Bird Seems Set For Fifth Win

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30822, 6 August 1965, Page 13

Bird Seems Set For Fifth Win

(By Our Squash Rackets Correspondent)

There are strong fields in all grades of the South Island squash rackets championships which begin in Christchurch tonight.

The Timaru entry is headed by the title-holder, G. L. Bird, who has already won four championships this season. It is unlikely that he will be beaten tn his bid for a fifth. Bird’s form in the South Canterbury final against D. R. Preston was tremendous. Seldom has he made so few errors and his play in that match was on a par with the exhibitions of the world amateur champion, Aftab Jawaid, earlier this year. B. J. Rippin impressed in Timaru with his ability to finish off long rallies with crisp drives, and if he meets Preston again, the match could be the highlight of the tournament. Coe Poses Threat The former title-holder, F. N. Coe, took a game from Bird at their last meeting and is still a threat to any player with his astude tactical play. Christchurch’s entries are numerically strong but, apart from Preston, their chances in the A grade look dismal. Preston has reached four finals this year only to play Bird each time. But he will be determined to win this tournament. T, G. Milne reached the classic plate final in Timaru, but together with R. M. Garrett and S. Suckling, will find it hard to get past the first two rounds. One local player who could cause an upset, is P. C. Angland. He has a wide range of shots, and, if he strikes form, can bewilder his opponents with well concealed drops and drives. The former Canterbury player, R. Goodall, who now represents Southland, has been playing attractive squash this season but lacks regular

match play and is not fit enough to trouble the top seeded players. Mrs Woodhead Favoured In the women’s championship, Christchurch has the logical winner in Mrs R. Woodhead, who performed well against the Australian girls’ team recently, and won the Canterbury title without dropping a game. Miss C. Swift, the runnerup to Mrs Woodhead, will have her strongest opposition from Mrs J. Simpson and Miss L. Pledger.