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Sat 30th, Boys' Semis
Girls' Semis
B19:
[2] Nathan Lake bt [3/4]
James Earles
12/10, 11/7, 3/11,
11/5 (49m)
[1]Charles Sharpes bt [3/4] Robert Downer
11/3, 10/12,
11/2, 12/10 (43m)
B17:
[1] Ollie Holland bt [3/4] Tom Ford
11/8, 11/5,
11/8 (43m)
[2] Matt Sidaway bt [3/4] Taminder Gata-Aura
11/7, 8/11,
11/7, 11/3 (43m)
First final for Lake, same again for Sharpes
"He's beaten me a few times from 2/0 down so I knew I had to finish
it off," said Nathan Lake after becoming the first Boys'
finalist with a hard-fought win over James Earles.
 Earles
got off to a flyer, leading 5/0 in the first, but once Lake settled
- "I was quite nervous, and that was the worst knockup ever" - he
recovered to 5-all and got the better of some tough rallies at the
end of the game to take the lead.
Earles led the second too, 5/3 and 7/5, but Lake, working hard, took
six points in a row to double his advantage.
Earles took control from the outset of the third, forcing Lake onto
the defensive as he went 6/1 up, finishing it 11/3, and led early in
the fourth too.
 "I
was trying to go short too much in the third," Lake explained, "I
knew I had to try and close the court down a bit, I was giving him
too many openings."
Doing just that, Lake slowly regained the initiative, started doing
more of the pressing, and from 4/3 looked back in control as he took
the game with increasing authority to make his first National final.
"I came third in the U17s and I was fourth last year," he said, "so
it was nice to cross that finishing line and reach my seeding, the
pressure's off a bit now."
In the final he'll play top seed Charles Sharpes, who made it
through to his third Nationals final with an up and down win over
Robert Downer, last year's runner-up.
 Sharpes
eased through the first, but Downer tighten up and got the better of
a highly competitive second game, even if the last four points were
three poor errors and a stroke.
Sharpes was back in control in the third, none of the patient
rallies of the second and Downer making mistakes for fun.
But then it swung again, from 6/3 down in the fourth Downer hit
another hot patch, worked his way back to parity at 7-all, then
earned himself a couple of game balls at 10/8.
Sensing blood, he went for the kill with a couple of trademark big
windup winners, but failed to hit the mark as Sharpes collected the
final four points with some aplomb.
"It was a really unusual game," said the winner. "Robbie can be very
hot or very cold so you always have to be on your toes. I got into
it quickly at the start, then lost concentration in the second.
"He came back well in the fourth, so I was really pleased to close
it out there - I was game ball down in the fourth in the quarters
this morning too.
"I've won one National final and lost one, hopefully I can get
another win tomorrow ..."
Ollie too strong, Matt too fit ...
Top seed and defending champion Ollie Holland had too much
firepower for Tom Ford in the first U17 semi-final.
It was never easy for the top seed, Ford's lively and inventive play
always keeping Holland on his toes, but sheer physical power came
into play as time and again Holland was able to eventually force a
weak return, then thump the ball away for a winner deep into the
back corners.
 Always
ahead in the first, it was only in the second that Ollie enjoyed
real supremacy, opening out to 8/2 and soon after going two games to
the good.
The third was close all the way, Ford led 5/3, Holland recovered to
5-all, and from then on always had the edge - just.
On the final point he worked another good position, thumped a short
ball into the front corner, and despite Ford's despairing dive (wish
I'd been in the right corner!) Ollie was into his fifth National
final, one match away from his fourth title.
"I felt pretty solid on there today," said the winner. "I got a good
start, and I think he got a bit tired after the first so I tried to
capitalise on that.
"In the third I got a bit softer and looser and he got back into it.
He took it well across the middle, but I managed to get back in
control, I had a bit more power and fitness which gave me the edge."
 The
last match of another long day (not strictly true, there were still
a few playoff matches to complete) saw local boy Matt Sidaway
complete the finals lineup - top two seeds in all four categories -
with a 3/1 win over Taminder Gata-Aura.
They both had quarter-final matches well over the hour earlier in
the day, so it would have been no surprise if one or both of them
faded rapidly tonight.
In the event they hammered away for three games, both working and
running hard, and only in the fourth did Sidaway manage to break
clear to reach his second National final.
"I didn't feel too bad physically after this morning," he explained,
"I went home, had a sleep and felt ok, it was more mental tiredness
I think.
"He's really accurate but I knew that if I put him forward often
enough he'd eventually start to struggle, and that's what happened.
I practice a lot on this court and that was an advantage for me - as
well as my Swedish coach, of course!
"It's my second final, I played Ollie in the U15s and lost that one,
so I'm hoping to bring the title home to Manchester this time."
