Eurovision Night - Saturday 23rd May

Entertainment - Friday 24th April

Quiz!

Hosted by Harvey our professional quiz master.

This is the final quiz until the Autumn so not to be missed.
Bring a team or just turn up and join one on the night.
£4 includes a bowl of something tasty :-)

2015 Finals Night

Pictures from the 2015 Finals Night are available here.
The evening included a dip into the gameball bucket that gave Neil Love the win.
There is also a write-up of the evening on our facebook page.

The BMI Cup – 24th May 2014; Weigh-In 2.30pm

Just as you thought the season was over, along comes the unofficial Grange Squash season-closing tournament – the BMI Cup.

Fed up losing to fit and trim youngsters?

Sure you’d win if it was an even playing field?

Or are you the best pound for pound squash player at the club?

Devised in a spark of genius (at the club bar) in 2011, the BMI Cup now enters its fourth year.

Played in one afternoon on the Saturday 24th May from 2.30pm, this tournament is followed by dinner and drinks in the Longroom from 7:30pm till late.

So how does it work?

Players are handicapped according to their age and Body-Mass Index (yes, that’s why it’s the BMI Cup!) with suitable penalties for those from higher teams. Players are placed in pools and play each other player in the pool. Winners of the pools will play for the trophy and top sartorial prize.

Past winners include Pete Young and Colin Williamson.

Dinner afterwards will be in the Longroom where you are welcome to eat and drink to put back on the pounds you lost on the court. The cost of the day is just £5, thanks to our sponsors Avista (also known as Neil Love), and we’d ask you to arrange your own drinks. This year, all entrance money will be donated to the squash club funds looking to buy warm up bikes for beside the new courts.

What better way to end the season?

To enter, please drop an email to Mike at mike.douglas@kidmore.co.uk.

See you at 2.30pm on Saturday 24th May.

Please note that Grange Time does not apply and all late players will benefit from a further point deducted from their handicap !

SQUASH DINNER

The list for the Squash Dinner on Saturday 26th is filling up nicely, please put your name down behind the bar where tickets are available.

All prizes and trophies will be presented on the night.

£20 for dinner and 1/2 bottle of wine, juniors please send me an email if you're coming along, very special prices for you.

FINALS NIGHT

Here are the details of the finals night this Friday 4th from 7:00pm.

It WILL be busy on the balcony - first come first served for prime viewing spots unless you volunteer to referee a match:

7:00
Juniors Final - Andrew Boyd v Angus MacPherson
Ladies Plate - Karen Kennedy v Dawn McBrayne
Open Plate - Dougie Brown v Pete Cockburn

Followed immediately by
Jim Moore - Roger Hamilton v Jules Lutte
Racketball - Andrew Beames v Mike Gore

7:45
Ladies Final - Donna Cruikshank v Aoife Kerrin (referee allocated)

8:30
Open Final - Matthew Bain v Allan Hamer

9:30 (ish)
Promotional drink offer in the bar and complimentary snacks.

Acoustic music set from Harvey and Jack.

March Gameball draw (I know, it's late).


If you would like to referee a game, please ping me an email and I'll be in touch.

Bill

Quiz Night on Friday

Don't forget there is an opportunity to flex your muscles and your memory tonight.
Club Night starts at 19:00, then there is a Quiz Night at 20:30.
£4 entry, which includes a bowl of something tasty created by Ali.
Bring a team of 6 or come as individuals and join a team.
This is not a serious quiz night so all are welcome (including non members)

Up-coming social events

New events have been added to the Grange Calendar.
Take a look!
You can add it to your own calendar app by linking to: squashcalendar1@gmail.com
OR
view the calendar via the Grange Squash website: http://www.grangesquash.co.uk/events.html

This is a quick summary:

15th November 
Quiz Night

27th December Table Tennis evening

3rd JanuaryQuiz Night

25th JanuaryBurns supper and ceilidh

Club Closures Over the festive period the club will be closed as follows
24th December - from 1pm
25th December
26th December
31st December
1st January
2nd January - club open but bar closed

Squash Calendar

Note that the public calendar

squashcalendar1@gmail.com

now contains all the upcoming Grange Squash events, including all the Men's and Women's team fixtures.

