Professional Squash Coach

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Junior Squash

As with any sport, juniors are the life blood and future of the sport. So it is one of my main aims to get more juniors playing squash in the Rochester area. If you think you can help with this effort, please do contact me.

If you have any juniors that would like to play (or simply try) some squash, be them your own kids, a social group or a school party, please do contact me and I will be happy to organise whatever we can.

I'm looking for players and contacts with the local high schools, in order to build some Rochester junior teams.

Q) At what age can juniors start playing squash ?

A) I would say from around the age of 8, a junior can really start playing squash and enjoying the game fully. But there is no reason why younger kids can not come on a squash court and start doing some racket based skills. I have a range of balls specially designed for kids. By the age of 9 there are tournaments to play in too.

Using my club as a base facility (note: juniors do not need to be members to join sessions at Midtown), we are starting some local high school squash teams, to build a body of squash playing kids in Rochester.

The next closest area for junior squash is Buffalo, where they have several high school teams and tournaments. It would be great to take a Rochester junior team over to Buffalo for a weekend of squash against other teams.

See the Buffalo Area High School Squash League web site.

Other popular areas for squash and junior tournaments are: New York City, Boston and Toronto - so there are plenty of oppertunities to travel with squash.

Nationally, junior squash is growing rapidly with support from the national governing body - US Squash: http://www.ussquash.com/.

See this overview from US Squash: HighSchoolSquash.pdf.

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Current Junior Teams in Rochester

Our Lady of Mercy High School - started in May, 2011.

McQuaid Jesuit High School - started in September, 2011.

Midtown Athletic Club Juniors - started in November, 2011.

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Some information about high school squash:

• In June 2010, the USA won the World Junior Women's Squash Championship. Amanda Sobhy (17, Sea Cliff, New York) defeated Nour El Tayeb (17, Cairo, Egypt) in four games to win the 2010 World Junior Women's Squash Championship in Cologne, Germany.
• 500,000+ players, and the numbers are growing every year.
• Participation in junior squash tournaments is up over 40% in the last year alone. Five year figures are 196% growth for boys, 179% growth for girls. The number of junior tournaments was up over 30% last season.
• More than 150 high schools have programs, public schools in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey now recognizes squash as a varsity sport.
• Squash offers strong social, community and networking aspects, and the sport is broadening its reach to new audiences.
• National Teams performing at their peak in 2011: Mens team finished 7th in the world (best finish since 1993), Junior Womens team finished 2nd in the world (best finish ever).
• Squash is growing in the US, and offers an excellent alternative to basketball and hockey, as it can be played all year round.
• Squash does not require investment in facilities, many private and commercial clubs partner with schools across the country for court usage in non-peak times.

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And after high school, they might be interested in moving on to College level squash:

• New York Times article recognises squash as a growing sport at the varsity level (Dec 2007).
  See the New York Times Article.
• More than 200 colleges and universities have courts, and the number of schools offering programs is likely to increase by 15% in the next 3 years.
• In the last decade, men's participation in the College Squash Association, the sport's governing body, has almost doubled, from 36 teams in 2000 to 66 in 2010.
• The number of teams in women's squash - considered an "emerging sport" by the NCAA - has increased from 28 to 39.
• U of R mens varsity team has placed in the top 4 US college teams for the past two years.
• U of R ladies club team started in 2009 (coached by myself).
• Squash is a very international game, the U of R student team has players from many countries: North America, South America, Europe, Asia…

Tip 10/15: Don't play from the back of the court, the player in front wins.   John 'coach' Walsh (585) 354 9330      john.walsh@mini-net.com