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Day Two at
the Northern
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Sat 30th, Girls' Semis
G19:
[2] Tesni Evans bt Katie
Smith
11/9,
11/3, 11/6 (15m)
[1] Juliane Courtice bt Sophie Lemom
11/5, 11/4, 11/5 (26m)
G17:
[1] Emily Whitlock bt [3/4]
Brogan Lane
11/5,
11/1, 11/4(21m)
[2] Victoria Temple-Murray bt Fiona May Murphy
12/10, 11/7, 11/7 (20m)
Tesni & Julianne's Experience Shows
 The
first player to reach the finals was Wales' Tesni Evans, who
overcame a slow start to beat Katie Smith in three.
Smith started well enough, leading 7/4 in the first, but the
Yorkshire girl relies on accuracy rather than power and,
unaccustomed to the glass court, struggled to keep the ball tight
enough as Evans powered through to take the lead.
Evans, told by coach Chris Robertson to "come out more intense and
get her behind you" did just that in the next two games, pinning
Katie to the back and punishing anything loose.
Katie's best spell came when she won three points at 10/3 down in
the third, but it was far too late by then. "I really struggled with
the court," she said, "I played on it once last year and once this
year, maybe next year I'll get more practice on it!"
Tesni was delighted to make her first National final in any age
group, having pulled out injured at the quarter-final stage last
year.
In the final she'll meet Julianne Courtice, U17 champion two
years ago, who eased past Sophie Lemom in three.
 Sophie
was competitive in the rallies, but suffered from too many unforced
errors while Julianne was steadiness personified as she controlled
the match from the outset. At one point in the third Sophie had the
ball at her mercy and her opponent running towards the back wall,
but still somehow she contrived to lose the point!
"That's the best I've played on a glass court," said Julianne, "I
usually really struggle on it.
"I was pleased with my game, but Sophie's so fast even if she is
only just coming back, so I had to throw in a few flicks to try to
wrongfoot her and thankfully they worked."
Emily stays put, Victoria's last chance ...
"People ask me why I didn't move up," said defending U17 champion
Emily Whitlock after beating Brogan Lane in a repeat of last
year's U17 final to move one match away from a successful defence.
 "You
can't do that in a big tournament like this," she explained, "having
a National Championship in you bag is a real honour, it's a big
thing for me."
She certainly played as though it was a big thing, demonstrating her
usual accuracy, unerringly putting the ball into the exact place her
opponent doesn't want it to go, and putting away anything loose with
deadly, and sometimes nonchalant, efficiency.
"It's always nice to play on the Glass Court, especially in the
British Championships," the winner went on. "Brogan and I have come
up through the age groups together and she's improved a lot over the
last few years. It's a pity we were in the same half of the draw
after playing the final last year.
"It's great to play events in Manchester, it means I can sleep at
home and Dad can go to see Man U play!
"It's my brother's birthday on Friday and my Mum's tomorrow so I
hope I can win for them tomorrow - shout out for MACE!"
 Second
seed Victoria Temple-Murray wasn't thinking about reaching
the final; when she was 10/7 down in the fifth in this morning's
quarter-final - except that she was!
"I just told myself that this was my last chance to reach the final
in this category, and that it's not over until it's over."
As an U13 finalist and U15 champion you can see why she'd be
determined to reach the U17 final, and that determination certainly
worked for her.
"I didn't play well this morning, so I was quite nervous going into
the semi," she added, "but I played ok in the end, I'm just glad to
get through."
OK she did play, a few lapses of concentration maybe which saw three
or four points disappear quickly, but she beat Fiona May Murphy, who
created one upset this morning, in straight games to reach another
final
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Sat 30th, Quarters
Another busy day in
Manchester, with the quarter-finals this morning and the U17 and U19
semis all on the glass court starting at 14.20.
That's at the NSC, while over at The Northern it's much the same for
the U13 and U15 events.
