Morrie Williams, owner of the iconic number No. 0 sprint car and a veteran of six decades of racing on the West Coast, has died at the age of 85.

Williams died early Sept. 11 after a long battle with cancer.

His distinctive white Morrie Williams Motorsports/Alviso Rock/AV Solutions/Williams Roofing Maxim emblazoned with a red “0” was a fixture and consistent winner in the King of the West/Fujitsu sprint car series where he won four championships, the most recent in 2017 with driver Bud Kaeding.

“I’ve been fortunate to be part of Williams Motorsports for the past six and a half years and they have made me feel like family since day one,” said Kaeding.

Three of Williams’ championships were with driver Jonathan Allard (2006, ’08, ’12), while other notable drivers who had seat time with Williams over the years included Greg DeCaires, Jimmy Carr, Dennis Moore and Peter Murphy.

“He helped a lot of people get ahead in this sport, including mechanics,” noted Ashley Smith, his son-in-law and former crew chief of Williams Motorsports. “He was an incredible man but very humble about his accomplishments,” he said of Williams, who was soft-spoken and often preferred to stay in the background and allow his drivers and crew members to claim the spotlight.

Williams got his start in motorsports as a driver in the 1960s, racing a winged supermodified he built with his father at tracks in California’s San Joaquin Valley, such as Madera Speedway and Kearney Bowl, near Fresno and his home in the Sierra foothill town of Coarsegold.

By the mid-1980’s he was a car owner in the Northern Auto Racing Club/KWS series and for many years travelled from the West Coast to compete at the Knoxville Nationals.

Despite being physically limited by his illness, Williams consistently joined his race team at the track until about four weeks ago and his passion for motorsports continued beyond that.

“He was watching DirtVision over the last weeks,” noted Smith, including Kaeding’s most recent win when he dominated all 30 laps during the KWS Championship Classic at Stockton’s dirt track in late August.

A celebration of life ceremony is scheduled for Williams on Oct. 11 at the Oakhurst Community Center in the Sierra foothills town of Oakhurst, east of Fresno.

CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — James McFadden passed Dale Blaney with less than two laps remaining to win Thursday night’s Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1 Speedweek Reloaded feature at Atomic Speedway.

Starting third on the grid, the multi-time World Series Sprintcars champion in Australia, battled within the top three the entire distance, taking second from Aaron Reutzel on lap 21 and stealing the top spot from Blaney in the closing circuits.

For McFadden, the victory bumps his season total with Tony Stewart’s All Stars to three, now with five on his career. The $5,000 triumph was a first-ever at Atomic Speedway during All Star competition.

Despite losing grip on the lead, Blaney hung on to finish second, followed by fellow six-time Series champion Chad Kemenah, Canadian All Star Rookie of the Year contender Skylar Gee and Reutzel.

“I thought if I could slide him and block him out of turn two, we were going to be alright,” said McFadden, who drives the Kasey Kahne Racing with Mike Curb/Wicked Energy Gum/Karavan/No. 9 sprint car. “It was a tough race. It was super hard to see where you needed to be at some points. The guys gave me a great car and I can’t thank them enough.”

Although the first 10 circuits were filled with their share of chaos, two cautions including a red flag incident that eventually led to tire-wall repair, things started to really intensify once the leaders found traffic on lap 13.

Blaney was in control, but Chad Kemenah and James McFadden were waiting in the wings and ready to strike. Trying to take advantage of Blaney’s momentum shift in traffic, Kemenah attempted a bid for the top spot on lap 16. Despite making his slider work through the corner, Blaney dove back underneath the No. K4 and exited turn two resuming control.

With Reutzel now in the mix, a nose-to-tail battle in traffic involving the top-four spots soon erupted. By lap 21, McFadden was in a prime position to advance, nose-diving to the bottom of turn one before sliding in front of Kemenah to gain second. The move worked, now setting his aim on Blaney.

By lap 24, McFadden was all over the back bumper of Blaney, as no lapped cars separated himself from the race leader. Just as the front-runners received the two-to-go signal from the flagstand, McFadden put himself in position to execute, once again diving to the bottom of turn one in an attempt to slide up in front of the McGhee Motorsports No. 11.

As with his move around Kemenah, the slide job worked, leading the last lap and a half to secure the victory.

