My father is a massive sports fan and I’ve grown up listening to him say regularly how cruel sports can be, writes Ireland junior performance coach David Noone from the World Squash Junior Championships in Cairo.
The finest of margins can make the difference… In squash, a few millimetres on the tin, a referee’s decision, the frame of a racket. Thursday was one of those days for the U19 girls.
They were within a whisker of a top 10 finish in Cairo. The total score was actually 116-111 in favour of Ireland, but South Africa got the victory by winning matches 2-1.
Ella Erickson got us off to a flyer, chopping up their No.1 with a powerful performance. She bossed the court, never letting her opponent settle. Very impressive.
Zoe Yeomans got off to a great start in her first game. It went the distance, but the long and powerful South African took it 15-13. Carrying that momentum into the second, she took it 11-5 and while Zoe pulled one back in the third, she could force a fifth game.
So at 1-1, Ella Walsh played Chante Leppan in a real nail-biter of a match. Every game was close and Ella poured all she had into it, chasing every ball down, playing her shots with conviction and emptying the tank.
She had game balls to go 2-0 up and, if converted, that may have made the difference. But heartbreakingly, it wasn’t to be.
It was a huge team effort from the girls and on Friday they will face New Zealand for 11th place, well above their original seeding of 15.
The lads played Switzerland, a tough opposition. As with most teams here, the No.1 string is almost all professional level. Fabian Seitz is one of Europe’s best juniors, a very tough and skilled player.
Danny Lynch had the unenviable task of facing him. He played very well and, quite similar to his match on Wednesday, he raised his level and competed so well in every point.
With game balls in the second, it would have been just for him to level the match. But it wasn’t to be and the Swiss ran away with the third.
Christian Dromgoole played very well in his match, getting himself pumped up for the big points and that was where it mattered with each game going the distance as he won 3-0 to force a decider.
Conal Jackson was the man to take on the challenge. Conal has played so much squash in this two-week campaign and has produced some real quality, but this match was a bridge too far and his energy levels were depleted. Despite this, Conal played pretty well and fought hard. But it wasn’t to be.
It made for a slightly sombre mood at the dinner table on Thursday evening but Friday is another day. The girls will play New Zealand and the lads Kuwait. We had some fun on the padel courts beside our hotel and got an early night. One more push for the two teams.
Wednesday was one of our more relaxed mornings at the World Squash Junior Championships with the start times slightly later, writes Ireland junior performance coach David Noone.
12:30pm for the first match was nice. Everyone got a much-needed longer sleep and the bodies got a chance to recover a little more.
The girls were up first in their 9/16 match against Macau China, with a playing order of 2, 1, 3, meaning Ella Walsh, Ella Erickson and Zoe Yeomans were in action.
Ella W controlled her nerves very well. There were some very difficult points and she was much more composed than her opponent, playing the more mature squash and getting us over the line for a 1-0 start. Things were looking good.
Ella E then sealed the victory for Ireland when her opponent retired in game three of their match. Ella, who had been gaining great momentum, looked like she would have run away with it before an ankle injury forced the retirement of the Macau player.
Zoe finished off the impressive victory with relative ease, and a delighted Irish contingent have now moved into the 9/12 bracket and will play South Africa on Thursday for the chance of a top 10 in the world finish. Exciting times.
The lads, with a team line-up of Christian Dromgoole, Danny Lynch and Aaron Knox, had the ominous task of taking on the Kiwis in their 12-22 match. Christian got proceedings underway and got to work quite quickly.
Building himself a 2-0 lead, things were looking good. But the match tightened in the third, tension got into his swing and the slightly looser squash freed up the centre for the tall New Zealander to attack.
The contest wasn’t without dramatic rallies, dives and some big refereeing decisions and after it levelled up at 2-2, the fifth game didn’t go as planned and Christian unfortunately couldn’t find a way through.
Danny was on next for a rematch of his round one opponent from the individuals, Ollie Dunbar, who is a serious player and ranked in the top 10 world juniors. Dunbar was on fire, but so was Danny and an enthralling battle produced some incredible squash.
It was corner-to-corner stuff and some of the best squash I have ever seen Danny play, but it still wasn’t enough. Danny did have three game balls in the third, but it wasn’t to be.
