Overdue recognition for gifted squash player

When the venue for the women’s world squash championships to be held in Ireland in August, was changed from Belfast to Dublin recently among the most relieved were the members of the New Zealand junior squad – and their parents.

The New Zealand Squash Rackets Association was already debating whether the standard of the junior women’s squad was good enough to be sent to Ireland and the anxiety caused by the bombing threats from an extreme faction of the Irish Republican Army had made the prospect even less likely.

“I honestly didn’t think they’d send us,” said one squad member, Justine Marriott, of Christchurch. “I thought we’d go to Australia instead.”

There was considerable relief in early May when, soon after the venue was changed, the N.Z.S.R.A. announced that it would send a team to Ireland after all. The association had just finished evaluating the results of the seven-month training programme undergone by the junior women’s squad.

Last week, Marriott (Sumner), aged 18, Marie Pearson (Manuera), Debra Shaw (Kaitaia), and Fleur Townsend (Henderson), all 16-year-olds, were named in the New Zealand junior women’s team which will accompany the senior team to the Emerald Isle.

For Marriott, the reigning New Zealand junior girls’ Under-19 champion, national selection was the end of a long, hard road.

Two years ago, after a hat -trick of titles in the New Zealand, North Island and South Island under-17 events, Marriott was widely tipped to make the New Zealand junior girls’ team for a tour of Australia. But one bad loss in the New Zealand junior open cost her a place.

She now says that missing out on the Australian trip had been extremely disappointing at the time, but that she no longer sees it the same way. That team found the Australian juniors awesome opponents and one demoralising loss followed another. In 1985 not one of the New Zealand girls are still playing. “It’s just as well I wasn’t picked,” Marriott said.

The team for Ireland was picked after all seven squad members took part in a series of tournaments in the North Island. Marriott, the only ‘mainlander’ in the squad, had a tougher time of it than the others. “It’s harder on your own. I had some really bad results in some of the tournaments. It gets depressing after a while. All the other girls had their dads or their coaches there.”

She was particularly happy therefore when Les Milne, a 1953 New Zealand representative and a fellow Sumner club member, was on hand in Auckland over Queen’s Birthday weekend at the final selection tournament , the North Island Open.

“Les was a big help up there. It’s nice to have someone to talk to when you come off the court.” Although she does not turn 19 until October, Marriott is already in her fourth season of top grade inter-club squash, and along with Kathy Hargreaves, who will be manager-coach of the New Zealand junior women in Ireland, she was a member of the Canterbury women’s team which placed fourth out of 10 teams in the national inter-district event at Napier last year.

Justine Marriott began playing squash at the age of about 10 when she remembers running on to the squash court between games during tournaments at the Sumner club.

Initially she received coaching from her father, Bruce, who was also a top-grade Inter-club player, and more recently had hits with Les Milne ‘when I was in a bad patch”.

“My mother, Lois, also came around to the courts once in a while.” Marriott said. “I still haven’t beaten her. She stopped playing me.”

Squash is the only sport Justine Marriott plays seriously these days though she used to “have a bit of a bat at tennis and netball” and she has no intention of giving it up for some time. “I wouldn’t know what to do otherwise. I’d get bored if I didn’t have any training to do.”

Training consists of a lot of time on court, running around Hagley Park at lunchtime, and jazzergetics…once. “I’m going to do more of that,” she promised.

Strong driving has always been a feature of Marriott’s game and she is now looking at improving other aspects. “I have to get faster and fitter now. I’m working at volleying, going forward and playing more shots up front.”

Marriott says she is starting to use the short game well instead of merely hitting the ball down the walls. “It’s no use hitting it back all the time if the other person stays back.”

The New Zealand junior women’s team leaves for Britain on August 3 after a hard diet of tournaments at home. Marriott played in the Canterbury Open last weekend and has still to contest the Wellington Open at the end of the month and then the New Zealand junior age group championships in Auckland. “We all get together with Kathy for the Wellington championships and stay in a motel. It will be a pre-trial for Ireland.”

Now that she has made the team for Ireland, Marriott has set her sights on two other goals this year: the No.1 national junior ranking and the No.1 Canterbury senior ranking. “I especially want to knock Carolyn (Viggers) off her perch,” she said.

Several of the nine junior teams competing in Dublin are unknown quantities, but Marriott knows both the Australian and England sides will be strong. “The Australian players get in earlier to hit the ball.”

This will be Marriot’s last year in the junior ranks and she wants to make the most of it. “It’s quite sad really. Into the big, wide world next year. No more free trips!”