“Dale (Blaney) didn’t do anything wrong. We were in a position to capitalize,” McFadden continued. “Luckily, it worked out. Sometimes it’s better to be the leader in the closing laps, sometimes it better to be second.”

The finish:

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 9-James McFadden [3]; 2. 11-Dale Blaney [1]; 3. K4-Chad Kemenah [2]; 4. 99-Skylar Gee [6]; 5. 87-Aaron Reutzel [4]; 6. 70X-Justin Peck [7]; 7. 22C-Cole Duncan [5]; 8. 14-Tony Stewart [10]; 9. 4-Cap Henry [13]; 10. 13-Paul McMahan [11]; 11. 70-Brock Zearfoss [14]; 12. W20-Greg Wilson [9]; 13. 26-Cory Eliason [12]; 14. 9X-Ricky Peterson [19]; 15. 1B-Keith Baxter [16]; 16. 4D-Josh Davis [21]; 17. J4-John Garvin [23]; 18. 21-Brinton Marvel [22]; 19. 45-Trevor Baker [18]; 20. 42-Sye Lynch [8]; 21. 9W-Lance Webb [24]; 22. 59-Bryan Nuckles [17]; 23. 6-Justin Grant [20]; 24. 33M-Mason Daniel [15] Lap Leaders: Dale Blaney (1-28), James McFadden (29, 30)

KNOXVILLE, Iowa — Shane Clanton came from seventh starting spot to win Thursday night’s preliminary event during the Lucas Oil Knoxville Late Model Nationals at Knoxville Raceway.

For the 44-year-old Georgia native, it was his first victory at the historic half-mile venue. He also became the 16th different winner this season on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series tour.

Clanton was the fourth different leader during the 25-lap race. The A-Main was slowed by only one caution flag for Jonathan Davenport on lap four. Ricky Thornton Jr. led the first lap in the Chad Stapleton-owned Club 29 Race Car. His place atop the leaderboard was short-lived as outside front-row starter Devin Moran took the lead on lap two.

Moran led until Tyler Erb took the lead away from him on lap five. Clanton charged from the inside of row number four and grabbed the lead away from Erb on lap 14.
Clanton pulled away from Erb and went on to pick up the preliminary night victory. Erb crossed the finish line in second, followed by Darrell Lanigan, Ricky Weiss and Thornton.

“Our car has been good all night long,” Clanton said. “We just made the right adjustments. I was biding my time behind Terbo [Erb], and it looked like he was hurting his tires. I went to the middle and the car stuck, and we went by him, then that was all she wrote.

“To win here at Knoxville is a dream come true,” Clanton added. “I have seen Donny Schatz win here so many times and I would like to start my own legacy here.”

Erb led nine laps but came home in the runner-up spot.

“There wasn’t a whole lot I could do in the last 10 or 15 laps, he [Clanton] had a better car,” he said. “He could maneuver through a lot better than I could. My car felt really good. It’s the same kind of issue we have been having. The longer we go, the tires just get hot. We are going to work on it. It was a good run. This is my favorite race track that we come to.”

Lanigan edged out Weiss at the finish line to round out the podium.

“The car got really good through the middle and the bottom,” Lanigan said. “I would have liked to have seen a caution to see if we could have made a late-race charge. It’s just awesome to come out here and run well.”

The finish:

Feature (25 laps): 1. Shane Clanton (7); 2. Tyler Erb (4); 3. Darrell Lanigan (5); 4. Ricky Weiss (6); 5. Ricky Thornton Jr. (1); 6. Tyler Bruening (10); 7. Brandon Sheppard (12); 8. Devin Moran (2); 9. Bobby Pierce (11); 10. Chris Simpson (3); 11. Dennis Erb Jr. (18); 12. Frank Heckenast Jr. (13); 13. Josh Richards (16); 14. Stormy Scott (19); 15. Earl Pearson Jr. (21); 16. Jimmy Owens (20); 17. Shanon Buckingham (9); 18. Kyle Bronson (24); 19. Shannon Babb (14); 20. Brian Birkhofer (15); 21. Chad Simpson (22); 22. Billy Moyer Jr. (23); 23. Jeremiah Hurst (17); 24. Jonathan Davenport (8). Lap Leaders: Thornton Jr. 1, Moran 2-4, Erb 5-13, Clanton 14-25.

