European U19 Team Championships

ESF            LIVE SCORE

Venue: Squash Time
Address:
Vijfkamplaan 22
5624 EB Eindhoven
Netherlands
Route atGoogle Maps
Phone: +31 40 241 1411
Email: eventssquashtime@gmail.com
Website: www.eventssquashtime.com

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Final Standings of ESF Mixed Team u19 – Group C
    Points Played Won Draws Lost Rubbers Games Points
1 ESPSpain 6 3 3 0 0 6 3 21 13 329 264
2 IRLIreland 4 3 2 0 1 6 3 19 10 260 214
3 CZECzech republic 2 3 1 0 2 3 6 11 20 228 305
4 DENDenmark 0 3 0 0 3 3 6 11 19 250 284

Day 4 & Finals Day

Finals day. Including the individual event, we have been in Eindhoven 10 days now – going from the hotel to the club and back twice per day. Captain Dylan is very excited to get home and we all know it, reminders of how much he missed his double bed were hourly.
Our last match was for 5th place and we had a decent Welsh team to contend with.
Sean Murphy was first up against 14 year old, Archie Turnbull. Archie is an impressive athlete, the current British U15 champion, word is he can complete 41 pull-ups and it doesn’t come as a surprise when you see his build.
Sean was tested in the first but took control in the last two games and ran out a comfortable winner, but this welsh kid is one to watch.
Dylan Moran faced Rhys Evans, Rhys had a great tournament so far and was on a confidence high. Dylan was carrying a niggle that got progressively worse and he unfortunately had to stop mid match. Rhys was looking good, it’s a shame Dylan didn’t get to test himself a little more as it would have been a tight battle.
In the decider, Hannah played an athletic Ellie Breach. Both players matched each other squash wise but the Welsh player had a little more in the tank – Hannah fell just short in a few tough rallies. Ellie took out the tie in 3 and with that claimed 5th spot for the Welsh.
A disappointing end for us but we are a young team and will hopefully be back next year to put in a strong challenge for the title.
In the final, England managed a 2-1 win over a passionate French team, in the history of this event the English have only lost 3 times. Hopefully next year we can be the fourth to deny them.
Players party was held at the squash club to wrap things up. The organisers had a food truck with burgers and kebabs and a disco in the lounge. A nice way to finish a very well run event.

David Noone (Coach)

 

Day 3

1/4 finals day today. After losing to Spain, we saw this as a chance to prove ourselves, knowing it was going to be tough against the home team.
No.1 string match was first up, Dylan Moran taking on the runner up from the individual event, Rowan Damming. It was a well fought match, tight all the way to the business end but the Dutch player showed his class and resilience, taking all three games.
Jack O’Flynn came up against Knut, a player who seems about 7ft tall with size 15 shoes. In the height is the tension and emotion, Knut looked as if he was hardly breathing and in a world of his, his calmness was impressive. Both players fought very fairly, Jack did everything that was asked of him and put in a performance to be proud of. He unfortunately was just a few points shy of victory and with that we lost the tie.
Hannah played out the dead rubber and was very impressive, winning 2-0 in a best of 3.

In the evening match, to put us in for the 5/6 playoffs, we beat Belgium.
It’s so easy to presume we can show up and beat these teams who are ranked beneath us. In reality, Dylan had to play a really high level of squash and dig really deep to take out a quality opponent in 4 tough games. The Belgian kid had been watching way too much ‘Asal’ squash and was difficult to find a way through. Couple that with fatigue and cramp, Dylan was a trooper and put us one up very impressively.
Sean Murphy played no.2 and had a similar battle without the cramp issue. A tough four game battle with a great mover, he fended off all the attacks and put together a very polished performance. Delighted to take the tie 2-0.
Hannah played another dead rubber, this time falling short of the mark. Possibly a match too far on the emotional day. But nonetheless we are through and she will be required to be in top form for battle against the Welsh tomorrow.
We’ve made friends with the Welsh over the years. A similar squash nation to ourselves and it will be a fun and intriguing match tomorrow. Our final match.
The guys have been exceptional in all areas this event, I hope they find the energy to do themselves justice tomorrow.
A young team with another year ahead of them next year, hopefully with Denis intact, I think this event could be ours for the taking..
For now, we will rest up and do our best in the morning. A match that promises good entertainment!
Wish us luck.

