QUARANTINE SQUASH - PODCAST 4

The Bogan and the Brit are back at it! We take a slightly different tact this week as we dive into this one with zero plan or specific topic whatsoever and just see where the conversation takes us. We are calling this "Office Talk"!

Since Stu and I talk all the time in the office about all sorts of things, we thought it would be an idea to try it on the podcast... hope you enjoy it!

Mick · The Bogan and the Brit - 4

QUARATINE SQUASH - CHALLENGE 4

The pressure is on. Welcome to the fourth challenge is this quarantine series. Last week, the accuracy challenge was won by Stu and he managed to redeem himself and even up the scores to one win, one loss, and one draw for each of us. The winner this week takes the all important lead and bragging rights. 

We once again will test our accuracy. This time, it’s all about distance. The assignment: To hit a target from as far away as possible. There will be one relatively small target to aim for, and starting at a distance from 10 meters away (or 32 feet - roughly the length of a squash court), we will try to hit that target. Every successful bulls-eye increases the distance by 5 meters. No limits on the amount of attempts - so if we are so inclined, can spend all day on it. (I gave it a couple of hours…) 

Of course I needed a lot more space and room for error, so my back yard wasn’t going to cut it. So on to the little league baseball diamond across the street! Incredibly, even though I did spend a fair amount of time looking for the balls after every attempt, I didn’t lose any. Don’t worry, it hasn’t encouraged me to take up golf again any time soon!

I found this one to be quite difficult. I was close to hitting the target countless times, but actually hitting it was anything but easy. Kudos to the patience of my very helpful camera-woman, Katja, and ball-girl, Maya! The hat this week is a pink winter beanie that we bought in San Diego all the way back in December of 2005. 

Stu, riding his momentum of last week’s convincing victory, would be eager to win back-to-back challenges. Did his persistence here pay off? I managed to hit the target from 20 meters (65 feet) and I hit it twice from 25 meters (82 feet) off the bounce. For Stu to win this challenge, he will need to hit the target on the fly from 25 meters. On the bounce from 25 meters and it’s another tie. If he can hit it from 20 meters, but not at all from 25 meters, then victory is mine!

Recap of the weekly challenges:

Week 1 Frame Challenge - Draw. 15-each.

Week 2 Handle Volleys Challenge - Mick 20 v Stu 5… blood bath. 

Week 3 - Accuracy Challenge - Mick 12 v Stu 3 (lowest score wins)

Week 4 - Distance Accuracy Challenge - Mick - 20 meters v Stu 20 meters (Mick wins on tie-break)

Current Standings:

Mick - 2-1-1

Stu - 1-2-1

A great challenge for you - the member - to try! If you can beat 25 meters we would love to see it!

JUNIOR DEVELOPMENT

By Stu Hadden

(and Mick’s 2¢)

Introduction

As a kid I loved playing games and as a young teen I loved playing sports. Once I turned 15-16, I just wanted to win. The purpose of this article is to examine the different stages of athletic development in children and what role we as adults can play to help our children get the most out of sports. 

Youth Sport in America

Kids sports are big business in America, something I don’t recall us having in the UK – even when I left in 2016. If a child can create value on the field or the court, then that can attract college or even high school coaches to recruit them. This can potentially save their parents huge amounts of money on tuition fees, not to mention giving the child the opportunity to get into schools they otherwise wouldn’t gain entry to and ultimately get the experience of playing sport on a big stage. With these huge positives at stake for the few who make it, there is also a chasm full of kids who fall by the wayside, get injured either physically or mentally and never go on to achieve their dreams. But are we missing the point? The next section will look at the stages of athletic development in a child’s life and how we can approach them in order to maximize their development and minimize these potential negative impacts that draw so much media attention. 

Youth sports in the US and how it is conceived could be a never-ending article of arguments and counter-arguments and no doubt would open a can of unappetizing worms. That being said, I will dare to slightly crack open that can and take an eensy-weensy peek inside. One of the slightly disturbing characteristics I find in youth sports is the future potential of college sports scholarships that can be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Very often it’s not the child that really wants to or cares to succeed, but the parents. Many parents want to live their athletic dreams through their offspring and from a very early age on, push their kids into sports they don’t love, into training and coaching sessions they don’t want to do, and into competitions they aren’t ready for. Good days and bad days hang on whether the child wins or loses. 

Obviously every family dynamic is different and every child responds to stimuli in their own individual way. The role of the parent is a vital ingredient to their children’s sporting success, the line between too little support, too much overbearing support and just the right amount is agonizingly thin. Figuring that out as a parent is just as much a challenge for them as what it is for the child learning and succeeding in their chosen sport. 

