Last month, after finishing top of southeast division 1, the Men’s 1s drove up to Newcastle to play a seeding weekend. This would determine who they play for promotion into the Premier division next year. The teams at this weekend were the 4 other winners of each regional Division 1.
After some exceptional performances, they managed to win all 4 of their matches. This now meant they had the easiest of all current premier teams, although still a tricky feat to overcome.
A few weeks later, the 1st team flew to Edinburgh. It was a tense match, with our 1st and 2nd strings winning their matches and the 3rd and 5th losing theirs. This meant it was tied up 2-2 going into the final match of the day. An incredibly hard fought match ensued, with 4th string, Ben Holmes, clinching the victory 3-1. The final score was Surrey 3, Edinburgh 2.
This is a huge result for the club and means the Men’s 1st team will be playing in the Premier division next season. Putting them in the top 8 University teams across the country.
The result in Edinburgh also meant the team progressed to the quarter finals of the National Championship where they had to play current BUCS Squash champions, UWE. Despite the incredible run so far, the boys were no match, losing 5-0. Although our 1st string, Michael Mattimore put up a monumental effort against current world number 19, Eain Yow Ng, losing 11-9 11-8 11-7.
Despite this loss, the team and club couldn’t be happier with how they performed, and aspirations for next year are incredibly high. A huge shoutout to all the players who played for, or stepped in for the 1st team this year.