Aaron won the dead runner best of three, 2-1. He has been in superb form and if Christian or Danny had gotten a W, Aaron would have cleaned up for us. Thursday heralds another tough battle… Switzerland.
The matches keep coming thick and fast and thank goodness for Breanne Flynn, keeping the bodies in working order with multiple daily physio sessions. Two days to go here in Cairo. Plenty more squash to be played.
Wednesday was another day of reversed fortunes for the Ireland teams at the World Squash Junior Championship. On Monday, the 17th-seeded men’s team was beaten by Scotland (seed 18) while the 15th-ranked women’s team saw off Brazil (seed 10).
Those results changed around on Tuesday with the men beating Germany (seed 22) and the women giving second best to the highly ranked Hong Kong China (seed 2).
A day later, the roles switched back as the men agonisingly lost out 2-1 to 10th seed New Zealand while the women enjoyed a comprehensive 3-0 win over Macau China (seed 16).
Christian Dromgoole was the first player on court for Ireland and he started brilliantly, going 2-0 up. However, he was ultimately beaten in a five-game thriller after losing the last three games on the bounce.
Danny Lynch suffered a second defeat in Cairo to Oliver Dunbar. The Kiwi, who was seeded 9/16, defeated Lynch 3-0 in the individual round of 128 on July 21, and Dunbar repeated that same scoreline in this team encounter.
That left Ireland beaten, but an agreement was made to play the third match and Aaron Knox, who didn’t get to play on Tuesday after the Irish secured an unassailable 2-0 lead over Germany, was super in a three-game match, winning 2-1.
Ireland now face Switzerland, the No.13 seed, who were beaten 2-1 by Brazil.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Irish women’s team were full of energy and they fully deserved their 3-0 win over Macau China. Ella Walsh led the charge, followed by Ella Erickson and Zeo Yeomans, and they next take on South Africa, the No.14 seed that defeated Korea 2-1.
MEN’S RESULT AND FIXTURE – 13/22 PLAY-OFF
Ireland (No.17) LOST 1-2 v New Zealand (No.11)
Christian Dromgoole lost 2-3 (11-8, 11-5, 7-11, 4-11, 4-11) v Maximus Mathews
Danny Lynch lost 0-3 (4-11, 7-11, 10-12) v Oliver Dunbar
Aaron Knox won 2-1 (5-11, 11-7, 11-8) v Brodie Bennett
Next match: vs Switzerland (No.13) – Thursday, 4pm (2pm Irish time)
WOMEN’S RESULT AND FIXTURE – 9/16 PLAY-OFF
Ireland (No.15) WON 3-0 v Macau China (No.16)
Ella Walsh won 3-1 (11-8, 8-11, 11-9, 11-4) v Ianna Chi Ian Cao
Ella Erickson won 2-1 (9-11, 11-8, 11-5) v Sierra Chi Cheng Cao (retired after game 3)
Zoe Yeomans won 3-0 (11-5, 11-6, 11-0) v Lok long Huang
Next match: vs South Africa (No.14) – Thursday, 12:30pm (10:30am Irish time)
Keeping it very professional, our teams had a restful Monday evening in the hotel to prepare for the World Squash Junior Championships day ahead, writes junior performance coach David Noone.
For what felt like the 300th grilled chicken and rice in the hotel restaurant – the waiter hardly needs to ask us anymore – some treatments from Breanne Flynn and a good snooze, everyone was feeling ready.
First matches on Tuesday were 12pm for the girls and 3pm for the boys. The girls got to the club early, did a nice team practice, organised their hydration and prepared for the second best team in the world, the formidable Hong Kong China. The order of play was 1,2,3… and Ella Erickson was resting for this match.
The goal for our players was to test their level: Not to allow their opponents to dominate, to structure the rallies professionally, and take their chances when they came. Every point would be hard-earned. We knew that going in, and the girls put in an amazing effort.
Ella Walsh had to step up a few levels, never knowing where the ball was going and being under relentless pressure. She managed brilliantly and showed great resolve.
Zoe Yeomans was similar, working hard for every opportunity, digging deep and making the points hard.
Riley Slade played her heart out. An outstanding performance, getting close in the mid-section of each game and almost taking the lead a few times. She gave her all.
From a coach’s perspective, I’m delighted with their efforts. All players lost 3-0 but put up a great fight. That is sometimes all we can do against the second best in the world.
