioned a grass roots level approach to
developing squash. How would you propose this be done?
I think another massive push into the schools around
Australia would be a start. Some parts of Oz have this
already, which is great but it is not Australia wide. It
needs to be shoved in the face of the public really! Outdoor
sports obviously dominate in Oz but there's no reason why
squash shouldn't be as or more popular, especially in
winter.
I don't think squash is such an exclusive sport in Oz, as
most squash centres are public. My parents club was public
and we would always have bunches of school kids come in
during the week for school sport, as well as after school
juniors.
We've produced a number of State champions (my brother was a
state champion and he will gladly tell anyone in earshot
that he won a State Title and I didn't!) and Australian
Champions from our club, which I think proves that we're
doing something right. Not bad for a town of about 5000!
In the past, Australian squash players have been
outsourced to train athletes of other sports. Based on their
World Cup performance, would you accept if offered to train
the Australian National soccer team?
I was wondering when a dig at our National team would come
up! But yes, I would certainly accept the position. It'd be
pretty easy really, just put the best players on the field
straight away!! |
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You are
now training in the Netherlands. Why the move? Who do you
train with? Your brother (Morgan Pilley, Professional
Cyclist) is also in the area, do you ever cross train with
him?
Yeah I've been based in The Netherlands for the past two
seasons now and I'm really enjoying it. Previous to that I
was based in the UK (Reading) for about two years, training
with Aussies such as Dan Jenson, Anthony Ricketts and
Stewart Boswell.
All those boys either retired or moved away so I was looking
for a new base after that. My brother wanted to come to
Europe to compete and specialize in 24hr Mountain Bike
races, and as we're quite close we thought it'd be great to
live and train together (Yes I realize there aren't many
hills, let alone mountains in Holland!).
There's quite a few decent players here for me to train with
- LJ Anjema being the standout but there are a bunch of
Aussies floating around in the top 100 who base themselves
out here also.
As for cross training with Morgan, I've done a few rides
with him back in Oz, but not over here yet. We'll go for
long runs together and get on court sometimes (he's still a
very decent player!), but it's such a plus for us both to be
living together and doing exactly what we want to do with
our lives.
 Take us through your training. What are your regular
habits?
Different periods of the year will require different
training methods depending on what events are coming up.
During the season obviously match play takes up a fair chunk
of training.
I like to keep my speed and explosiveness up also, which
I'll do via plyometric sessions, ghosting, footwork drills
and circuit training. During the off season (now) I like to
work on things which I feel let me down over the past
season. I am fixing a few things up technically with my
swing and also certain areas of my movement.
I do this by getting on court with my coach (Carl Koenig)
and hitting balls for hours! With the movement side of
things, this is easily done on court by myself.
Sometimes I'll ghost certain patterns and sometimes I'll
have someone point different corners for me to move to. On
top of training each day, I like to have a good stretch each
night to loosen the muscles up. I find I wake up feeling a
lot fresher too.
Take us through a match. Do you typically have a plan
for your opponent? Or do you, like the legendary Thierry
Lincou, seemingly observe us mere mortals in the first game
and take it from there?
Well every match is different so you have to take each match
on it's own merit. I don't have an exact warm up I go
through every time I step on court but I make sure I am
stretched, warm and ready to roll.
I think the mental side of things before a match is more
important.
Controlling your energy levels, getting yourself pumped up
or calming yourself down depending on what mood you're in is
hugely important. I try and put myself in the exact frame of
mind I need to be.
I will have an idea of what type of game plan I want to put
in place before I step on court. I definitely don't
'observe' in the first game. I don't want to give my
opponent any momentum at all so I usually go out fairly
hard.
Whose style of play on tour do you find most
challenging and why?
Haha well if I was playing myself I would know exactly what
to do. I'm not going to tell you how for fear of someone
putting it into action against me!
There are players I find difficult and there are players
whose styles I just can't wait to play against. But sorry,
no names will be mentioned here!
What is the strangest/worst piece of advice you've
ever received during a match?
It wasn't during my match but I was discussing tactics with
a coach (no names) once. His player was playing a lefty and
as we all know, lefty's tend to have a much stronger
forehand. The coach was telling his player (a righty) to
hammer the guys forehand! I couldn't believe it! He lost.
Who is your vote for best player of all time?