The potential to earn big dollars (or save big dollars on college scholarships) can blind parents into forgetting who exactly is playing the sport in the first place and making the journey all about them instead of the well being of the child. They may be shocked to actually learn their child possibly does not want to take the sport that seriously. Food for thought.

Building an athletic foundation 0-7

Research shows that between the ages of 0-6 is when children start developing their basic athletic foundation which will provide them a springboard to learn sports well later on. This includes basic co-ordination, strength and speed as well as their social development and their attitude towards physical activity. In my experience as a coach I have seen that the children who are 5-6 years old and are very active and relatively coordinated, usually have gone on to enjoy sports later on and often turn out quite good at all of them. During this time, it is important that the parents and teachers encourage them to make up games, climb trees and play throw and catch in the garden with their parents, brothers, sisters, and friends. By developing this foundation, they are able to move their body in a lot of different ways early on. In this stage, habits are often formed and it is important that we as adults help them form good habits so that they can have the strongest possible base going into the next phase of their athletic development. 

The emphasis should always be on making everything fun and encouraging them when they do things well. Sports are an integral part of our society. They are important for people’s physical and mental health, social skills, and teamwork. So getting kids to enjoy sport early sets them up with a good chance of reaping all of the rewards that playing sport can bring in later years.

Growing up in the 70’s and 80’s (yes! I am old!), we really did have an advantage… We didn’t have cell phones, social media, video games, cable television or home computers! So during our down-time, we spent most of it playing outside. Playing cricket or footy on the street with our neighbors and siblings for example, or tag, or hide and seek. We simply mucked around. Today, kids are surgically attached to electronic devices and are addicted to social media accounts. The distractions are plentiful and it is a particularly difficult cord to cut. 

Stu is spot on. Unstructured physical activity for young children is tremendously valuable. It can build overall hand-eye coordination, creativity, an outlook that exercise is enjoyable, social skills, problem solving, and self confidence. Giving kids too detailed technical instructions at this stage can be a sure way to turn them off sports all together. 

That being said, I was 6 years old when I played my first squash league match. I lost 0-9; 0-9; 0-9. Fortunately, it didn’t discourage me, although no doubt I wasn’t particularly happy. Maybe my competitive spirit was deep back then. But I also believe that learning about winning and losing early on, definitely helped me. The key is figuring out the right time to place your child into competitions. 

Building sports specific skills 5-13

During this age range is the time that you would look to begin developing sport specific skills on top of the child’s athletic foundation. I have deliberately overlapped this age bracket with the last one because every kid advances at a different rate, but one who has a stronger athletic foundation will find it easier to pick up sport specific skills and at a younger age than one who doesn’t. 

I started coaching aged 22, and frankly I was terrified of coaching total beginners especially 8-13 year olds that were completely uncoordinated. I had a huge group of 8-12 year olds who couldn’t catch, let alone hit a ball, which would be a great source of frustration for them. Many of the kids couldn’t do a single push up and I had parents holding me solely responsible for a group of demotivated kids becoming good squash players. In order to rectify this I had to go right back to basics and practice stuff with them which I felt they would have had far more fun learning by themselves in a child structured, rather than coach led, environment. In order to produce a varsity level athlete, it is important that in this stage of their development they are able to work on the sport specific skill development such as swinging a baseball bat to hit a moving ball, throwing a left jab or hitting a straight drive. If by the middle of this stage the child is still primarily working on its foundation skills, such as throwing and catching or being able to stop a moving ball with their foot, they will be playing catch-up with a lot of their peers. That isn’t to say they can’t still be very good at something, but they will have to work much harder and possibly specialize in one sport earlier in order to put in a good showing, something which in itself can lead to its own set of issues.

Don’t forget here, that the key is enjoyment. The motivation to learn and grow in a chosen sport does have to come form the child, not from the parent. If a child has fun, they are more likely to want to continue to get better. And let’s face it - winning is fun. It is also addictive. Success can be measured in may different ways, however. You don’t necessarily have to win the squash tournament (for example) in order to consider the performance a success. For some, maybe just getting in the draw is a step forward. It shows that their ranking is improving. 

Overall, the emphasis should be on long-term development and the pleasure of playing. Since all kids have vastly contrasting paths in how they progress, it is never a good idea to compare them to others. Their improvement should be measured against their younger selves.  

Training to compete and specialization 11-17

During this phase is when kids will start training more intensely and playing the proper rules of the sport or adapted rules of an actual sport. Even if they are just playing soccer with kids from their street they would still have goals, play offside and have fouls for example. The key to this phase is letting the kids play the sport they want to, and usually as a parent it means trying to not get too involved. 

