Emma Bartley, who is coached by Lauren Selby at the Colchester Off The Wall Squash Academy, was crowned British Under-11 National Champion after an amazing weekend in Sheffield.
And Connaught’s Yusuf Sheikh, under the watcful eye of his coach Dave Webster, finished fifth overall, his only defeat at the hands of the eventual winner,Abdallah Eissa of Warwickshire.
Emma, from Bury St Edmunds, was hoping to do one better from her runner up position last year. Going into the competition she was seeded 3/4 but she was feeling well prepared and confident. Her first match was against Emma Wilkinson from Yorkshire who barely reached Bartley’s shoulder! The sheer power of Emma’s shots were too much for the northern player, a comfortable victory to begin proceedings.
The quarter final match proved a tougher challenge. Emma was up against Lauren Hall from Cheshire. Lauren is a strong player with a good technique and a ‘never say die’ attitude. Emma was a bit edgy in the first two games, this combined with Lauren’s grit and determination made for two close scorelines. Emma sneaked both games but wrapped things up nicely in the last game putting together some mature squash.
CHAMPIONS: Emma and boys’ winner Avdallah Eissa
On Sunday morning Emma faced Layla Johnson from Yorkshire, a tidy player with a good touch to the front. Despite the 3-1 scoreline Emma always looked in control. Her opponent put up a good fight and made Emma work hard for every point. In the fourth game Emma put together some well constructed rallies using all corners of the court effectively.
The final was against Asia Harris who had knocked out the number 2 seed Jasmine Tranter in the semi-final. Emma looking in control for the first two games, moved the ball well around the court. The third game was nip and tuck with Asia creeping ahead and Emma getting slightly tense. Asia reached game ball but Emma showed her experience and kept herself together. She played the next few rallies brilliantly and finished the last point on a perfectly executed drop to the front left. Emma was the National Champion, a title she has had her eyes on since she was six!
Coach Lauren said:” The Off The Wall Academy are very proud of Emma’s achievement. She has worked tirelessly for the past few years and her hard work has paid off. We are looking forward to plenty more success in future years!”
A full report about Yusuf’s matches, plus those of his fellow Essex team mates Brooke Smith, Josh Stephens, Caleb Belcher and Daniel Caton will appear here as soon as the information is received from our on-the-spot reporter.