What a great Grand Final Night!

All 4 Grand Finals for the West District Autumn 2024 Pennant were played at Northmead Division on Wednesday 3 July.

We were also honoured to have Mr. Leigh Sands, the newly appointed Competition and Events Coordinator with Squash NSW, to present the winners and runners-up with their medals, a departure from the usual towels.

Here are the highlights and results of the matches.

Division 1

The Grand Final was between Wenty 1 and Wenty 3. After 15 rounds, Wenty 1 with Capt. Peter Bastow, Michelle Lowe, Lyndal Amer, Barry Davis & Tim Doyle finished on top with 12 wins and 3 losses. Wenty 3 with Danny Hedges, Capt. Clive Aviet, Wally Elazzi & Yeu Pham finished a close 2nd with 11 wins and 4 losses.

Both teams had great records through the season but head-to-head, 2nd placed Wenty 3 had a 2-1 record over Wenty 1.

Highlight Match: The Division 1 final lived up to its billing as an intense and closely fought battle. In the end, with the game scores locked that 2 all, it went down to the final game of the 3rd match between Barry Davis and Wally Elazzi.

Wally did superbly to recover after dropping the first 2 games of the match, but Barry recovered in the 5th winning 15-11 to clinch the Doug Vanderfield Memorial Trophy.

Wenty 01 Def. Wenty 03      Games 6-5 Points 144-130

• Peter Bastow def. Danny Hedges: 3-0 (15-7, 15-6, 15-6)
• Barry Davis def. Wally Elazzi: 3-2 (15-10, 15-11, 9-15, 11-15, 15-11)
• Tim Doyle lost to Clive Aviet: 0-3 (9-15, 9-15, 16-18)

Division 2

The Grand Final promised a tense matchup between Wenty 5 and Wenty 7. Both teams ended the season with 11 wins and 4 losses. Wenty 5 with Mark Forland, Leigh Ditu, Captain Sam Farrugia & Roslyn Doyle finished 1st with 140 points, narrowly ahead of Wenty 7 with Captain Phi Dao, Mehdi Hakimi, Grant Augustin & Trevor Ryan on 133 points.

Head-to-head, 2nd placed Wenty 7 had won all three matches with Wenty 5 in the competition. 

This final was the standout final of the night. The 1st match saw ex-teammates Leigh and Phi on court. Once again, when it really matters in the important matches, Leigh came good winning 3-2. I interviewed Phi after the match, and he admitted he was booked to start working with his Sport’s Psychology next week.

The 2nd match was another 5-setter with Roslyn taking the final game 15-10 (it ended up equal on points 58-58).

And so, it came down to the last match between the number ones Mark & Mehdi. The equation for Wenty 5 that Mark had to win at least 1 game and not lose by more than 10 points.

Things were looking good after the 1st game with Mark winning 15-9 but then Mehdi capitalised on his fitness & youth winning the next 3 games with a +15 point differential, sealing the victory for Wenty 7.

Wenty 7 def. Wenty 03      Games 7-7 Points 172-167

• Mark Forland lost to Mehdi Hakimi: 1-3 (15-9, 8-15, 9-15, 7-15)
• Leigh Ditu def. Phi Dao: 3-2 (15-12, 12-15, 13-15, 15-8, 15-10)
• Roslyn Doyle def. Grant Augustin: 3-2 (6-15, 15-11, 15-7, 7-15, 15-10)

In his speech following the Presentation, Grant Augustin paid tribute to Wenty 5 saying “It was a great rivalry and really enjoyable to share friendships with the Farrugias. They are great competitors and most of all, a wonderful family!”

Division 3

The Grand Final was between Premier 3 & Wenty 12. Premier 3 with Shaun Hewitt, David Purcell, Rodney Limpic & Captain John Fowler was dominant finishing unbeaten with 12 wins.

Wenty 12 with Captain Nishen Naidoo, Tony Garofolo, Nirav Dedhia and Gillian Kirby finished 3rd with 5 wins and 7 losses but they won their final defeating Wenty 10 in a result that sent shock waves through the Rob Spooner household.

Throughout the Pennant, Premier 3 and Wenty 12 faced each other three times, with Premier 3 winning all three matches and that’s despite the loss of their No 1 player Shaun who was injured after only playing 2 matches. He suffered an Achilles tendon injury playing soccer.

Wenty 15 def. Wenty 16      Games 6-4 Points 131-122

• David Purcell def. Tony Garofolo: 3-0 (16-14, 15-7, 15-10)
• Rodney Limpic def. Nishen Naidoo: 3-2 (4-15, 16-18, 15-7, 15-10, 15-11)
• John Fowler v Niran Dedhia: DNP

Unfortunately, Premier 3 continued their dominance and maintained their unbeaten record by defeating Wenty 12. Nishen blew a 2-0 lead to go down in 5 (see you at Coaching Clinic 4.0 Nish!) and although Tony Garofolo put up a brave fight, David Purcell was just too good. David finished the season with an impressive 15 wins 2 losses. 

Division 4

The Grand Final was between Wenty 16 and Wenty 15. Wenty 16 with Rob Cole, Linda Cortese, Katie Totaro, Chris Olsen and Captain Wendy Fox finished the season on top with 11 wins and 4 losses, 3 of which were against their opponents.

Wenty 15 with Emily Yates, John Granata, Annette Hopkins & Captain Monica Rigby finished second with 10 wins and 5 losses. So, it was pretty tight between them this season and we expected a close Grand Final.

The Division 4 final was locked up at 1 match each with convincing 3-0 wins to Linda Cortese and Emily Yates, and so it was down to the match between Chris Olsen & John Granata.

After dropping the 1st game 15-11, John went on to win the next 3 very close games to win the night for Wenty 15. Well done John and great effort Chris!

Wenty 15 def. Wenty 16      Games 6-4 Points 131-122

• Emily Yates def. Rob Cole: 3-0 (10-15, 7-15, 8-15)
• Linda Cortese def. Annette Hopkins: 3-0 (15-9, 15-12, 15-9)
• John Granata def. Chris Olsen: 3-1 (11-15, 15-12, 15-12, 15-13)

What A Night!

Congratulations to all the winners and runners-up!

The medals awarded by Squash NSW added a special touch to the evening, and it was great to see the competitive spirit and sportsmanship on display. It was also amazing to see so many people attend last night and support their fellow club members, especially on a cold, rainy Winter’s night. Well done to everybody.

We have a busy schedule planned for this month as part of our "Christmas in July" celebrations, and we hope you can be part of it. Thank you for your continued support and participation in making WLSC the best sport’s club in the West.

Best regards,

John Musumeci
President, Wenty Leagues Squash Club