There are a couple of different philosophies on how this phase should be handled. For me the two best are the Tiger Woods Model and the Roger Federer model. Tiger was a golf specialist early on, hitting his first ball at age 2 and playing tournaments consistently from age 4 onwards. All he ever played was golf. He has obviously gone on to become one of the world’s greatest golfers but there is academic argument surrounding whether or not this background has actually hindered him. He had a huge wave of initial success on the world golf tour and got remarkably good very quickly, but the argument is made that a slightly slower development curve would have led to a far longer and more dominant spell at the top for two main reasons. It is widely speculated that his injuries would have happened to far less of an extent if he had balanced his body out by playing other sports and not overusing his body on a one-sided motion so early on in his life. It’s easy to see how golf would develop muscle imbalances even worse than tennis or squash because you only hit off one side. It is also speculated as to whether he would have developed differently on a social and psychological level had he not been so laser focused on one thing his whole life, which may have led to less personal issues that have undoubtedly and seriously hampered his career at a time when he was in his prime.

Just to add on here, it was clear that from a very early age, Tiger Woods’ (and his father) one and only goal was to be the world’s best golfer. All the training, practice, learning was laser focused toward that one goal. I don’t know about Tiger’s childhood, but I’d place a fair wager that he didn’t play a lot, if any, other sports. It’s impossible to say whether or not he would have reached his level of success had he not followed this path. 

His injuries may be very well associated with this singular focus, but in hindsight, if he could go back in time, he would probably have countered the unbalance in his body (and avoid many of his injuries) with supplementary exercises. The focus however, would have still been golf. For the next golf prodigy this world produces, chances are they will train smarter.

Roger Federer is a different kettle of fish altogether. He hit his first tennis ball aged 8 and played badminton, basketball, cricket and squash growing up. The Fed was national junior champion age 14 but only specialized in tennis very late at age 16, much like yours truly into squash! Nadal also played soccer during this athletic development stage but because Federer is the GOAT I will focus on him. He is still playing tennis at the top level, still making the finals of slams and he is 38 years old. That is something that in the pre Federer era was unthinkable. His body has held up well and he has not burned out despite all of those years on tour. Remarkable and something that many attribute to his path to reach this point of the journey. 

Clearly Federer had/has significant natural athletic talent. But it was also 24 years ago. Things have changed considerably since then: training methods, level of competition, the money. Being a part of the junior tennis world in the US, I seriously doubt that the Federer method would work very well now. The level of play amongst middle teens is border line professional. Coco Gauff is an obvious (albeit extreme) example. Of course, the question here beckons - does your child want to go pro? Or maybe college tennis is the goal? Or maybe just high-school? Assessing goals is unquestionably crucial as that would plainly affect the child’s level of commitment. And once again, the goals here are the child’s goals, not the parent’s. 

Personally I much prefer the Federer route but I believe in letting the kids ultimately decide what sports they play and which they want to specialize in. The parent or coach can voice their opinion to guide them. So long as they present it in a way which puts across a rational argument and don’t make an emotional appeal, children shouldn’t be forced to do something they don’t want to do. 

To conclude

In order to give your child the best chance of playing sports at a good level and getting the most out of them, it is important to help them develop an athletic foundation early on. Playing catch with them when they are young and encouraging them to physically play games as much as possible is the key to doing this. They can then start building sport specific skills such as striking a squash ball over the top of their foundation, which are then transferable between sports and so when they find a discipline they enjoy, they can get more involved in it. Specialization is a tricky one and I personally believe that for their long term development not specializing before the age of 14 in most but not all cases is a smart move. That being said, every child and every family is different, and there is absolutely more than one way to skin a cat. I just hope that I can share something that will help someone somewhere. After a lot of reflection, I can safely attribute a huge amount of my athletic success to the way in which I was raised as a young lad, before I started playing organized sports. 

It is definitely exceedingly beneficial that athletic activities start at a young age in order to build a solid sporting base. Parents play a vital role in that. How much of a role? That’s a question that each parent needs to hold up a mirror and ask themselves. However, I do sincerely believe that parents do need to push their child at least a little, regardless of what level they want to get to. Instilling discipline, reliable and honorable work ethics, and always putting in maximum effort, are traits that the coaches shouldn’t necessarily be having to worry about. And those qualities are not just for the sporting arenas, they translate 100% to every other facet of life.

QUARANTINE SQUASH - THURSDAY FITNESS 3

And suddenly, it was Thursday again. And apparently, in Michigan, Thursday means the weather is dreadful and we are all forced to stay indoors. If it’s not snowing or freezing temperatures, it’s raining. On the positive side, it is the perfect weather for another stay-at-home fitness routine!

So far we have covered some ghosting (court shadow movements) and core. This week we will be utilizing parts of both of those along with a healthy variety of other fitness requirements: Circuit Training.

There are numerous benefits to circuit training and probably an infinite number of exercises to choose from. That’s great news if you wish to keep it interesting and continually challenge yourself. It can also be done without any equipment whatsoever - your own body weight can be more than sufficient - which means this can literally be done anywhere. 

