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It all started when I was five and I used to go to the Southgate Squash Club to watch my Mum, Dad and brother Steve playing. I loved watching so much that I wanted to join in, so things took off from there and I started playing regularly and really enjoyed it. Mum used to run the Saturday afternoon coaching sessions for juniors at Southgate, and Steve and I used to go every week. These were great fun and we did this for many years (Mum taking these sessions for about twelve years). Mum and Dad started taking me to some of the junior tournaments and when I was nine I won the Under 12 National Championships which was exciting. I was very small for my age and everyone used to say that the racket was bigger then me, and they were probably right. Mum and Dad were my main coaches when I was very young. We realised when I was about eleven, that I needed more advanced coaching and we were lucky to have Paul Carter coaching nearby at Potters Bar. I started going to regular sessions at the club with Paul where he had already built up a good stable of squash players including |
11 Nov 1993, me (aged 9) winning under 12 National Title, Tracy Farr (left!) was runner up |
Tania Bailey, Stephanie Brind, Paul Johnson and Pete Barker who was also just starting, as well as others. This was great for me as I used to hit with them, and watch them train and play. I would turn up for a session and Paul would throw me in at the deep end and say I was playing Tania today… this was nerve wracking for me, but it was also fantastic, and looking back I’m really glad Paul made me play them all as I could not have had better experience than that. During this time a lot of weekends were spent travelling around England playing in junior tournaments, a massive thanks to Mum and Dad for that as I could not have done it without them. During my junior years, I was ranked in the top few in the country in all age groups and finished by winning the Under 19 Championships. I was also involved in the World Class Potential Programme and gained experience in national squads and trips abroad for tournaments. |