Jahangir Khan. He had awesome power, was extremely fit and
amassed a heap of titles! His training was ridiculous but
what impressed me the most - and most people would say the
same - is the fact he went 5 years undefeated. That is just
unbelievable.
After Ross Norman beat Khan in the '86 World Open, Khan went
another 9 months undefeated. He was just so strong. He also
won 12 of the 13 Hardball tournaments he entered and beat
the famed Mark Talbott 10 of the 11 times they played each
other. Being the best in the World at hardball and softball
is awesome. |
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How would you describe your game?
I enjoy going for my shots and putting my opponent under
pressure by moving the ball around quite a lot. I won't
really get caught up in a boring 50 shot rally to the back
of the court like some players.
I enjoy playing squash, that's why I do it as my profession.
I'm not going to sacrifice the way I play because I have
done that once or twice in the past, and it was boring. I
like shooting for the nicks and making it a game the crowd
will enjoy also.
What have been your favorite moments thus far? What
are you ambitions for the coming year(s)?
 The moments which stand out in my mind are representing
Australia. All of them. When I first heard I had made the
Junior Team I was absolutely over the moon.
I get the same feeling each time I pull on the Australian
shirt. It makes me so proud to represent Australia and I
hope to do it many, many more times in the future.
Probably the 2009 Men's Team Championships in Denmark was a
favourite for me. After disappointment in losing to Ramy
Ashour in the Semi finals against Egypt, we had to play
England for the 3/4 playoff the next morning. Our captain
David Palmer was on first and lost to James Willstrop 3-1 in
a close match.
I was on next against Ali Walker who was flown in to replace
an injured Nick Matthew. It was a massive battle (we always
seem to have 5 setters!) and in the end I managed to win a
grueling match 3-2. Stewart Boswell then went on against the
Pommy No.2 Pete Barker and finish the job, winning 3-1. The
team effort there is such a sweet memory.
Summarily, my ambition for the coming year is to improve my
game in all areas so as to crack into the world’s top 10.
 What is your favorite tournament to play in and why?
I love playing in the Tournament of Champions in NY, Papua
New Guinea Open, Yamba Open, Bermuda. These come to mind as
my favourites. Obviously events where I play well and win
are favourites too!
I love playing on a glass courts too so wherever there is a
glass court is good too. The ToC event I like playing
because it is such a cool experience to play in Grand
Central. There is such electricity and buzz around the venue
it inspires you to perform on such a stage. I love the city
too.
PNG I like because the vibe is so cool! It is such a laid
back place, friendly people and great weather. Definitely my
type of place. Yamba is my home tournament so no explanation
needed really and Bermuda reminds me of home so...yeah!
If you could convince the PSA to stage a tournament
anywhere in the world, where would you choose?
A few places come to mind. Hawaii, Vegas, Sydney, on the
Augusta golf course, it'd be cool to have a major event in
any of those places!
Any plans after your PSA career?
I've decided I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. At the
moment it's all about playing and competing and getting the
best out of myself as a squash player.
I definitely want to be involved in squash and help the
sport grow once I retire though. I'd love to get squash in
Australia up and running to the level it should be. I want
Australia to be a major force again so coaching will
probably be in the picture once I finish playing
professional - I'll be playing a lot of golf though!
What is one piece of advice you would give to that top
club and/or junior player looking to transition to the PSA?
There's no short cuts to be the best you can be, so be
prepared for hard work. You'll go through some lows and
disappointments but believe me, it'll be worth it for the
highs you will feel once you achieve your goals. Enjoy your
squash and have fun, that's the main thing! |
Quick 10 with
Cameron Pilley
| Favorite beer/brew: |
VB |
| Who
would win the arm wrestling match: LJ or Piedro
Schweertman? |
Piedro "bicep" Schweertman. |
| Favorite part of Holland: |
Coco's Aussie Bar. |
| Favorite part of Yamba: |
Just being home. |
| What
would Morgan say is your worst habit?: |
Not finishing the coffee he makes me every morning. |
| Worst
job you've ever had: |
I've liked them all! Working as check-out (chicks) at a
supermarket, bar, milkman... they were all good! |
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Spontaneous or obsessive planner? |
Neither.
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| Cat,
dog, koala or other?: |
I have a cat and dog back home but a monkey would be pretty
funny. |
| The
one thing you'll never do again?: |
Try to straighten a screwdriver with my teeth. |
| What
is your favorite tradition? |
Still working on that one… |
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