Finals Day of the Thomson CSC Squash Invitational 2011 was greeted by an overcast sky, continuing days of near non-stop raining. Die-hard supporters of squash however, were undeterred by the gloomy conditions and braved the wet weather to attend the finals at Yio Chu Kang Squash Centre. And how glad they did as some scintillating squash was put on display.

First up, the Plate Final. Lau Tian Liang faced an uphill battle to overcome a significant points-handicap against him in the form of a wily Dave Phua. However, rising to the challenge, Lau made light of the handicap to overcome the determined Dave to emerge a deserving winner of the Plate Final.

Next up and contending for 3rd and 4th placings, were last year's finalists, Phil Mockridge and the evergreen Francis Wong. In a repeat of last year's Final result, the now trimmer and fitter Phil, again overcame an unsually sluggish Francis in straight sets to walk off court, a deserving 3rd place winner.

The highlight of the day was however and fittingly, the Open event Final which featured the half-centurion and ex-international, Simon Yang, 50, vs. the effervescent and rising young star, Jason Ho, only 18 years of age, in what could be approrpiately described as a "Battle of the Ages". For the record, Simon was playing international squash and a member of the all-conquering Singapore national squash team (East Asian kingpins and second in Asia only to the indomitable world-conquering Pakistanis) back in the late eighties, some 5-6 years before Jason was born!

Impetuous youth that he is, Jason paid scant respect to Simon's rich squash background and proceeded to dismantle the squash monument with ruthless efficiency. The first set was enthralling as Simon defied the years, matching the mercurial Jason in rallies and enriching the match with an experience borne out of many past international duties. Jason was however, always just ahead and appeared to have run away with the set with a 13-7 lead when Simon suddenly turned back the clock with a virtuoso spell which saw him conjure up 5-6 magical winners to rock young Jason's confidence momentarily. Just when it appeared that the old magician may be able to create an upset in the first set, Jason stepped up the pace yet again to pull away with the crucial final 2 points to gratefully wrap up Game 1. That loss and the effort effectively took the wind out of the old gladiator's sails (not to mention, heaving windpipes) and the 2nd set was almost a mere formality as the age gap told painfully with Jason punishing the game ancient with teasing boasts and incisive drives while denying Simon any revival hopes with some breath-taking retrievals. It was a convincing and clear win in the 2nd set for a straight sets victory and a most deserving one for the new 2011 Thomson CSC Squash Invitational champion, Jason Ho! Nothing can and must be taken away from Simon, who showed tremendous fighting spirit and still mesmerising skills to reward spectators who turned up in support. Thank you for the memories, Simon.

The Member of Parliament for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, Mr. Hri Kumar Nair, then gave away the prizes to all winners as well as lucky draw prizes. To top it all, the appreciative MP also graciously offered to sponsor a new challenge trophy to replace the current one, which had been previously sponsored by UCSC's President, Joseph Wong. We hope that the MP, Mr Hri Kumar Nair, will make this an annual sojourn to support the event and Singapore squash in general. Thank you, Mr. Nair, for your presence and for your generosity.

It would be remiss to not acknowledge the outstanding efforts of the event's organizing committee, ably led by Dave Phua. Well done, team. We thank also Mr. Tan Fong Chow, Chairman of the Thomson CSC, and his team, for their support and cooperation with UCSC and for allowing UCSC to co-organise this event for the past 12 years.

UCSC and Thomson CSC .... Live & Breathe Squash!

Attachments:

Dave Phua - 2011 Plate Runner-Up.jpg	[ ]	147 Kb	01/02/11 12:12
Francis Wong - 2011 Open 4th Place.jpg	[ ]	156 Kb	01/02/11 12:11
Jason Ho - 2011 Open Champion, with MP Hri Kumar Nair.jpg	[ ]	155 Kb	01/02/11 12:10
Lau Tian Liang - 2011 Plate Champion.jpg	[ ]	154 Kb	01/02/11 12:12
Participants with the MP @ Thomson CSC Invitational 2011.jpg	[ ]	274 Kb	01/02/11 11:44
Phil Mockridge - 2011 Open 3rd Place.jpg	[ ]	246 Kb	01/02/11 12:11
Simon Yang - 2011 Open Runner-Up with MP Hri Kumar Nair.jpg	[ ]	187 Kb	01/02/11 12:10
The Thomson Twins - 2011 Finalists, Jason & Simon.jpg	[ ]	198 Kb	01/02/11 12:09