ROKiT Williams Racing and Mercedes-Benz confirmed a long-term partnership extension that will keep the team running Mercedes engines through the end of the 2025 FIA Formula One season.

Williams has been in partnership with Mercedes-Benz since the start of the 2014 season.

“We have enjoyed a wonderful partnership with Mercedes-Benz over the past six years of what was originally a seven-year agreement, and so we are delighted to be continuing working with them for a further five years from 2021,” said Deputy Team Principal Claire Williams. “Mercedes-Benz has been one of the sport’s most successful engine suppliers and we believe that they will continue to have an extremely competitive engine package going forwards. Over our time with them they have become a real friend of the team, and we look forward to working with Mercedes-AMG HPP in future.”

The team will continue to be supplied with Mercedes-Benz Power Units (Internal Combustion Engine plus Energy Recovery System) by Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains (HPP) based in Brixworth, UK for a further five years from 2021, following the conclusion of the original agreement. Williams will continue to manufacture its own transmission.

The 2014 regulations saw teams switch from naturally aspirated 2.4-liter V-8 engines to 1.6-liter V6 turbocharged hybrid Power Units, and Williams has enjoyed a successful partnership with Mercedes-Benz since this time, achieving some of its best results in recent years finishing third in both the 2014 and 2015 seasons.

“Building long-term partnerships has been a key pillar of our approach to the hybrid era in Formula One. Williams has been an exemplary partner since we began working together ahead of the 2014 season and we have enjoyed a number of highlights during those years,” said Andy Cowell, Managing Director of Mercedes-AMG HPP. “We have built strong human and technical relationships to the team in Grove and very much look forward to building on them in the years ahead.”

“Williams is one of the iconic brands in Formula One and we at Mercedes are proud to count them as part of our motorsport family,” added Toto Wolff, CEO and Team Principal of Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport. “They have been through some tough times recently but that has only served to demonstrate their resilience and strength of character as they battle back to where they belong on the grid. I am certain that the outlook for independent teams is bright under the financial regulations that will be introduced from 2021 and we are delighted to continue our partnership with Williams into that new era of our sport.”

GLENEAGLES, Scotland – After one session of the 16th Solheim Cup, the Europeans hold a slight advantage.

Georgia Hall and Celine Boutier took down Americans Lexi Thompson and Brittany Altomare to highlight Europe's Friday foursomes performance. The home side will enter Friday afternoon's fourball session leading, 2 1/2 to 1 1/2.

Here are match-by-match recaps from the opening foursomes session at Gleneagles:

Match 1: Pressel/Alex (USA) vs. Ciganda/Law (EUR), halved

The first match was the best of the session and came down to the final hole, where it was halved with pars. A fitting end to this back-and-forth battle. The Europeans jumped out to a 2-up lead after four holes, but Pressel energized her side with a 20-foot birdie at the par-4 fifth. Europe bogeyed the next two holes to give the U.S. its first lead, but a short miss by Pressel at No. 8 gave it back. Ciganda forced the match to No. 18 with a 20-foot birdie at 17, but both teams played the last hole poorly.

Match 2: Hall/Boutier (EUR) def. Thompson/Altomare (USA), 2 and 1

Thompson debuts a new partner, but Hall and Boutier took control. Hall hit great iron shots into greens at 4, 5 and 7, and Boutier birdied two of those to give Europe a 2-up lead. Thompson had to make a 7-footer for par to halve the par-5 ninth, but overall, she struggled with the putter. The Americans clawed back, winning 14 and 16, but the comeback fell short as Thompson missed a long birdie at No. 17 that would’ve extended the match.

Match 3: J. Korda/N. Korda (USA) def. Masson/Ewart Shadoff (EUR), 6 and 4

For the first time in a Solheim Cup, two sisters teamed in the same match – and the Kordas delivered. The Europeans struggled, bogeying Nos. 3 and 5 to fall 4 down. Jessica and Masson matched birdies at the par-3 sixth and again at the par-3 10^th, where Jessica chipped in. The Kordas went 6 up with par on No. 11 after the Europeans made their fifth bogey or worse.

