Tavistock 5 Newton Abbot 0 TAVISTOCK Squash Club entertained old foes Newton Abbot at the Pixon Lane club. First on for Tavistock was number five, Mike Gray, paired against one of the county?s up and coming juniors, Jack Nicholls. Jack took the first game 10-9, showing a mixture of power and finesse which could have been attributed to a person of far greater experience. Mike had to dig deep to take the second game 9-4. The third was a battle royal with both players serving for the game; Mike held his nerve and eventually took the game 10-9. This proved a turning point and during the fourth Mike?s strength and experience eased him past the winning post, giving Tavistock a winning start. Next on court was Stuart Cox against Newton number four Mike Wills. Over the years Mike and Stuart have had some epic battles with honours fairly even. However on this particular night there was only going to be one winner. Stuart dominated from start to finish, Mike was prevented from developing any rhythm and the Tavistock number four ran out a comfortable 3-0 winner. Colin Grice at three was also paired against one of the county?s rising young stars, Tom Hayson. The match turned into a five game marathon with both players playing fine squash. Tom took a tight first game 10-9, with Colin running away with the second 9-2. Games three and four were shared, leaving everything dependent on the deciding fifth game. However after the tight squash of the first four games Colin?s fitness proved key as the youngster tired and allowed the Tavistock man an easy game, winning it 9-2 and the match 3-2. Tavistock skipper Andy Gauler stepped onto court with team victory already assured. He was paired against the very fit Pete Aston. Andy cruised through the first game, winning 9-4. However the next three games were far from easy. Pete started hitting some fine lengths and retrieving shots during a number of very long rallies. Andy edged the second 10-8 and served for the match during the third before Pete with the help of three or four unplayable nicks, took the game 10-9. The fourth was also a tense affair with the game again going to the very final point; Andy held his nerve and took the game 10-9 and the match 3-1. Tavistock number one, Jim Massey, was up against Rob Middeman. Earlier in the season Jim had won a fairly tight game against the Newton Abbot man. However, this was not to be the case on this occasion. Jim has worked hard on his fitness over the Christmas period and this helped him crush Rob by three games to nil, 9-3, 9-2, 9-0. This victory finished off a successful evening for Tavistock and they now look forward to an away fixture at Paignton. Anyone interested in playing squash at whatever level please phone Malcolm Tripp on 01822 615239 or Andy Gauler on 01822 617714.