The lads had Germany: a stern test, but well within their capabilities to get the win. Danny Lynch was up first, then Conal Jackson and Aaron Knox.
A super high pace was set in the opening game for Danny. For me, it came as a bit of a surprise, but Danny had no issue with it. Playing mature squash, he turned the pressure back on his opponent. He had to work hard for his 3-0 win, with some superb dynamic movements and high-level shot selections.
Conal was up next. He has had an epic few days of squash, and his body was perhaps a little weary, but he fought valiantly to win a tough opening game. The German levelled a close second with some hard, frantic hitting.
But once Conal got composed and thought about his ball placement and accuracy, the German never stood a chance. A 3-1 win for Conal secured the tie, and the Germans decided not to play the dead rubber. This was slightly disappointing for Aaron, who would have relished the opportunity to clock up another victory.
To break the monotony of hotel-squash club-hotel-squash club… Ella Erickson’s father arranged the most amazing cruise on the River Nile for the team and supporters. What a night it was, a pure treat with amazing views and great food on board. A once-in-a-lifetime experience, one that everyone thoroughly enjoyed!
Even with the chaotic Cairo traffic, we still managed to get an early night to prep for Wednesday. The girls will face Macau China, and the boys take on New Zealand.
Ireland’s junior men’s team secured their first win at the 2025 World Junior Squash Championships with a strong 2-0 victory over Germany in their opening 13/22 play-off match.
The Irish, seeded 17th, had earlier finished at the bottom of Group D after a 1-2 defeat to Scotland (No.18) and other losses to England (No.4) and Hong Kong China (No.8), but they responded well against the 21st-seeded Germans.
Danny Lynch and Conal Jackson secured victories, with the tie decided before the third match.
Ireland now face a tougher challenge as they prepare to meet New Zealand (No.11 seed) on Wednesday at 4pm local time (2pm Irish time).
Earlier in the day, Ireland’s 15th-seeded junior women’s team faced a high-stakes match against No.2 ranked Hong Kong China in their final Group B fixture.
Ireland had previously impressed with a 2-1 victory over No.10 Brazil, keeping their hopes of reaching the quarter-finals alive. However, the strength of Hong Kong proved too much, and the Irish fell 0-3.
They now move into the 9/16 play-off, where they will face Macau China (No.16) on Wednesday at 12:30pm local (10:30am Irish time).
MEN’S RESULT – 13/22 PLAY-OFF
Ireland (No.17) 2-0 Germany (No.21)
Danny Lynch beat Oleksii Bielikov 3-0 (11-6, 11-8, 11-4)
Conal Jackson beat Levi Visser 3-1 (11-5, 6-11, 12-10, 11-1)
Aaron Knox DNP vs Rufus Gebhardt
Next match: vs New Zealand (No.11) – Wednesday, 4pm (2pm Irish time)
WOMEN’S RESULT – GROUP B
Ireland (No.15) 0-3 Hong Kong China (No.2)
Ella Walsh lost 0-3 (3-11, 2-11, 1-11) to Tsz Ching Chang
Zoe Yeomans lost 0-3 (2-11, 1-11, 0-11) to Helen Tang
Riley Slade lost 0-3 (4-11, 6-11, 3-11) to Yee Ling Elaine Chung
Next match: vs Macau China (No.16) – Wednesday, 12:30pm (10:30am Irish time)
After a week of individual championships, our representatives have renewed their focus for the team event, writes junior performance coach David Noone. Always an exciting part of the year.
We have Ella Erickson joining Ella Walsh, Zoe Yeomans and Riley Slade in the girls. In the boys, we said farewell to Frank O’Flynn and Nathan Hann, and our four team players are Danny Lynch, Conal Jackson, Christian Dromgoole and Aaron Knox.
We did have a rest day on Saturday, which was great. It gave us a chance to visit the pyramids and the sphinx – a great day out with an ex-Egyptian marine called Bob as our tour guide. He gave the team some authentic Egyptian experiences, even a camel ride through the desert. Some amazing memories.
For the girls, their pool opponents are India, Brazil and Hong Kong China. India were first up and their No.1 player is Anahat Singh, the World No.2 junior, who is no doubt a star of the future pro tour.
Ella Erickson had a baptism of fire against her in her championship debut. She played great squash but struggled with the pace and accuracy of Singh. It was similar for Ella Walsh and Zoe Yeomans. A top effort but no joy on the scoreboard.