Circuit training can be tremendously efficient. A 25-30 minute intense session can combine both a cardiovascular and strength workout, making it one of the more optimal ways to not just gain a higher overall fitness level but achieve weight loss as well as it targets all areas of the body. The effectiveness of this type of training can increase your metabolism as it keeps your heart rate high through the entire work-out, increasing your metabolic rate through the day which in turn burns more calories. 

It can be a distinctly strenuous exercise, but consistent circuit training regimes will not just help you to stay motivated longer, you may actually see the results of that training sooner than what you would if you ran on a treadmill or hopped on an elliptical for 30-40 minutes straight. Not as boring either! 

Remember - the most important detail of doing these exercises is to execute them with the correct form. Don’t rush or cut corners. You will reap greater rewards that way and it will also help prevent injuries. 

Stu takes you through a circuit training session below - this is more specified for the squash court of course - plenty of lunges! - but there is no reason out can’t be used for a general work out either! His recommended musical accompaniment for today the relatable  “Beer Fear” by Lucy Spraggan. 

MEET A PRO - 4

The DAC was very fortunate when we found a terrific young man to take the on the job of assistant squash pro in 2015. Corey Kabot endeared himself to the membership quickly and seamlessly and it was a massive loss for us when he had to leave his post. Replacing him was not an easy task. It took about 18 months to find the right fit. The presence of the “new guy” has injected a refreshing enthusiasm into the squash program. His has already made a positive impact with a renewed focus on juniors and building up the women’s participation and I also have to say that he absolutely picked up where Corey left off in regards to our colorful in-office discussions! 

MEET… STU HADDEN

The Squash Joint (TSJ): So it’s been about 8 months since you started working at the DAC. Is it what you expected and how are you coping working in the private athletic club industry?

Really enjoy working at the DAC, it never gets old walking into our gorgeous clubhouse everyday, hitting on the perfectly kept courts, working out on top end fitness equipment and learning how to run a serious sports program from the biggest Bogan in Michigan.

TSJ: How did you end up getting your first job in the States in Philadelphia? Why did you want to coach here?

I was just a boy with a ball, a wall and a dream. I had been playing the pro tour part time for a six months before it dawned on me that there was more to squash than just playing. With limited advertised employment options out there I knew I needed to take the initiative. I went on a networking rampage, sending emails to every Tom, Dick and Harry who had registered a pro squash tournament with the PSA in the 3 years prior. I sent over 400 individualized emails to people all around the world explaining who I was, what I was about and what I felt I could bring to the table. This unorthodox approach was well received and I was summoned to Europe to run coaching camps by a few curious clubs. I went on to play the pro tour in Latin America; only to be pleasantly surprised on my return with a few job offers. Ultimately the American dream diverted my gaze from the allure of playing and working in continental Europe.

TSJ: Who were your squash heroes growing up? When did you know that you wanted to be a squash professional?

Jon Power was my major hero, the antics and drama he brought to the court had me fascinated and in stitches as a kid. I just remember watching him and thinking that this sport was pure entertainment and that I wanted to get better at it. I played a tournament in Toronto recently and met him, one of the few times I have ever been starstruck. He must have seen me staring or something because he actually walked over to me and started asking how I was and how my tournament was going, it was totally surreal. I had a few more local heroes: Tom Richards, Joe Lee and Alex Ingham all played at my club in London and were chaps I really looked up to as a kid. Joe and Alex both turned pro after finishing high school at 16 and I remember being amazed by all of the traveling they did and especially some of Ingbo's stories from the tour which were fantastic because the old boy is totally barmy. I never considered taking my squash more seriously until I was 16 and battered the U17 US number 1 in straight sets the week before he played the British Open. He did pretty well in the tournament and so I decided to start training harder (I didn't enter because it didn't occur to me I was good enough) and it all went from there. 

TSJ: Tell us about your most memorable squash match you have played, win or lose…

I've had a few crackers over the years so that is actually a tough one for me. I would also say that 4/5 of the most memorable matches I have played I lost in 5 games so who knows maybe they would be less memorable if I had won. Other than beating you so bad you threw your racquet I think the one that sticks out for me the most is actually a practice match I played in Philly last year. I managed to beat the ginger haired Welsh Samurai Sam Fenwick, putting an end to a 3 year losing streak. Given that he was my main training partner in Philly finally getting a ‘W’ over him on what must have been the one hundredth attempt was probably the highlight of my squash career so far, He without doubt is a top 100 standard player, a stud athlete and a great tactician. Needless to say I took my win, packed my kit, and ran off to Detroit as fast as I possibly could!