Match 4: Hull/Munoz (EUR) def. Park/Khang (USA), 2 and 1

The Europeans didn’t make a birdie until Munoz sunk a 7-footer at the par-4 13^th, yet somehow, they led for much of the match. Still, the U.S. stayed close thanks to Europe’s double at No. 6 and bogey at No. 8. When Khang made birdie at the drivable par-4 14^th, it was just the Americans’ second of the match. Three holes later, Park missed a 6-footer for par that ended it.

GLENEAGLES, Scotland – Jessica and Nelly Korda made Solheim Cup history Friday morning, becoming the first pair of sisters to team in the matches. And they did so successfully, winning, 6 and 4, in the foursomes session. But they won't be partnered in the afternoon fourballs.

U.S. captain Juli Inkster split up the two for the better-ball session, in a bid to spark Lexi Thompson and Brittany Alomare, who teamed in the morning and lost.

Inkster and European captain Catriona Matthew both cleared their benches. All 12 players from both teams will make first-day appearances. That includes American Danielle Kang.

Kang became a pre-tournament focus with her quotes saying the Solheim Cup was a chance to “take souls,” make opponents “cry” and “crush” the other team. It fired up European media. When Kang stepped up to the first tee, she waved for the crowd to make more noise. They obliged . . . and nobody booed.

Here's a look at the Day 1 fourballs (all times ET):

Match 1, 7:40AM: Danielle Kang and Lizette Salas (U.S.) vs. Suzann Pettersen and Anne van Dam (EUR)

Match 2, 7:55AM: Ally McDonald and Angel Yin (U.S.) vs. Anna Nordqvist and Caroline Hedwall (EUR)

Match 3, 8:10AM: Nelly Korda and Brittany Altomare (U.S.) vs. Charley Hull and Azahara Munoz (EUR)

Match 4, 8:25AM: Jessica Korda and Lexi Thompson (U.S.) vs. Carlota Ciganda and Bronte Law (EUR)

September 13

Colin Munro has linked up with Trinbago Knight Riders, champions of the 2017 and 2018 editions, for the remainder of CPL 2019 following the completion of New Zealand's tour of Sri Lanka.

New Zealander Munro was the highest run-getter in CPL 2018, with 567 runs at a strike rate of 140.34, hitting six half-centuries in the team's victory march. He was a key cog in the Knight Riders' wheel back in 2017 too, top-scoring for them with 366 runs at a strike rate of 135.05.

In more good news for the franchise, currently second on the table (on net run-rate) behind Guyana Amazon Warriors with three wins from three games, Darren Bravo has been cleared to join the squad after having retired during the Jamaica Test against India earlier this month with concussion.

Jade Dernbach joins Jamaica Tallawahs

Jade Dernbach has also found his way to the CPL for the first time, linking up with Jamaica Tallawahs. He was in action as Surrey's captain in the Vitality Blast, but they finished eighth in the nine-team South Group of the tournament, freeing the paceman up for the stint with the Tallawahs.

Can't wait to join up with @JAMTallawahs and big thank you to @surreycricket and @ICAssociation for the opportunity. #TeamICA https://t.co/2OpXCM21WZ

— Jade Dernbach (@Jwd_16) September 13, 2019

September 10

Jamaica Tallawahs penalised for slow over-rate

Jamaica Tallawahs have been penalised for maintaining a slow over-rate during their match against Trinbago Knight Riders, played in Port of Spain on September 6.

It was a minimum over-rate offence, with the Tallawahs found to be just one over short, and an "applicable monetary fine" - the amount of which wasn't disclosed - was imposed on Chris Gayle, their captain, while, according to the playing conditions, the team was penalised with a 0.05 reduction in their net run-rate.

Knight Riders won the game by 22 runs.

September 9

Imran Tahir re-joins Guyana Amazon Warriors

Imran Tahir will re-join the Guyana Amazon Warriors in the CPL after one of their premier bowlers, Shadab Khan, had to cut his stay short. A press release from the tournament on Monday said the Pakistan legspinner had to return home "due to domestic commitments".

Tahir played for the Amazon Warriors in 2018 where he claimed 16 wickets at 17.75 as the team made it to the final. The 40-year old South African retired from international cricket after the World Cup but continues to be a force in franchise T20s, having picked up 19 wickets in 13 matches for Surrey in the Vitality Blast last month.