On day two, Brazil were next. As with most of the teams here, they have incredible No.1 string players – the Brazilian girl got to the last 16 in the individual event.
It was another tough one for Ella E. She put up a big fight, though, and an impressive third game got her flowing. She will look forward to the rest of the event to do some damage.
Zoe kept a cool head to dispatch her opponent in four games, a mature performance and a relief for her to get over the line. The decider with Ella W was nerve-wrecking.
The exchanges were fast-paced at the start, with Ella displaying her grit to capture most of the points. She fought tooth and nail through the three games and claimed a well-deserved victory over the higher-seeded team.
So happy for the girls. An incredible effort! They now finish their group against Hong Kong China on Tuesday.
The boys also had Hong Kong China in their group, with England and Scotland completing the lineup. Tough to say the least.
Hong Kong were first up on Sunday. One of the powerhouses of world squash, they are always producing top professionals and are always super fit and strong.
Danny and Christian played some superb squash, some of their best, and really worked hard. Doing very little wrong, though, they were simply outplayed by their opponents and both lost in three hard-fought games.
Conal had a massive five-setter, and it would have been a huge scalp for him to clinch the fifth, but it was a bridge too far.
We also played England on Sunday, and this was always going to be tough going. Conal managed to keep his form from earlier, taking the lead 1-0 against Dylan Roberts.
Playing out of his skin, he couldn’t manage to take it to a decider in the tight fourth game, but it was an absolute man-of-the-match performance in both of his matches.
Aaron and Christian played at two and three for this tie. Two gutsy performances, as you expect from the young duo, but both lost in three. Performance-wise, a great day, but results on paper, no joy.
We played Scotland on day two. The No.1 Scotsman had played with Wales his whole life, and this was the former British junior champion’s first outing after declaring for the Scots.
Danny knew his work would be cut out. He played an incredible match, though, with just a few points deciding each game. Archie Turnbull was just too strong in the end, but he is well within range for Danny in the future.
Aaron played at three, winning quite easily against a tall Scotsman once the rallies were at a high pace. He was never troubled and won convincingly in three.
The decider was Conal versus Murdo Mackenzie. Conal had beaten Mackenzie this season, but after the efforts he went to on Sunday, the two matches took their toll on him.
He did manage to get off to a flyer, but lost in three. It was a frustrating end to the group for the team, but we play Germany on Tuesday with the chance to climb higher than our seeding.
The World Squash Junior Championships is an incredible event to be part of for the team. There is much to learn and so many world-class players and matchups throughout the club’s 17 courts. And there is a lot still to come from both of our teams.
Special thanks to Breanne Flynn, who is managing to maintain her own professional training while coaching and being the team physio. She has put in a monster effort.
The Ireland junior women’s squash team scored a thrilling 2-1 victory over higher-ranked Brazil in their second Group B match at the 2025 World Squash Junior Championships in Cairo.
Despite being seeded No.15, Ireland bounced back impressively after Sunday’s 0-3 loss to No.7 seed India.
With standout performances from Zoe Yeomans and Ella Walsh, the team overcame an early loss by Ella Erickson to secure a major upset over the 10th-seeded Brazilians.
Match Results:
Next match: Ireland vs Hong Kong China (seed No.2) – Tuesday, 12pm local time (10am Irish time). This is Ireland’s final Group B match and a spot in the quarter-finals is on the line.
The Ireland junior men’s team suffered a 1-2 defeat to Scotland on Monday, following earlier Group D losses to Hong Kong China (No.8 seed) and England (No.4 seed).
Despite a dominant win from Aaron Knox against his Scottish opponent, Ireland now finish bottom of their group.
Match Results:
Next match: Ireland vs Germany (seed No.21) – Tuesday, 3pm local time (1pm Irish time). This is a classification round match for 13th-22nd place.
It was a tough Sunday for Ireland at the 2025 World Junior Squash Championships in Cairo, as both the men’s and women’s teams suffered straight-game defeats in their group-stage ties.
Despite strong efforts from individual players like Conal Jackson, who pushed his match against Hong Kong to five games, both teams will need a turnaround in the remaining group fixtures.
