Fernandes, Pollard win in Men’s 30-44 division

By Sean Devers
THE BCQS Masters Squash Championships began in earnest at the Georgetown Club on Wednesday evening after Vincentian, Anne Hazel-Sandy, beat Guyana’s Kathy Ten Pow 3-1, and Guyana’s Lydia Fraser defeated Canadian Anna Perreira 11-2, 11-4, 11, the previous day in pre-tournament games.

Playing in the first tournament of GSA’s hectic year for Squash in Guyana, Nicolette Fernandes, playing in the Men’s 30-44 years catorgety, easily disposed of Reagan Rodrigues 3-0 while Regan Pollard beat Jason van Dirk 3-0 to set up last night’s clash between the two.

The 39-year-old World Masters over-35 Champion, who won back-to-back Sportswoman of-the-year-Awards in 2000 and 2001 and again in 2005 and 2022, beat a determined Rodrigues who seemed satisfied with just playing against Guyana’s greatest female Squash player.

Nicolette, who never left the Court during the three games, won 11-4, 11-0, 11-6.

Meanwhile, Pollard, who did not have things so easy, eventually triumphed 11-5. 11-9, 11-3 over van Dirk
While van Dirk seemed the fitter of the two, there is no substitute for experience and Pollard executed several drives and well placed drop shots which van Dirk could not reach.

van Dirk enjoyed his best moments of the match in the second game when he stitched together three unanswered points with some nice cross-court shots and good rallies.

van Dirk threatened to take the game with the score on 9-10 but Pollard prevailed and won the game 11-9 before winning the next game 11-3 to take the match.

In other Men’s 30-44 games, Javid Rahaman beat Dane Pereira 11-2, 11-2, 11-5, Javid Ali lost to Nicholas Narain 11-4, 5-11, 5-11, 7-11 and Lee Fung-a-Fat was beaten by Jonathan Antczak, 13-15, 4-11, 4-11.

In the 55-65 age group, Barbadian Peter Harris, a former National Hockey player, disposed of Guyanese Brian Edwards 11-5, 11-5, 11-8; Guyana’s Lloyd Fung-a Fat beat Bajan Dean Straker 11-6, 11-6, 11-7; Bajan Sanjay Amin won 11-5, 11-3, 11-8 over Ron Edwards while Guyanese Narendra Singh got a walkover from T&T’s John Astleford.

In the 0ver-65, Guyana’s Dennis Dias beat Winston Findley from the British Virgin Islands, 10-12, 11-6, 11-5, 11-2, 11-2, and Orson Simpson lost to Tony Roach 12-10, 11-6, 11-2, 2-11, 2-11 in an all Barbados match-up.

In the Women’s Over-35s, Fraser won against Tian Edwards 11-6, 11-3, 11-2