Girls
U19 Quarters:
[1] Julianne Courtice bt Jade Thompson
11/6, 11/2,
11/2 (17m)
Sophie Lemom bt Catherine Finlayson
11/7,
10/12, 11/9, 11/5 (31m)
Katie Smith bt [3/4] Rebecca Quiney
11/7, 11/9, 9/11, 9/11, 11/7
[2] Tesni Evans bt Hannah Davies
11/2, 11/4, 11/3 (16m)
Boys U19 Quarters:
[1] Charles Sharpes bt Declan James
9/11, 11/6, 11/2, 13/11 (53m)
[3/4] Robert Downer bt Reuben Phillips
11/5, 11/7, 11/7
[3/4] James Earles bt Sam Fenwick
11/9, 11/9, 11/6 (41m)
[2] Nathan Lake bt Nick Hopcroft
11/5, 11/6, 11/3 (26m)
Girls U17 Quarters:
[1] Emily Whitlock bt Alicia Mead
11/4, 11/4, 11/3 (22m)
[3/4] Brogan Lane bt Martha Posseger
3/11, 11/2, 11/9, 11/7 (25m)
Fiona May Murphy bt [3/4] Chloe Pearson
11/3,
9/11, 11/6, 11/9 (27m)
[2] Victoria Temple-Murray bt Anna Kimberley
9/11, 11/7, 11/7, 9/11, 14/12 (47m)
Boys U17 Quarters:
[1] Ollie Holland bt Lyell Fuller
11/5,
11/13, 11/3, 11/6 (38m)
[3/4] Tom Ford bt Jack McElvenny
11/5,
15/13, 7/11, 11/9 (49m)
[3/4] Taminder Gata-Aura bt Joe Brooke
11/0, 13/11,
11/13, 9/11, 12/10 (68m)
[2] Matt Sidaway bt Ashley Davies
11/5, 10/12, 11/8, 9/11,
11/9 (70m)
Lots of photos & Videos in the Gallery
Girls U19:
First through to the semis was top seed
Julianne Courtice, with a straight-games win over Jade
Thompson. Courtice is 19 on Wednesday so this is definitely her last
junior tournament!
In the semis she'll face unseeded Sophie Lemom, the former
U13 and U15 National Champion who has been out of action for almost
a year and has only just started playing again. "The match fitness
isn't there, but the shots are," said Sophie's father.
Second seed Tesni Evans won her all-Welsh encounter with
Hannah Davies in straight games. "We play each other lots," she
commented, "so it's a pity to come all thios way to play each other
again!"
Evans will face unexpected opposition in the semi-final after
Yorkshire's Katie Smith upset 3/4 seed Rebeca Quiney in five
close games. Smith took the first two but a comeback looked on the
cards as Quiney levelled, but an early lead in the decider proved
decisive for Smith.
"I always do that, relax when I'm ahead," said Katie. "I just had to
tell myself to concentrate and play simple squash."
Katie is at the other end of the birthday scale from Julianne,
having turned 17 just last week.
Boys U19
No upsets here as the top four seeds progressed to the semis.
Hardest pressed was top seed Charles Sharpes, who dropped the
first to Declan James and narrowly avoided having to play a decider.
Sharpes meets Robert
Downer in the all-English semis while Nathan Lake plays
James Earles.
Girls U17
Extremes at the top and bottom of the draw here, as defending
champion Emily Whitlock eased through in straight games over
Alicia Mead, while second seed Victoria Temple-Murray sneaked
home in the fifth.
Anna Kimberley took the first and fourth games, and held a 10/7 lead
in the decider. Temple-Murray saved those match balls, plus another
at 11/12 before finally taking it 14/12.
Whitlock faces 3/4 seed Brogan Lane who recovered from a game
down to beat Martha Posseger, while Temple-Murray meets Fiona May
Murphy who upset 3/4 seed Chloe Pearson in four games.
Boys U17
No upsets but two royal battles at the bottom of the draw as Matt
Sidaway and Taminder Gata-Aura were both taken the
distance before winning in 70 and 68 minutes respectively. They play
each other in one of the last matches tonight, and they'll need the
rest!
In the top half there was less drama as Tom Ford and Ollie
Holland both won in four, but neither was easy.
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Day Two at the Northern
Day 2 at The Northern saw the Boys and Girls U13 & U15
enthusiastically compete for the Tecnifibre British Junior
Championship titles.
The morning session was dominated by the plate competition with the
main draw players awaiting their first match of the day in the
afternoon.
James Wyatt (Bucks) had a tough first round plate match in
the Boys U13’s against qualifier Hayden Maclean (D+C) Winning
3-2 ,11/8 in the fifth in 31 minutes. The pick of the U13 girls
plate matches in the first session saw Laura Neil
(Northumbria) fight back from 2-1 down to beat Charlotte Fish
(Yorkshire) in 30 minutes 3-2 with last game going all the way to
13/11. Another five setter in the Girls U15 plate saw Taylor
Mounter come back from a 2-0 deficit to beat Alisha Bhanot
3-2 in 27 minutes.
As the morning plate matches came to a close there was a flurry of
five setters from the U15 Girls, Chloe Harrison (Lancashire) beat
Jodie Koep (Surrey), Charlotte Allcock (Surrey) beat Hannah Mulvey
(Herefordshire) and the longest match of 40 minutes was Nia Kenward
(Wales) who prevailed against Hannah Daley (Hertfordshire)
Main Draw Quarters
The quarter finals of the boys U13 started with a bang with
Charlie Lee (Surrey) 9/16 seed taking out the 3 /4 seed
Ryan Wilson (Gloucestershire) 11/6,/11/7, 11/3 in 21 Minutes.