IrelandIRL – BELBelgium2-1

Time: Sat 16/04/2022 17:00
Draw: ESF Mixed Team u19 – Position 01-08
Score: 2-1

 

Match overview
Order Event IrelandIRL BELBelgium Score Points     Duration
1 BS2
Sean Murphy Ireland
Belgium Bjarne Schaillee
11-7 4-11 11-7 11-5 1-0     40m
2 BS1
Dylan Moran Ireland
Belgium Nathan Masset
11-5 4-11 11-4 11-8 1-0     39m
3 GS
Hannah Mcgugan Ireland
Belgium Chloé Crabbé
4-11 6-11 0-1     40m
 
 
NetherlandsNED – IRLIreland2-1
Time: Sat 16/04/2022 12:00
Draw: ESF Mixed Team u19 – Position 01-08
Score: 2-1

 

Match overview
Order Event NetherlandsNED IRLIreland Score Points     Duration
1 BS1
Rowan Damming Netherlands
Ireland Dylan Moran
11-9 11-5 11-7 1-0     29m
2 BS2
Knut Hogervorst Netherlands
Ireland Jack O Flynn
11-9 11-6 9-11 12-10 1-0     58m
3 GS
Elfi Markus Netherlands
Ireland Hannah Mcgugan
7-11 7-11 0-1     22m

 

Day 2

Our one and only match today was at 5pm, giving the team an unusual bit of free time in the morning to relax and prepare. Our hotel made a deal with the local David Llyod centre to access the facility for a minimal price, so we chose to practice at the courts there and have a wind down. Followed by an easy stroll around the city and some quality brunch.
Eindhoven transport is thankfully super easy, not super cheap but it’s good to have certainly and very regular buses..
We arrived at the club in good time and had our focus on beating Spain, the winners to top the group and play Switzerland in the 1/4’s. 2nd place would mean a tougher opponent in the Dutch.
Dylan was first on and was relishing the chance to take revenge on the Spaniard, who he had a shock loss to in the 1st round of the individuals. The Spanish play with a lot of passion and that can make up for the deficit in ability. But after trading the first two games, Captain Moran stepped up the pace and shut down his extremely boisterous opponent finishing him off 3-1.
Sophie played at G1 today. Her opponent is on an Easter break from an American college where she is on a squash scholarship, a formidable opponent. Sophie played well in the first and showed how she can trade blows with the heavy hitters but it was difficult to sustain the quality and bit by bit she lost control of the rallies and then the match, a valiant effort but a 3-0 loss.
The decider, Sean Murphy taking on Adrian Gracia, two skilful players both carrying a lot of weight and expectation on their shoulders..
The Spaniard started more positivity, not showing too many nerves and picking off Sean’s cross courts. He was quickly into a 1-0 lead and 8-2 up in the 2nd. Sean found his length, his rhythm, his belief and clawed back to 10-10 only to lose out on a dodgy call – but was certainly in the match. He raced to an 11-4 score line in the 3rd, looking strong.
But, somehow, the Spanish player came out firing and dominated the 4th. Some extremely high pitched roaring from his team mates summoned some energy for him..
A devastating loss for us, one we thought we could have won. But into the 1/4’s we march with lots to play for against the home team, the Netherlands.
We’re on at 12pm tomorrow but for now we will get some good food into us and rest up for another battle ahead.

Ireland – Spain: 1-2

Time: Fri 15/04/2022 17:00
Draw: ESF Mixed Team u19 – Group C

Dylan Moran beat Hugo Lafuente Jaen
11-8 9-11 11-6 11-2 1-0

Sophie Thomas lost to Noa Romero
3-11 3-11 1-11 0-1

Sean Murphy lost to Adrian Gracia
5-11 11-13 11-5 3-11 0-1

 

 

Day 1

IrelandIRL – CZECzech republic3-0

Time: Thu 14/04/2022 17:00
Draw: ESF Mixed Team u19 – Group C
Score: 3-0

 

