Squash prodigy, Glen Wilson is going places

Tu Tangata, Issue 26, 1 October 1985, Page 24

Squash prodigy, Glen Wilson is going places

by Michael Romanos

New Zealand could well have a future world squash champion in brilliant young Maori teenager Glen Wilson.

Only 14 years old, Wilson has already established himself as one of the top three or four players in Wellington.

He could very well become the male equivalent of New Zealander Susan Devoy, the world No. 1 ranked women’s squash player.

So fast has been Wilson’s rise that he has beaten nationally ranked senior players this year yet he is still eligible to compete in the national under 15 grade and has four years of the national under 19 grade competition ahead of him.

Glen showed some of his exceptional talent when he travelled to Britain last January and finished runner-up to

Peter Marshall in the British under 14 championship final, losing a close fourgame final. Enroute to England, Wilson stopped over in Malaysia and won the Malaysian under 16 title. The trip was funded largely by his parents, Bill and Cheryl Wilson and the Maidstone Squash Club.

Since then he has become New Zealand’s youngest player to play senior Agrade interclub squash. And this is in a country which is among the world’s foremost at the sport.

A member of the Maidstone club. Glen's team-mate Tony Naughton has also been his coach for the past two years. Naughton. a past New Zealand

representative at world championships, is one of only a handful of qualified senior coaches in this country. He is naturally excited about the talents of Wilson.

“The strides Glen has made this year are incredible”, said Naughton.“Glen has a lot of natural ability but he still needs direction. He is largely selfmotivated and at his age I don’t worry too much if he loses. “Perhaps his only fault is that after working hard to win the first two games in a match he won't finish his opponent off the way he should”.

At this stage Glen plays it pretty straight. He is very agile, very quick and cool-headed. Of course he is mature far beyond his years. The flair he has yet to unleash will come later.

This year Wilson has beaten nationally ranked and tournament hardened, physically and mentally mature adults in players such as Naughton, David Oakley, Jonathan Leach and Phil Wallace. He started the season winning the open titles at the Maidstone open and the Hawkes Bay Easter tournament and reached the final of the Collegians tourney. He started A = grade interclub winning his first match in straight games.

Current world sixth ranked Stu Davenport who climbed to No 3 in the world last year and past world ranked New Zealand squash players Bruce Brownlee and Ross Norman did not display anywhere near the potential Wilson shows at 14. Davenport first came into some local prominence as a 16 year old. Glen rates his strength as being his play from the back of the court. “I think I can keep the ball pretty tight from the back,” he said. Glen said he was taken by surprise at his successes this year. “I didn't expect to beat so many quality senior players. But I find when I'm on the court I'm able to stay with them and take out the fourth or fifth games. I guess I must have good staying powers.

Davenport, a full-time professional, stopped over in his home-town, Wellington for a few weeks recently and was quick to acknowledge the undoubted talents of Wilson. But he warned that Wilson should not be placed under too much pressure at such a tender age and should not be launched too rapidly into the game on a full-time basis.

“I went through much the same sort of thing that Glen is experiencing now,” Davenport told sports editor Peter Bidwell of The Dominion.” He should not be pushed. I think he has probably been playing too much this year already.

“He has plenty of time. I’m glad my father knew a bit about the game and made sure I did not overdo it. “Even the year I won the British under 19 title I didn't stay overseas. Instead I stayed at university and looking back now, I am glad I did.” Davenport, 22, said Wilson’s attitude and shot-play has impressed him. “He has this great ability to play the right shot at the right time. No one else in New Zealand has got that. I like the way he plays straight. “At this stage I don't think people should be thinking about sending him overseas for tournaments.” A quiet and modest youngster, Wilson said he hopes to become a professional squash player. “I enjoy travelling and meeting people,” he said. “I love squash and it can be quite rewarding financially. For example Stu Davenport earns around $60,000 a year.” A fourth former at Upper Hutt College. Glen does not come from a squashorientated family but he has received plenty of encouragement from his parents and he has had excellent guidance having been coached early on by national selector Shane O’Dwyer. “My parents say it is important to complete my education at school and I’ll be going through to sixth form. But

I’d rather by playing squash than being at school. There is nothing else I would rather do at the moment.” Glen said his parents have been his greatest support and they have been very generous with time and money. “I’m not being pushed into squash too quickly. I enjoy playing tournaments and playing against seniors. “I should be learning as much as I can right now but I see the need to take a break from squash for five or six weeks. I haven’t stopped playing or training for two years.” Glen twice won the national under 13 title and currently holds the national under 15 title. But such distinctions are irrelevant if he maintains his current rate of improvement, for it will be the major senior titles that he will be chasing. Wilson entered in the national senior open championships at Hamilton in September. Last year, as a late entrant, he was placed into the grade down from the national senior open, the men's division one. The then 13 year old duly won the division one title. It seems Glen has only to maintain his present enthusiasm to have the squash world at his mercy. He is a classic example of a gifted Maori sportsman. He is extremely athletic and has the ability but does not seem to get worked up over even his

most important matches. Glen was introduced to squash by his father, Bill who plays up to E-grade level. Bill took his son along to watch him play and things led from there. Bill recalls that Glen as a nine year old “hit it off" right from the start. Glen’s brother and sister. Todd and Tracey are also very talented in sport. Todd, 12, captained the Hutt Valley representative under 12 softball team last season. Todd is a steady third baseman and sturdy batter. Tracey. 21. an employment consultant, has played major A softball in the outfield for Totara

Park ever since she was 17 and she is a premier grade netballer for the Hutt Valley champions, Valley United. Their sub-tribe is Ngati Koriki from the Waikato. The youngest of 14 brothers and sisters, Bill’s parents (both deceased for over ten years) were George Te Oranga Wilson and Ruma Daisy Winikerei. George’s parents were Thomas (Tuwhainoa) Wilson and Rama Tioriori while Ruma Daisy’s parents were Pouaka Winikerei and Wati Te Iwikau. A brother of Rama was master carver, Wiremu Te Ranga Poutapu. Whilst Glen’s parents are not totally conversant with maoritanga, Glen is. He is enthusiastically pursuing knowledge of his Maori culture and language and is in his second year of Maori studies at college. Bill said as a 10 to 12 year old his son was an outstanding rugby player at second five or centre and represented the Hutt Valley schoolboys. “People said he was the best primary schoolboy they have seen in a backline,” said Mr Wilson.

“Glen is good at any sport. He just happen to focus on squash. He still plays tennis for his college. “A lot of Maoris play everything and do not become really good at any one sport. I encouraged Glen to concentrate on squash and if he wants to give it away when he is 17, 18 or 19 it is not too late to turn to another sport like rugby.” Glen was selected in the three-man New Zealand junior men’s (under 19) team which met the powerful Australian junior side at Whakatane, Wanganui and Christchurch last August. The Australians, all members of the Australian Institute of Sport had dominated the world junior champs in Canada last year and were too strong for the 1985 NZ side.

Though giving away three, four and even five years in age to the world champions. Wilson gave an excellent account of himself. He played Australian No. 2 junior, Rodney Eyles in the three tests and improved at each outing. Wilson was handicapped with the Australians using a faster ball. The Australian juniors reside at the sports institute in Brisbane and live and eat squash for more than 10 months of the year, a situation of course, foreign to New Zealand’s top juniors or seniors. But Wilson is confident he will catch the Aussies up in the future especially with the age differential. Wilson is looking forward to tripping to Australia next April with the New Zealand juniors for the world junior championships in Brisbane. Depending on finance, he hopes to also travel to England to compete in the British under 16 open championships. Defence of his Malaysian under 16 title is also a prospect.