The Amazon Warriors added another leggie to their ranks with Afghanistan's Qais Ahmad replacing USA's Saurabh Netravalkar, who is unavailable due to international commitments.

September 7

Injured Dwayne Bravo ruled out for the season

Dwayne Bravo's finger injury has ruled him out of the entire CPL 2019. Bravo, part of the Trinbago Knight Riders squad, was initially ruled out for "a significant part" of the tournament, and the franchise decided to appoint Kieron Pollard as the captain before the season got underway.

However, while initially expected to play some part at a later stage, Bravo confirmed that the injury was severe enough to rule him out of the tournament altogether.

"The next aim for me is rehab to try to get my fingers moving again, it is going to be a long process...I will back playing competitive cricket in about two months' time," Bravo was quoted as saying by the Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.

Pollard, who like Bravo is from Trinidad and Tobago, will be turning out for his home franchise for the first time in the CPL. Trinbago have made a solid start to this edition, winning their first two matches.

Barbados Tridents bring in Duminy and Lalor for Wahab and Imad Wasim

Former South Africa batsman JP Duminy and Australian fast bowler Josh Lalor are set to join Barbados Tridents for the 2019 CPL season. The pair will replace Pakistan's Wahab Riaz and Imad Wasim, who had to leave for international commitments.

Duminy, a veteran of over 300 international matches across formats, will be making his first foray into the CPL, having previously played in T20 leagues in India, Pakistan, England and South Africa.

Lalor, a 31-year-old left-arm seamer, was one of Brisbane Heat's standout players in the 2018-19 Big Bash League, claiming a hat-trick against Perth Scorchers and a five-for against Sydney Sixers.

Lalor has an experience of 37 T20s for 42 wickets with an economy rate of 7.92.

Tridents will open their season against Guyana Amazon Warriors on September 9.

Malik confirms no fracture after taking Hetmyer shot in the hand

Guyana Amazon Warriors captain Shoaib Malik has confirmed he does not have a fracture on his hand after being struck by a Shimron Hetmyer shot at the non-stirker's end on Thursday. He was struck during the 11th over of Guyana's innings against St Lucia Zouks, but went on to bat and eventually be dismissed in the 16th over. Malik tweeted that he had undergone a scan and was healing, and that the 13-run win against the Zouks would "help heal quicker".

Just had a scan and Alhumdulilah it's not a fracture. The win will help heal quicker! Super well played boys, was good to see everyone stepping up like Warriors do. Congrats @chrisgreen_93 on the MOM. On to the next game! @GYAmazonWarrior #CPL19 #GAWvSLZ

— Shoaib Malik (@realshoaibmalik) September 6, 2019

St Kitts and Nevis Patriots penalised for slow over rate

St Kitts and Nevis Patriots have been penalised for a slow over rate after their 11-run loss to Trinbago Knight Riders in the opening game of this year's CPL. A media release said the "applicable monetary fine" was imposed on the captain, Carlos Brathwaite, and the team was penalised with a 0.05 reduction in their net run rate. Patriots were charged with a breach of Article 2.5 of the CPL Code of Conduct as they were one over down. The charge was laid by match officials against Brathwaite, who accepted it.

Pollard replaces injured Bravo as Trinbago Knight Riders captain

Kieron Pollard will take over as captain of the Trinbago Knight Riders after Dwayne Bravo suffered a finger injury that could rule him out for a significant part of the upcoming Caribbean Premier League. Pollard had been picked as Trinbago's marquee pick is set to represent his home franchise for the first time in the tournament.

"It's a very unfortunate injury, and Dwayne Bravo will be greatly missed," Venky Mysore, director of Trinbago franchise, said. "However, we are fortunate to have someone of the calibre of Kieron Pollard to take over the reins from Bravo. His leadership abilities are well proven and, like Bravo, will bring a very aggressive style as captain in TKR's quest for a third championship in a row."

Trinbago will begin their campaign in the opening match of the tournament, against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in Port of Spain on September 4.

Taufel to train CPL match officials

Simon Taufel, the retired Australian umpire, has joined the CPL match officials team in a dual role. He will be one of the travelling match referees during the tournament, and also serve as umpire trainer and assessor.