Number 1 seed Harry Falconer (Lincolnshire) and number 2 seed
Robbie Keefe (Hampshire) both progressed to the semi finals
with ease winning 3-0. In the fourth quarter final Ben Turmel
(Suffolk) 9/16 seed beat Niall Adams (Hampshire) 5/8 seed 3-0
and plays Keefe in the semi finals.
Quarter finals of the girls U13’s produced with no upsets all
the top seeds went through to the semi finals with 3-0 wins.
Elise Lazarus (Essex) although losing 3-0 to Amelia Henley
(Kent) had the longest game losing 17/15 in the second in a 23
minute match. Elise who is only 10 years old is surely a potential
star of the future.
After his victory over 3 /4 seed Emyr Evans (Wales) Irelands
David Ryan’s successful run came to an end in the Quarter Finals
of the U15 Boys beaten 3-1 by 3 /4 seed Adam Turner
(Derbyshire). 5/8 seed George Parker from Leicestershire took
out 3 /4 seed James Peach (Yorkshire) in a convincing 3-0 win
in 20 minutes. 1 and 2 seeds Hamish Falconer (Lincolnshire)
and James Evans (Kent) booked their place in the semi finals
not before Alex Noakes (Oxfordshire) gave Falconer a scare
taking the first game 11/9 only to lose 11/2, 11/9, 11/6 in a 53
minute marathon. Evans proceeded with an easy victory against Wales
Callum Davidson with a 3-0 win.
Lucy Beecroft (Northumbria) number 2 seed had the easiest
passenger into the Girls U15 quarter finals. Jessica
Winder (Cumbria) took the first game from number 1 seed
Eleanor Lake before losing in four in a spirited display lasting
31 minutes. Georgina Kennedy (Kent) also gave a hearty
performance only to lose in five against 3 /4 seed Lilly Taylor
in 36 minutes. Katie Wilson (Surrey) seeded 5/8 beat 3/ 4
seed Kip Quiney (Gloucestershire) 3-1 this being the match of
the Girls U15 quarter finals.
Plate Quarters
The quarter finals of the plate event were keenly contested by both
the enthusiastic Boys & Girls U13. The boys U13’s & the girls
U13 saw one five setter, two four setters and a competitive 3 set
match. Luc Elsby (Northamptonshire) will play Jordan
Hardwick (Gloucestershire) and Alex Lane
(Gloucestershire) will play Jamie Todd (Northumbria) in
tomorrow’s plate semi finals. Lucy Turmel (Suffolk) will play
Paige Key (Warwickshire) and Jordan Russell (Hants)
will play Gabriella Mawson (Yorkshire) in tomorrow’s plate
semis.
The pick of the U15 Girls plate quarter finals was a five set
match won by Joanna Lord (Warwickshire) beating Taylor
Mounter (Cambridgeshire) 11/8 in the fifth. Lord will play
Nia Kenwood (Wales) in the first plate semi final and Aisling
Guerzoni (Oxfordshire) will play Charlotte Huxtable
(Wales) in the second. Jack Bearpark (Yorkshire) will play
Matthew Bedwell (Gloucestershire), Owain Taylor (Wales)
will play Andrew Taylor (Middlesex) in both the Boys U15
plate semi finals.
Semi-Finals
Top seeds in both the Boys and Girls U13 will contest tomorrows
Tecnifibre British Junior Championship Finals. Number 1 seed Elin
Harlow (Wales) beat Elin Jones (Gloucestershire), 11/7,
11/5, 11/8. Amelia Henley (Kent) beat Mari Taylor (Leics)
11/4, 11/9, 6/11, 11/4. Harry Falconer (Lincolnshire) beat
Charlie Lee (Surrey) in the semi final in 30 minutes 11/9,
12/10, 11/3. Robbie Keefe (Hants) overcame Ben Turmel
(Suffolk) 3-1 , 11/3, 11/4, 9/11, 11/6 in 31 minutes.
Reigning champion and number 1 seed Eleanor Lake
(Gloucestershire) was beaten in the semi final by Leicestershire’s
Lily Taylor 3/4 seed, 3 – 2, 11/7, 11/7, 10/12, 4/11, 11/7 in a
gruelling 43 minute battle. Lily now goes onto play Lucy Beecroft
(Northumbria) in the U15 Girls Final. Beecroft beat 5/8 seed
Katie Wilson (Surrey) 11/7, 13/11, 10/12, 11/4 in 31 minutes.
In the Boys U15 number 2 seed James Evans (Kent) survived a
five set thriller against 5/8 George Parker (Leics) winning
11/7, 10/12, 11/2, 9/11, 11/5 in 43 minutes. Hamish Falconer
(Lincolnshire) although beating Adam Turner 11/1, 11/9, 11/1
the match lasted 38 minutes. Turner put up a fight in the second
game to pull back to 8-8 but falconer was too strong for Turner and
came out victorious.
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