Match overview
Order Event IrelandIRL CZECzech republic Score Points     Duration
3 BS1
Sean Murphy Ireland
Czech Republic František Procházka
11-9 11-5 11-9 1-0     31m
3 BS2
Jack O’Flynn Ireland
Czech Republic Alex Kelar
11-5 11-4 11-4 1-0     25m
3 GS
Hannah Mcgugan Ireland
Czech Republic Riana Alexova
11-2 11-4 11-7 1-0     18m

 

IrelandIRL – DENDenmark2-1

Time: Thu 14/04/2022 10:00
Draw: ESF Mixed Team u19 – Group C
Score: 2-1

 

Match overview
Order Event IrelandIRL DENDenmark Score Points     Duration
3 BS1
Dylan Moran Ireland
Denmark Joakim Jepsen
11-6 11-8 11-6 1-0     31m
3 BS2
Jack O’Flynn Ireland
Denmark Malthe Noertoft Laursen
11-3 11-5 11-4 1-0     17m
3 GS
Hannah Mcgugan Ireland
Denmark Laura Lauridsen
4-11 8-11 4-11 0-1     01m

Day 1 Summary

European U19 team championships day 1:

The team championships kicked off for Ireland today against Denmark at 10am. Each team plays two boys and one girl. Order of play for day one was no.1 girl, no.1 boy and the no.2 boy to play last.
We started on the infamous court two, squashtime’s show court. We’ve had joy on this court in the past – winning a European silver medal in 2019. It takes time to adjust to the full glass left side wall and that coupled with nerves and an early start effected Hannah’s first match. She struggled to find her rhythm and lost out in 3 games.
Pressure was then on captain Dylan Moran. He responded very positively and came through with a comprehensive win to bring the tie to one a piece. Up stepped Jack O’Flynn for the decider – a match we felt we really had to win. Jack played with the right amount of aggression and patience to hold the Dane at bay and converted a 3-0 win much to the delight of his team mates.
A nervy start, but nice to get the event going with a win!

5pm kick off for our second match, taking on the Czech Republic. Order was the same – Hannah first, then we put Sean Murphy in at no.1, Jack O’Flynn in at no.2.. Sophie and Dylan sitting this match out.
We have a history of close battles with the Czechs, often at the business end of tournaments. This time around we were confident and started the match the favourites.
Hannah played extremely well, the more traditional court suiting her style of play – some sweet, controlled hitting had her opponent under pressure the whole match, a relatively easy win 3-0.
Sean Ó’Murchú ventured into new waters as he represented Ireland at the No.1 position for the first time. He did not disappoint and was clinical with his crisp length and delicate touch, cruising to a 3-0 victory and sealing the tie for Ireland.
Jack O’Flynn did not let the fact that the tie was won get in the way of a superb display of great technical squash. He dragged his opponent all around the court, giving him no hope of victory and also closed out a 3-0 win.
Not a game dropped in our second tie, this sets us up nicely for our final pool match against Spain tomorrow at 5pm.
Happy campers for our dinner this evening- eggs boiled in gravy with a side of cabbage and chickpeas. A far cry from captain Dylan’s usual fillet steak back home.
We’ll enjoy a morning off tomorrow and prepare for the battles to come over the coming days.

 

David Noone (Coach)

 

Preview

Tomorrow, April 14th, our Irish U19 team will start their European championships in Eindhoven. The event takes place in the squash time club and our team consists of Dylan Moran, Sean Murphy, Jack O’Flynn, Hannah McGugan and Sophie Thomas. An unfortunately timed injury sees our top player Denis Gilevskiy miss out, a real blow to our chances but also a chance for the team to step up and prove themselves. 

All this week the team have been in Eindhoven playing the individual European championships. We’ve had some amazing performances from all players but the week was not without it’s shock results also. Lots learned in a very competitive, high performance environment. Lots to play for in the team event this week ahead!!

Our group sees us pitted against our Danish, Czech and Spanish counterparts, we are relishing the chance to get stuck in and show what we can do.

For those looking to follow the teams progress, results can be found on this page through the championships and this link  There will also be  daily match reports.

Wish us luck 🍀 

 

David Noone (Coach)