TSJ: What was the last…

1. Book you read…  The Operator - Firing the shots that killed Osama Bin Laden
2. Movie you watched in a cinema… The Gentleman
3. Meal you cooked for yourself… Roast chicken
4. Gift you bought yourself… I'm a sucker for a KFC mate
5. Sporting event you went to (not squash related)… The Lions vs The Cheese Heads
6. Cheesy pick-up line you used… “Your smile is bloody beautiful. If I looked like that when I smiled, I would never stop”.  

TSJ: Why do think the US has so few players in the top 100? On the other end of the spectrum, is the Egyptian dominance (men and women) good or bad for the game?

I absolutely think that one country having a stranglehold on the game is an awful situation, I love watching different nationalities because it's so interesting watching a mashup of different styles. To be honest I feel like the Egyptians are very lucky to be so dominant with a lot of players in the top 30 in the world from elsewhere who have not, and at this point I am sorry to say it, but will not fulfill their potential at all. This includes guys such as Marche from France, the German Kandra, Englishman Waller, and the Salazars out of Mexico, and then there are also guys like Brit Joe Lee who was regularly taking Marwan and Gawad to 5 games before getting seriously hurt and having to stop. I feel like the first 5 I mentioned may be slightly submissive to the Egyptians mentally on court and there are a few guys like Joe and Tom Ford (also a Brit) who in my eyes are unlucky to not be up at the top of the sport. There is also a vast swathe of extraordinarily talented Pakistani players who could have been incredible: for example I remember Mohammed El Shorbagy telling me that Farhan Zaman was "the most talented player in the world and would have been world number one if he actually tried". Bear in mind this was while Mohammed was world number one and while Ramy was still on tour and so it really tells you how good this guy could have been!

In terms of the US I truly believe their time is coming. A lot of the best coaches in the world have converged on the USA in the last 10 years which means that in around 10 years from now their students will be the right age to go on tour. The American girls in particular are looking very strong in juniors but there are quite a few promising players like Andrew Douglass, Tim Brownell and in younger age groups u/15 Drew Glazer and Avi Agarwal who I think have enormous potential to eventually play on the world circuit. It is  always a question though of whether they want to play pro or just play college and then go corporate. American college fees are I believe on average 5 times what mine were but can run up to 8-10 times as much and so going pro after such an enormous financial investment in your education may not be a logically sound option.

TSJ: Apart from driving on the opposite side of the road, what was one of the biggest adjustments you had to make when you moved to the States?

Having just come off the tour and taken a  job as a squash pro the first thing I had to get used to was having more than $20 in my bank account! I remember crossing the road being a particularly dangerous activity in the early days as a couple of times a week when I was running on auto pilot, I almost met my end by stepping out into the street while checking for cars looking the wrong way. It took 2-3 near misses for me to retrain myself!

TSJ: If you could piece together your ideal squash player, who would you say…

1. Has the cleanest technique… Marwan El Shorbagy forehand - Gawad backhand
2. The best volleyer… Farag
3. The best tactician… Gawad
4. The most deceptive… Mick Joint (flattery will get you nowhere, mate!)
5. The best touch game… Abouelghar
6. The best footwork… Coll or Selby
7. The fittest… Miguel
8. The fastest… Alfredo Avila. Mexican player who ranked 100 in the world who managed to beat 3 guys in the worlds top 20 to win a 100k event at altitude in Mexico City by running like a banshee.
9. The most accurate… Willstrop, although the most accurate I have been on court with by far is Robertino Pezzotta of Argentina
10. Is the most fun to watch… Gaultier hands down

TSJ: What would you consider to be your best ever tournament, junior or pro?

I'll talk about one junior and one pro event. I won the U19 National Championships in 2011 and I went through the event only dropping one game in the semi finals. The final of the event was a bit of a blur and I just remember blasting through the guy in the final, hitting nick after nick. At 9-0 up in the third game I remember blasting the ball crosscourt past my opponents big wingspan and him throwing himself into the back right corner after it. He banged his racquet on the floor and screamed an expletive very loudly to which the ref said, “11-0 game and match”. I was stood there with the ball waiting to serve and I just remember trying to get the ref to let me win the match rather than have it awarded to me on a penalty match for obscenity but the ref was stubborn and awarded me the last point instead of me actually winning it!

As a pro the most memorable tournament for me was winning the Surrey County Championships in 2016. I actually didn't even enter the tournament but the organizer called me up while I was out in a bar on a date and asked me if I could play because someone pulled out! I turned up the next day for my first round match, unseeded and slightly hungover, and beat one of the England junior team members in the first round in a fifth game tiebreak. I beat an old nemesis in 5 games in the quarters and suddenly I was in the semi finals against the defending champion and number 1 seed in the semis - who I duly dispatched in another 5th game tie break! The final was a one sided affair where I decimated Phil Nightingale - a former top 120 in the world player and the current over 35 England number 2 player for less than 8 points in the final. 