"Simon's resume speaks for itself, and we are happy that he will be sharing his vast experience and knowledge in support of our tournament umpires," CPL tournament operations director Michael Hall said. "Since June, in collaboration with Peter Nero, Cricket West Indies (CWI) Umpire Trainer and Assessor, he has been conducting remote training sessions with all CPL match officials, and this will culminate in a one-day seminar and workshop in Trinidad on September 3rd."

Taufel said he had "no hesitation" in accepting the assignment. "Quite apart from having always enjoyed being in the Caribbean, the opportunity to support the tournament by developing reporting processes and systems which will provide more robust feedback on the performance of all the umpires in the tournament was something which definitely appealed to me."

Jerome Taylor re-signs with Jamaica

Jamaica Tallawahs have roped in fast bowler Jerome Taylor as a replacement for Pakistani seam-bowling allrounder Ahmad Butt, who will be unavailable for the entire CPL 2019 because of domestic commitments. Taylor was more recently part of the Vitality Blast in England, taking 14 wickets in 13 games at an economy rate of 9.46 for Somerset. Taylor has also played for Jamaica in the CPL before, picking up 22 wickets in 21 matches at an economy rate of 7.93.

Jamaica will kickstart their CPL campaign against defending champions Trinbago Knight Riders on September 6 at the Queen's Park Oval.

August 30

West Indies' Lendl Simmons will replace New Zealand opener Colin Munro for the first three matches for Trinbago Knight Riders. Munro will be in Sri Lanka for the upcoming T20Is starting September 1 and Simmons will fill in for the CPL matches on September 4, 6 and 8.

This will be Simmons' fifth franchise in the CPL, having appeared for Guyana Amazon Warriors, St Lucia Zouks, St Kitts & Nevis Patriots and Jamaica Tallawahs, and the first time for his home franchise in Trinidad.

For the Patriots, Alzarri Joseph will replace Sri Lanka quick Isuru Udana, who will be unavailable for the entire CPL due to international commitments. Joseph has represented the Patriots since 2016 and is returning to competitive cricket since the arm injury he picked up during the IPL in April.

"It is always frustrating to lose players so close to the start of a tournament but in Alzarri we have a local player who is world-class and has a track record of success," Patriots director of cricket Robin Singh said. "As a very promising young fast bowler it is exciting to have Alzarri with us. We feel that the Patriots have a very strong squad this year and we are confident of making the knockout stages and pushing for our first title."

August 27

The Zouks announced a number of changes to their squad with Lasith Malinga to be replaced by Krishmar Santokie for the first two games and by Colin de Grandhomme for the remainder of the tournament.

Thisara Perera will miss the first two matches, to be replaced by Afghanistan's Najibullah Zadran whereas Niroshan Dickwella will miss the entire tournament to be replaced by Cameron Delport for the first two games and by Hardus Viljoen for the remaining matches.

South Africa's Beuran Hendricks is also no longer available due to international commitments and his place will be taken by Dominican allrounder Kavem Hodge.

August 20

For Tallawahs, Jamaica batsman Kennar Lewis will replace USA's Xavier Marshall who will be unavailable until September 14, also due to international commitments. Marshall was drafted as Tallawahs' ICC Americas player but draft rules allow for him to be replaced by a Caribbean or an overseas player.

Lewis will join Chris Gayle and Andre Russell at Tallawahs who will play their first game on September 6 against Knight Riders.

Casting light on a great business model for squash
By JAMES ROBERTS – Squash Mad Roving Reporter

After a great night’s sleep, my friend Etienne takes me by car to revisit the club where I played as an exchange student at the Faculte de Lettres at Angers University, Squash du Lac de Maine. This club, situated reasonably close to the campus where I was based, had not long opened its doors back in 1985-86 when I was there, but these days is a thriving hub of squash activity.

I am greeted by the owner, Philippe Pouffer, who admitted that he was probably coaching squash at the club back when I was first there. We will be joined later by his son Florian, who has recently entered the family business as co-owner.

As I know my way around the club, I have a quick scout about and am once again in awe of the first feature of this club that I have always admired – the amount of natural light that comes into the building. In fact, Philippe proudly boasts that one of the five courts is the only one in France that does not require any artificial lighting, during daylight hours at least.

