Gqeberha – The Northerns A women’s team sent out a strong message to their rivals when they comfortably defeated defending champions Western Province.
Northerns achieved the victory on Monday, 7 July 2025, the opening day of the Growthpoint Jarvis-Kaplan interprovincial squash tournament in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape.
Although WP No 1 Alex Commins prevented a clean sweep in this Kaplan Cup clash, Northerns took most of the accolades as the prestigious team event got off to a spirited start in chilly conditions.
Commins defeated Helena Hudson in the tie’s final clash, but by then Northerns had wrapped up the match with four solid victories.
Northerns No 3 Lara Patrick had a proper arm-wrestle with WP’s Katie Mayhew in their opening game, eventually conceding it 17-15.
But Patrick, who was crowned the University Sport SA women’s champion last week, quickly bounced back and rattled off the next three games relatively easily to take a 3-1 win, en route to an overall 17-4 result.
Hosts Eastern Province also comfortably negotiated their first Kaplan Cup hurdle when they defeated Joburg Squash A without dropping a game at Old Grey on Monday.
South Africa’s most prestigious domestic team event is being played in Gqeberha for the first time since 2021 and the host province will be looking to improve on their third-place finish of 2024.
They were just too good for their Joburg Squash rivals on Monday despite some spirited efforts by their opponents.
Eventually, no 1 Hayley Ward wrapped up the victory with a hard-earned 3-0 over Joburg’s Teagan Russell to seal the commanding 20-0 win.
It may have been cold outdoors, but the action soon heated up inside as Northerns No 4 Connor Earl and Murray Commins (WP A) produced a cliffhanger of a match in their men’s Jarvis Cup showdown.
Both players showed supreme resilience and brilliant shot-making skills as neither of them gave an inch in the bid for victory.
Commins fought with all he had to win the third game 18-16 to get 2-1 up.
But the persistent Earl never lost his focus, levelling the match and then finally coming up trumps in an epic fifth game to win it 12-10.
That effort levelled the tie at one match each, but Northerns stepped on the accelerator, and wins by Nikhil Pather and Jarrod Cousins gave them an unassailable lead.
Defending champions Cape Fruit SA Country Districts held the edge over hosts EP A, although Dean Venter, at No 2 for EP, registered a highly commendable 3-1 win over seasoned campaigner JP Brits.
It was a rare Jarvis Cup loss for the four-time champions, but they still have plenty of petrol in the tank and everyone knows the fighting spirit of Brits, who is sure to bounce back stronger than ever.
The opening day’s results were:
Women’s Kaplan Cup
EP A bt Joburg Squash A 20-0 (EP A first): Hayley Ward bt Teagan Russell 3-0 (11-7 11-4 11-5), Jacqui Ryder bt Bongi Seroto 3-0 (11-8 11-9 13-11), Janet Byrnes bt Tyla-Mae Roux 3-0 (11-5 11-5 11-6), Anlen Jarman bt Giorgia Dates 3-0 (11-3 11-3 11-8), Bianca Keeley bt Marcail Wragg 3-0 (11-1 11-3 11-3).
Northerns A bt WP A 17-4 (Northerns A first): Helena Hudson lost to Alex Commins 3-0 (14-12 11-6 11-2), Kim McDonald bt Juanette le Roux 3-0 (11-2 11-8 11-2), Lara Patrick bt Katie Mayhew 3-1 (15-17 11-5 11-6 11-2), Jordin Phillips bt Nicole Giddon 3-0 (11-3 11-5 11-3), Elzandri Janse van Rensburg bt Rebecca Glanvill 3-0 (11-8 11-4 11-5).
Cape Fruit SACD A bt Border A 19-3 (SACD A first): Alexa Pienaar lost to Michelle van Zyl 3-2 (3-11 11-9 11-8 10-12 12-10), Lizelle Muller bt Sorika Tait 3-0 (11-4 11-6 11-4), Shelomi Truter bt Kelly Emslie 3-0 (11-6 11-4 11-7), Keschia Schlebusch bt Kate van Biljon 3-0 (11-7 11-5 11-9), Alouise Campher bt Hayley Wyer (11-4 11-3 11-5).
Men’s Jarvis Cup
Joburg Squash A bt KZN A 20-4 (Joburg Squash A first): Tristen Worth bt Daniel Smith 3-1 (11-8 12-14 11-7 11-4), Christo Potgieter bt Luke Bakke 3-1 (11-8 11-6 9-11 11-9), John Anderson bt Justin de Neef 3-0 (11-8 11-4 11-4), Ethan Robinson bt Robert Moody 3-2 (6-11 8-11 11-3 11-2 11-3), Amukelani Zitha bt Alex Holmes 3-0 (11-9 11-3 11-6).
Cape Fruit SACD A bt EP A 18-5 (SACD A first): Dewald van Niekerk bt Gerard Mitchell 3-0 (11-6 11-5 11-6), JP Brits lost to Dean Venter 3-1 (13-11 11-8 7-11 12-10), Reuel Videler bt Jason le Roux 3-0 (11-7 11-9 11-5), Rudi van Niekerk bt Sips Mpini 3-1 (11-7 8-11 11-8 11-8), Jonty Matthys bt Gershwin Forbes 3-0 (11-4 11-3 11-3).
Northerns A bt WP A 17-5 (Northerns A first): Damian Groenewald bt Devon Osborne 3-0 (11-5 11-9 11-3), Jarrod Cousins bt Migael Lombard 3-0 (11-8 11-8 11-7), Judah Phillips lost to Nathan van der Westhuyzen 3-0 (11-7 11-8 11-8), Connor Earl bt Murray Commins 3-2 (5-11 11-8 16-18, 11-5 12-10), Nikhil Pather bt Keagan Waugh 3-0 (15-13 11-8 11-2).