Tournaments you win are always better than tournaments you do well in purely because of the antics that happen afterward. After nationals I got up to mischief with Michael Stewart and after winning the Surrey Championships I all but burned London down with James "the ashemongrel" Ashe.

TSJ: What do you find the most satisfying aspect of playing squash? What is your most frustrating?

Hitting a straight line that runs on one floorboard the whole way, I don't care if it is a drop, a drive or a kill I just love pinning the ball to the wall. Most frustrating without doubt is when Mick Joint breaks my ankles with a Houdini like hold or a Bogan Boast which tends to happen at least once a game, and once a month it's so bad I'm surprised I haven't undergone major double ankle surgery!

TSJ: If you were not a squash pro, what do you think you would be doing in life?

I grew up as a typical high achieving secondary school student with straight A's; albeit one who specialized in both truancy and squash. I graduated with a 1st from University and without doubt would have pursued a career in business, more specifically within sales had it not been for squash.

TSJ: Let’s finish off with some fun. I can imagine you were quite the scoundrel in school. What was one of the naughtiest things you did that got you in trouble? Don’t be shy… 

Haha - far too many to mention I was quite the reprobate. I remember being called into the headteachers office on a semi regular basis and receiving a jolly good dressing down. One of the most memorable was when I was 13 or 14 and myself and a few of the lads decided in the middle of the day that we needed to go into the city and grab pastries. We sacked off math class, climbed the 12 foot fence that we called the "prison wall" (the school locked the gates during the school day to keep outsiders out and keep us all in) and headed into the city to buy sausage rolls from ‘Gregs’. Unfortunately we were seen and were greeted by an angry mob of teachers and disbelieving students upon our return. Needless to say I got a few detentions and a clip round the ear courtesy of my self-proclaimed “long suffering mother”!

Thanks to Stu for opening up to us and getting to know him a little more! He has been an excellent addition not only to the squash family and the office, but to the entire DAC team. We are very fortunate to have someone of his calibre and work ethic. His knowledge and progressive teaching style certainly raises the quality of the program. If he could only learn to hit the ‘Bogan Boast’…!

QUARANTINE SQUASH - PODCAST 3

Another week in lockdown - another podcast episode from The Bogan and the Brit! We go on a few tangents here, but the main topic is something the future of the game relies on - juniors and junior development.

Both Stu and I reminisce about our early years and compare the US to what we experienced and what helped us become professionals. Everybody has a different journey to where they want to be, but some common things are certainly a vital ingredient. Enjoy!

Mick · The Bogan and the Brit - 3

QUARANTINE SQUASH - CHALLENGE 3

It’s that time of the week for another Skills Challenge! After basking in the glow of my comprehensive bludgeoning of Stu on the frame volley challenge, a beatdown so humiliating he is still probably waking up in the middle of night with cold sweats, it’s his chance at redemption and the opportunity for him to be able to show his face in public again.

With the exasperating challenges of the first two weeks behind us, this time we welcome the chance to actually hit the ball with the strings of the racquet! The Accuracy Challenge!

There have also been a number of these on the internet, and it seems everyone has created a version of their own - just as we have done here. The task: To hot three relatively small targets close to service line height, from back of the service box distance away (23 feet). The one who hits the three targets in the least amount of shots, wins.

As you will see from the video, I set this up in the back yard. Now, one of the reasons I dislike playing golf is that I have an uncanny ability to lose balls. I think the last time I suffered through a round, I lost 13 balls in the first 12 holes. My golf-balls are attracted to water, high grass, weeds, forest, gopher holes, and probably portals to other dimensions. Incredibly, even though I did this challenge on my driveway, I still managed to lose one squash ball even though I was really just tapping them and there were no water hazards anywhere near! I am baffled at this phenomenon. 

I practiced this one both on the backhand and forehand. I did find the forehand fractionally easier. The hat this week is my wife’s Australian ‘Crocodile Dundee’ hat. It was slightly too small for my head. 

Stu had clearly zero trouble with this one, although he did have a backboard to help him… I’m just happy that he was able to pull himself back from the ledge.

Recap of the weekly challenges:

Week 1 Frame Challenge - Draw. 15-each.

Week 2 Handle Volleys Challenge - Mick 20 v Stu 5… annihilation. 

Week 3 - Accuracy Challenge - Mick 12 v Stu 3 (lowest score wins)

Current Standings:

Mick - 1-1-1

Stu - 1-1-1

Once again, I throw the challenge to you! Set up your own targets and see how you go!

