Irish hope to halt decline in Denmark

THE IRISH will be hoping to rebuild their somewhat tarnished reputations at this week's European Squash Championships after a couple of disappointing years.

Regular semi-finalists through the 1970s and 1980s, the Irish women must now concentrate on winning promotion back to the competition's main group. Their cause has been aided by the draw for the first round, which has been kind to them.

The team, managed by Elvy D'Costa and led by Irish champion Aisling McArdle, should prove too strong for Hungary and Wales today. Austria and Belgium should present tougher tests tomorrow. However, it would be a major disappointment if the team, completed by Madeline Perry, Louise Finnegan and Anna McGeever, fails to earn a crack at promotion in the play-offs.

In the men's event, there is also a bit of catching up to do. Derek Ryan and his team mates are hoping to re-establish their top-eight status after some embarrassing slip-ups in recent years.

Portugal and Iceland provide what look, on paper, to be little more than warm ups for the team which will, admittedly, be slightly handicapped by the absence of Stevie Richardson on the opening day.

Richardson is unable to travel to Denmark until this evening due to work commitments, but Irish manager John McKay feels that the other three men in the squad, Maurice and Chris Collins and Patrick Foster, should cope comfortably with the opening day's challenges.

McKay sees this week as a stepping stone to what he feels might be a much brighter future in the men's game.

Ireland must now beat the Belgians who, with Stefan Casteleyn at number one, will be no push-overs. Nevertheless, there appears to be growing confidence within the team that they can halt what has been a fairly steady decline.