Import it into your own calendar view to keep up to date with Grange events
or nip over to

http://grangesquash.co.uk/events.html

October Ball

Hi All,

Just a wee reminder of the Ball, always a good night and great value:

Sat 26th October
£55 for welcome drink, 3 course meal, 1/2 bottle wine per person, coffee, ceilidh and disco.
Tables of 12 (cannot be changed)
Apex International, Grass market (same venue as last year).

Sign up at the bar or email Alastair Ross

Season Opening Night

Hi All,

This Friday is the season opening night for the squash club, Karen Kennedy has organised a fun and friendly tournament for ALL abilities, Ali Ross has the bar music in the can, David grieve is cooking up a storm and there will be a drinks promotion.

So it has to be the Grange club this Friday 4th October.

If you want to participate in the competition please be at the club for 7:30 so Karen can do her stuff, play will commence as soon as possible after that.

If you want to heckle from the balcony (it's my favourite sport) with a drink in hand, feel free. Or just lounge around in the bar waiting for the food and enjoying the banter.

We are expecting some of our senior juniors to be competing, and hope to see the Mums and Dads enjoying some time out.

As always the food is free for squash members who have paid their £5 competitions fee, and for the gameball entrants. A nominal charge for everyone else that comes along and samples the grub means - EVERYONE IS WELCOME.

See you all this Friday.

Bill.

Club championships finals night

Club championships well attended with top squash in junior cup, both plates, handicap & cup finals. Angus Macpherson bt Andrew Boyd in the juniors, Dawn MacBrayne wins the ladies plate 3-0, Colin Williamson wins the plate 3-1, Aoife Kerrin wins the ladies championship 3-2 overCatherine John and Will Kerr retains his club champ title 3-0 over Stuart Moffat. MLOTY and Jim More to be decided at a later date.

Angus MacPherson(Junior cup winner) & Andrew Boyd(junior R-up)

Back: Stuart Moffatt(Open R-up), Rocco Pannozzo(Over 50's H'cap), Alan Stokes(Open Plate R-up) & Peter Roberts(Jim More H'cap finalist), Colin Williamson(Open Plate winner)
Front: Dawn MacBrayne(Ladies plate), Caroline Burns(Ladies Plate R-up), Aoife Kerring(Ladies champion), Catherine John(Ladies R-up), Will Kerr(Open club champion)

White Pigeon - Don't get too close to the wall

A mish-mash of news, whimsy and history lesson

Tim & the gang play ping pong on the 2 tables in The Long Room
 

In another piece of seasonal whimsy, I was talking to a dog-walker on the Drylaw cycle path and he was very interested in the logo on my tree-house. I had "recycled" the tin from the squash court when Bill Marshall had re-floored the squash courts 4 years ago and it was lying in a skip.
In an excellent bit of product placement, if I say so myself, the Stag and "Grange Squash" tin was now on my treehouse, free advertising for the club to the cyclists and walkers on the Davidson Mains to Craigleith cycle path.
   The reason for the interest from the dog-walker was that he worked for The Dalmore whiskey brand and their logo is also a stag, with the following story behind it.
   Note that their stag is a 12-point antlered one whereas ours is 14 points and somewhat less fearsome, in keeping with the MacKenzie history of their logo.

   (As an aside, do not confuse with another distillery: Glenfiddich is anglicised from The Valley of the Deer and they have an 8-point stage logo.) A mature red deer stag can have up to 16 points so the Grange logo is anatomically correct.

For those not familiar with the origin of The Grange Club name and logo, the club originally did reside in the Grange area of Edinburgh, not far from the current Carlton Cricket Club, from 1832-36.
The club outgrew this ground and moved to a field near Grove St after 4 years.
    In 1863 the club became of-no-fixed-abode and then resided at Fettes college grounds from 1864-70. It finally settled in Inverleith Farm(now Portgower Place-Raeburn Place) in 1870 and built a pavilion and pitch for £700. In 1894, the present pavilion was constructed for £1400.
(Summarised from the cricket club's excellent 175-anniversary brochure. Click here.