QUARANTINE SQUASH - THURSDAY FITNESS 2

Can you believe this weather? I complained last Thursday about the snow, and guess what? It’s still just as cold now!!! I suppose the warmer weather is social distancing as well… at least in Michigan. Luckily, what we have for you today can be done in the luxury of your own warm home. Just find yourself a piece of floor…

This week, we look into another extremely important element of squash fitness, one that is commonly underestimated and definitely under-trained: The Core.

Squash is not just about running like a lunatic, getting your heart beat to deliriously high levels, smashing a ball like you want to send it into next month, but it also includes the less obvious fitness requirements such as flexibility, balance and… core strength.

Hitting a consistently accurate ball - especially under commonly sadistic conditions - maintaining one’s stability is key.  Being able to stretch and lunge out, you must be able to keep the shoulders and head steady in order to hit a reliable ball. (especially that dreaded drop shot!) That is where core strength comes to the fore. 

Stu takes us through a slick core workout below. Regular core exercises are very important not just to improve your squash game, but also for preventing injuries. Take it from me (and I know many of you can relate) - there is nothing worse than a back injury.  A strong core can minimize the threat.

MEET A PRO - 3

In November 2019, we held the inaugural DAC Squash Pro Classic. It was an amazing week for all involved, arguably the highlight event on the DAC calendar. We have reached out to one of the biggest - if not the biggest - star of that week just so we can admire her even more.  Winning the British Junior Open U/15 title in 2007, she would then claim her first professional title in 2010. In 2019 she won her second US National Championships and has been a member of the US national team for 11 years. She is currently ranked 13 in the world, just one spot off her career best in 2017 of 12.

MEET… OLIVIA BLATCHFORD CLYNE

The Squash Joint (TSJ): I am sure the universal lockdown has turned your world upside-down just like the rest of us. Tell us how you are tackling the days and have you taken advantage of the extra time to do anything that you always wanted to do but never previously had the time?

Olivia Blatchford Clyne (OBC): It most certainly has been a whirlwind change of events and I think like most of the world, it’s been a real shock to the system. Like mosts shock to the system, that initial zing was brutal but as the weeks go by I actually feel like there’s been a settling in for me- I’ve been able to enroll in an online course  “ The Introduction to Psychology” which has been awesome, I’ve also just started a 40 Day Revolution of mind, body, and spirit with Baron Baptiste that incorporates yoga, meditation, diet and self-confrontation which is already shaping up to be extremely life changing. I’ve been able to take more long, luxurious runs in the outdoors and bury myself in art, books and becoming a chef! Although I miss squash very much, this time has offered a wonderful opportunity to nurture the other parts of me that I do water but not nearly enough!

TSJ: You jumped on the world tour at a very young age. What challenges did you come across over the years and looking back, would you have done anything differently knowing what you know today?

OBC: Many, many, many challenges! The first and foremost was inevitable; burn out. I made the decision not to go to college after juniors and instead go straight onto the pro tour which was simply not the thing to do (really still isn’t stateside!) After my first year I was struggling. I had a lot of unresolved feelings from my junior career (feeling the need to source validation from my wins and losses) as well as a loss of my love for the game. I quit. I took some time off, got a job coaching (because what else is an uneducated squash player going to do? Haha) and started plotting my journey to go to school. Somewhere in the minutiae of sharing this wonderful sport with others, I started finding myself jealous of my students. They’d come back from their tournaments telling me about near misses or gargantuan wins and I was like man, I miss that. I need that. And well, the rest is history…. :)

There’s no need to rush. This is a game forever, your relationship with the game is about the game, not about you. When you get there, man that’s the good stuff….

TSJ: Who had the biggest influence in your squash when you were a junior? Which pro player did you look up to the most?

OBC: I spent a lot of time on court with my Dad, who was an avid amateur player at the time gave (and still gives!) me a lot of his time! We had long hits at the Heights Casino on the weekends where the majority of my progress was made when I was a kid. I also had the privilege of working with a man named John Phelan, an Irish-international who originally taught my father “softball” squash back when the US was making the change over from the hardball game. John was so much an integral part of my growth as a player and to be honest he became more of an uncle than a squash coach to me as the years went on!

I was obsessed with Jonathan Power. Literally cried every time he lost, and insisted on going to every one of his matches at the Tournament of Champions…

TSJ: Time for something more lighthearted. Word association. What is the first thing that pops into your mind when I say…

1. New England Patriots… Real football is with a soccer ball.
2. Chocolate Ice Cream… I’ll pass.
3. Country music… No thank you. 
4. Brad Pitt… Yes, please, as Achilles.
5. 45 minute ghosting session… Bring it on.
6. Tarantula… ALAAAAANNNNNN!!
7. Bungy jumping… one day….

TSJ: What would you consider to be your greatest achievement in squash so far in your career? 