We chat about the business model and general philosophy behind the running of this successful club, which boasts over 750 individual players that come through its doors. These are mostly casual leisure players, but at least 100 of them have also taken out full memberships.

Philippe is a true believer in catering for the leisure player through arranging fun internal competitions, social events and doing the maximum to encourage people to play different opponents. Every Friday, there is a team match, with a more serious individual competition every month. These are always followed by a social gathering in the bar, or a trip into town for a meal at the club’s partner restaurant. There is also a club ranking system, with challenge matches being used to change positions.

In addition, Philippe takes the stress out of arranging matches by matching opponents. All a player has to do is put their name down for a court and Philippe will find an opponent for them to play. This is by far the most common method by which matches are arranged at the club. This is also a good way of players getting to know each other, of playing opponents at different levels and most importantly of allowing players’ games to develop and strengthen.

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Once we are joined by Florian, we move on to discuss World Squash Day, which both father and son admit to not having been aware of up until now. I encourage them to consider staging an event on Saturday 12th October.

Finally, we agree to consider an exchange event for next year, with me bringing a team of English players over and Philippe and Florian then matching us with a Lac de Maine team. Perhaps we could organise this during the 2020 French Open, so we could combine it with a visit to Nantes to watch the action?

Etienne and I then nip back over to Les Ponts-de-Cé to the south of the city where he lives, to collect his son Romain. After a good lunch, we head into Angers city centre to revisit some of the main sights. If you have not been, it really is worth a visit.

Like Nantes, there is a fine Chateau, which is a bit older than the one at Nantes, although it was expanded to its current size around the same period that the Nantes Chateau was built. It is certainly bigger than the one in Nantes, but I will let you be the judge of whether bigger is better …

Tomorrow (now today, Friday), I return to Nantes, firstly to watch the inaugural Amateur French Open at La Maison du Squash, before finally linking up with the Lings crew for a much-needed hit at D’Sport and Co. I then will meet up with the Squash Travel Tour group at the Chateau to watch the semi-finals.

À demain …

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Pictures by JAMES ROBERTS

Wasps scrum-half Dan Robson says being diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis just five months before the Rugby World Cup was a "freak thing".

The 27-year-old, who has won two international caps, was ruled out for three months in April and missed out on England's 31-man squad for Japan.

"Something like that is not just really an injury," Robson told BBC Sport.

"It is to do with your health as well so it makes you think a lot more. It was very difficult."

Robson made his England debut during this year's Six Nations, appearing from the bench in the games against France and Italy - scoring a try in the latter match.

He was then withdrawn from the squad to face Scotland on 16 March after the discovery of blood clots, which Wasps said "arose spontaneously" in the week before the game.

"I had to go through a lot more different stages and make sure my health was the main priority," Robson, who is now off medication and back in full training, added.

"It was tough, and being in the middle of the Six Nations was not ideal timing.

"I have had all the blood tests done and sat down for hours on end trying to think of what could have made it occur.

"We came to the conclusion that it was one of those freak things - I probably got a knock and had a little bleed.

"It might have been lurking there for a little bit. It was frustrating and I'm glad we found it when we did."

Robson 'told to be ready'

England coach Eddie Jones named Robson in a training squad for a camp in London at the end of June, but the Wasps man was not included in the 38-man squad for a training camp in Italy the following month or the final travelling party for the Far East.

"It is a World Cup and I want to be there," Robson said. "It is not something I have hidden.

"You are always frustrated [at missing out on a squad] as you want to be playing for England."

Robson has been named co-captain of Wasps for the start of the domestic campaign while regular skipper Joe Launchbury is away on duty with England in Japan.

However, with Leicester's Ben Youngs and and Gloucester's Willi Heinz the only scrum-halves in the England squad, Robson could yet be handed a late call-up to the if injury or illness arises.

"That's all I have been told - to be ready," he added.

"Things happen and it is a long tournament. The training we are doing at Wasps is definitely going to keep me in shape."

The English domestic season kicks off on Friday, 20 September, with the Premiership Rugby Cup, followed on Friday, 18 October, with the start of the Gallagher Premiership Rugby campaign.