What is the point of all this? That the 3 founders can have little imagined when they founded the club 180 years ago that the club would eventually see sports such as tennis, squash, hockey, lacrosse, archery, ping-pong, softball, volleyball, touch rugby, soccer and no doubt a few others on it's hallowed turf!
    Hopefully our readers enjoy the somewhat educational trip down memory lane at this time of year when outdoor sporting activities are curtailed.

Sad news of a fallen teammate... (Fri, Dec 7)

It is with regret that I post the news of the untimely death of Gavin Fulton. I won't write too much here, except to say Gavin was taken to hospital on Fri night and unfortunately he didn't make it. He leaves behind his wife Jill and 2 young daughters who are also members of the club. My condolences go to them. Gavin was a great guy to be around, always smiling and recounting funny stories from the squash courts of Agilent and Grange. This picture taken after he won a final in the Grange Open recently is the only image I ever have of Gavin - always smiling! May he rest in peace.

Funeral is 2pm Tue Dec 18  at Warriston, function at Grange pavilion afterwards.
(His widow Jill would be happy for all his clubmates and those from other clubs to attend.)

Initial The Scotsman Report

TV report after the court case

Another report

Full Page tribute in Evening News

Deadline News PA report

List of people with message of condolences (apologies for omissions):
------------
Ross Anderson - The Dean SC
Matthew Hunter

Ken Steele - ESC
David Coutts
Mark ~Adderley

Bill Brown - Colinton Castle SC
Robin Nisbet - Bank of Scotland SC

David Legge - Dunbar SC

Claire Gray - ESSA/HWU

Richard McIntosh - Watsonians SC

Peter O'Hara - Newlands
Andrew McSherry - Whitecraigs

Agilent
--
Iain Gourlay
Charlie Patrick
Jim Watson
Gordon Hunter
Alec Allan
Alan Murray

Grange SC
--
Peter Cockburn (Club Captain)
Neil Christison (Chairman, The Grange Club)
Gordon Tolland (Secretary, The Grange Club)
Bill Marshall(Club President)
Ali Ross (Vice President)
Christy Looby (Tournament Sec)
Will Kerr (Club champ)
Brian Sloan
Patrick Langley
Stuart Moffatt
Dougie Brown
Alan Stokes
Mike Douglas
Allan Wallace
Allan Hamer
Gordon Sloan 

November GameBall Draw (Fri Nov 16)

The 2nd Squash Club Gameball draw was held immediately after the O'Brien Bucket final, Colin Williamson picking out lucky number 2 - Derek Addison. Derek was on hand to celebrate his win of £100 (cheque is in the post Derek) and Colin actually smiled - We have proof on the Squash Club website!

Other than that club night continued with friendly squash and banter, the 4th team returned home to have their post-match relaxation therapy (pizza and beer) in the committee room and squash members Maggie Harrison and Norman Clements were married in the Grange club and hosted their wedding reception. Just another Friday at the Grange!

Bill.

P.S - Has anyone lost some plastic clothes pegs?

Lookalikes of the Grange: Season III

One is a DJ, comedian and socialite...

and the other is Danny Baker

October GameBall Draw (Fri, Oct19)

Rebecca our independent adjudicator !

Bill Marshall (Ball28) receives the cash jackpot from David Grieve
No longer Bill-Nil!

Let us know if you want to be part of the excitement. 22 members already are!

Planning permission granted (Aug 20, 2012)

Planning Report link to PDF

Dates for your Diary

                            When                                Where                                                    
Rounders              Fri Aug 24 6:45pm      The far corner of the ground (to avoid broken windows ;-)

Abercorn Open                  Sep 21-23        Abercorn Squash Club Info & Entry Form here

Grange Open Racketball   Sat, Oct 13      Squash courts 1-3

Grange Open                     Sat/Sun Nov 24/25    

See our calendar for these & all other events coming up at the club in the season ahead.