OBC: I really treasure my national titles, especially my first one back in 2017. I won from 2-0 down in 88 minutes and it was simply a battle. Playing for my country has been something that has meant so much to me from the first time I made the Junior National Team back in 2007. I remember, as a 14year old, getting my playing kit and starting to cry because I was going to get to play with USA on my back. Playing at the Pan American Games the last 3 cycles and having earned a collective 7 medals has been incredible as well…but really I think about those times locked in the box when I’ve had my back up against it and I’ve grit my teeth and refused to back down, crawled over the finishing line… those guys are my proudest achievements… 

TSJ: We have all had matches and tournaments we would rather forget. What advice would you give to up and coming players in dealing with adversity? 

OBC: We are all so blessed to be a part of this game. We get to gear up and do battle gladiator style without the possibility of getting a sword through the heart- is there anything better than that? If you can remember that when you walk on that court, whether you’ve won or loss that you will live to fight another day, I think that’s a very powerful, formidable mindset that will see you winning a lot more than you’re losing. 

TSJ: You are married to another professional squash player- Scotsman Alan Clyne. Did he get married in a kilt, and if so, can we have a picture? I imagine you motivate each other rather effectively but are there any friendly rivalries going on that you would like to tell us about? 

OBC: Alan did indeed get married in a kilt, the Sutherland Clan hunting kilt to be exact, as the Clyne clan is under the Sutherland Clan tartan! We are extremely competitive in everything we do, from who tidied the bedroom better to a game of cards and even when we are practicing who is the better hitting partner… but when it comes to our careers we are first and foremost a team; we support each other and provide sounding boards for one another, giving each other ideas, and feedback when appropriate, sometimes a shoulder to cry on or a kick in the backside when that’s needed too…

TSJ: Complete these sentences…

1. The worst airline to travel on is… RyanAir, can you say budget?
2. My biggest pet peeve is… Obnoxious coughing, like, you want attention coughing.
3. The one dessert I cannot resist is… Sticky Toffee Pudding.
4. My favorite mens squash player to watch - other than my husband - is… Abouelghar
5. The worst film I have ever paid to watch is… didn’t pay for it but Alan made me watch “Dumb and Dumber” on a date before…. Lucky I still fancied him after that.
6. My favorite professional sports team is… St. Johnstone FC- my boys in Blue.

TSJ: You have played in major events all over the world. Which one (or ones) would be your favorite? Is there any match in your career (so far) that you wish could redo? 

OBC: Tournament of Champions, Grand Central Station. I grew up with that tournament. It was my entire youth and getting to compete myself on that court now is literally a dream come true! There are a couple of matches that I wish I’d converted (cough!) my match with Nour el Sherbini at this year’s TOC… cough! cough!..  but really every match is a learning opportunity, and though the losses sting they provide beautiful moments for self reflection and growth that I think just wouldn’t be possible if I was winning all the time…. Not that I’d mind winning all the time. 

TSJ: Tell us why you think squash continues to be denied entry into the Olympics. 

OBC: How does the ABBA song go? Something like Money.. Money.. Money..

TSJ: You clearly have a very sociable personality and love playing the tour. Have you ever found it to be a lonely place since squash is an individual sport, or is it always fun? 

OBC: It has its moments for sure. I’ve always felt pretty comfortable spending time with myself which I think has been a real blessing considering we do spend so much time on our own. I try my best to immerse myself in my surroundings wherever and whenever I travel so that I can say that I’ve experienced something new or different each time which I find extremely enriching and fun but it’s hard. Competing is extremely hard and sometimes when you’ve had an early loss and you’re far from home it’s easy to become negative and feel very isolated… but you’ve gotta feel everything in order to live right? Those moments when I have my family and friends with me whilst I compete I enjoy far more with the juxtaposition of competition without them….

TSJ: Have you ever had any major injuries? If so, how did you deal with them? What do you do in order to minimize the injury risk in such a high impact and dynamic sport?

OBC: Thank goodness no! I like to think its because all of my limbs are very close to the main trunk of my body (haha!) But really, I’ve been extremely lucky in that department. I adore Yoga and my strength and conditioning coach sets my programs with a lot of focus on developing core strength, single leg exercises and mobility work that keep me nimble! 

TSJ: Okay, one final question. What is your favorite sit-com and which character do you identify with the most?

OBC: To be honest I’m not much of a TV person but my favorite book is "The Fountainhead" by Ayn Rand. Howard Roark is the person I strive to be. 

Wow. I would to extend a huge thank you to Olivia for taking the time to help us explore her career in more detail. It is certainly a tribute to her success on the tour so far and I adore the optimistic outlook that she possesses, especially the ability to find the positives in difficult times. We could all learn from that! We certainly hope that we can welcome her again and she will be aggressively defending her title in the 2020 DAC Squash Pro Classic!