Clyne battles past old rival Lobban to seal title No 8
Defending champion Alan Clyne beat good friend Greg Lobban to claim his eighth Scottish squash title at Edinburgh Sports Club yesterday, while an emotional Lisa Aitken landed her second ladies crown, eight years after her first.
Clyne and top-seeded Lobban shared the first two games before Clyne found an extra gear to win 11-3, 6-11, 11-2, 11-6.
“Greg keeps pushing the bar higher and higher in training and he keeps pushing me on,” said Clyne. “It’s tough to play him because we’re such good mates, and I knew it was going to be a tough match.
“I thought I played really well today. I kept my levels high and my concentration high, and I took advantage of the patches when Greg wasn’t at his best.
“Winning my eighth national title is great, but you don’t think about the numbers – you’re just try-
ing to win the final. I’m 32 now, but I’ve had a good summer and I feel I’m still improving, physically, mentally and technically.”
Top seed Aitken beat second seed Alison Thomson 11-8, 11-5, 11-4 in the women’s final and said: “There’s no pressure like that of the national championships and I think I let that get to me in the first game and a half. I didn’t use the correct tactics and my head wasn’t in the right place, but I’m happy I was able to turn it around.
The 2017 winner Georgia Adderley took third place on her home court when the 17-year-old defeated Perth’s Katriona Allen in four games, while Stuart George and Rory Stewart contested an epic bronze medal play-off, which George edged 11-6 in the fifth and deciding game.