🧑🎓 Men’s team: Back-to-back 0-3 losses in Group D
Ireland (seed No.17) 🆚 Hong Kong China (seed No.8)
Christian Dromgoole lost 0–3 (5-11, 1-11, 3-11) to Wing Kuen Wong
Danny Lynch lost 0–3 (5-11, 5-11, 5-11) to Tsun Hei Mak
Conal Jackson lost 2–3 (12-10, 6-11, 7-11, 11-8, 5-11) to Justin Cheng
Ireland (seed No.17) 🆚 England (seed No.4)
Aaron Knox lost 0–3 (4-11, 7-11, 7-11) to Ronnie Hickling
Conal Jackson lost 1–3 (13-11, 3-11, 3-11, 8-11) to Dylan Roberts
Christian Dromgoole lost 0–3 (7-11, 5-11, 2-11) to Ismail Khalil
🗓️ Next match: Ireland vs Scotland (seed No.18) on Monday at 3pm (1pm Irish time)
This presents Ireland’s best chance to finish strong in Group D.
👩🎓 Women’s team: Defeated by India in Group B opener
The 15th-ranked Ireland women’s junior squash team also struggled in their Group B opener, falling 0–3 to India, who are seeded seventh in the 16-team tournament.
Ireland (seed No.15) 🆚 India (seed No.7)
Zoe Yeomans lost 0-3 (2-11, 1-11, 6-11) to Anika Dubey
Ella Erickson lost 0-3 (3-11, 0-11, 0-11) to Anahat Singh
Ella Walsh lost 0-3 (5-11, 3-11, 3-11) to Unnati Tripathi
🗓️ Upcoming fixtures: vs Brazil (seed No.10) – Monday at 12pm (10am Irish); vs Hong Kong China (seed No.2) – Tuesday at 12pm (10am Irish)
Ireland’s men’s and women’s squash teams face stiff competition in the 2025 World Squash Junior Championships in Cairo, following a challenging group-stage draw that places them against several top-ranked teams.
Ireland’s No.17-ranked men’s team will compete against the No.4, No.8 and No.18 seeds in the event which involves 22 teams split across six groups. Four groups – including Ireland’s – have four teams, while the remaining two groups have three.
🇮🇪 Team Members:
Match schedule (Local time / Irish time):
Dromgoole, Jackson, Knox and Lynch all competed in the opening week’s individual tournament. Nathan Hann and Frank O’Flynn, who also took part individually, will not feature in the team event.
Ireland’s No.15-ranked women’s team has also received a difficult draw in a tournament split into four groups of four teams.
🇮🇪 Team members:
Match schedule (Local time / Irish time):
Slade, Sutton and Yeomans all featured in the week-one individual competition, with Erickson now joining for the team event.
Danny Lynch, the Irish BU19 No.1 seed from Galway, was edged out in his Consolation Plate semi-final at the World Squash Junior Championships in Cairo.
He started brilliantly, winning game one 11-0 against Joshua Rahul Raj, but the Australian hit back to win the next three – 9-11, 6-11, 4-11 – to clinch a place in Saturday’s final.
Earlier on Friday, Lynch defeated Raphael Ferraro in the quarter-finals, recording a 3-1 victory. Game one was a 13-15 nail-biter that went the way of the Swiss player, but Lynch swept to victory in the next three games (11-3, 11-5, 11-4).
In the other Consolation Plate quarter-final that had Irish interest on Friday, Sutton’s Ella Walsh lost 1-3 to Yeeun Seo. Walsh enjoyed a fantastic start against the South Korean, taking the first game 11-8.
However, that score was reversed in the second game, and although Walsh kept battling, Seo took the win 9-11 and 6-11 in the following two games.
The elimination of Lynch and Walsh ended Ireland’s involvement in the individuals section at the Championship. David Noone’s players now await the draw for the team tournaments, which begin on Sunday.
RESULTS
BU19
Danny Lynch
Consolation Plate quarter-final: Won 3-1 (13-15, 11-3, 11-5, 11-4) versus Raphael Ferraro of Switzerland
Consolation Plate semi-final: Lost 1-3 (11-0, 9-11, 6-11, 4-11) versus Joshua Rahul Raj of Australia
GU19
Ella Walsh
Consolation Plate quarter-final: Lost 1-3 (11-8, 8-11, 9-11, 6-11) versus Yeeun Seo of South Korea
