HUDDERSFIELD siblings Piers and Hannah Boden picked up titles at the inaugural Yorkshire Open Racketlon Championships in Batley.

Hannah is one of the rising stars of English Racketlon, but that is all irrelevant when you are seeded No1 in a tournament organised by your parents!

The 13-year-old, however, coped with the pressure to deliver a faultless tournament.

Facing second seed Angela Crossley, a fierce competitor and accomplished tennis coach, she was able to extend a strong enough lead through the table tennis and badminton to ensure a narrow defeat in the squash wouldn’t stop her taking the Ladies A title.

The Men’s B had some of the tightest matches of the tournament, with three ties won by five points or fewer.

Ross Frisby tenaciously saw off James Pope by two points, before himself losing a semi-final by five points to Chris Johns from Teesside.

Johns was joined in the final by Piers Boden who, like his sister, was seeded.

Piers, 15, had eased through his first two matches, seeing off Chris Poole in the semi-finals, but Johns was highly unlikely to prove an easy opponent, particularly after his excellent defeat of No1 seed Stephen Dow in the first round.

Piers Boden of Huddersfield (right) wins Yorkshire Open Racketlon championships.
Piers Boden of Huddersfield (right) wins Yorkshire Open Racketlon championships.

After each handed out a 21-2 thrashing over the first two sports (Johns in the table tennis, Boden in the badminton), the match came down to the squash and tennis.

Piers edged the squash (21-15) and was able to stay close enough to Johns in the tennis to reach the finishing line before his opponent and take the title by three points.

Overall, it was a tremendous event with 59 players – testament to the hard work put in by organiser Malcolm Boden and his wife Lynn.

It lays a tremendous base for continuing to develop Racketlon in the north, and it’s hoped the Yorkshire Open will expand to a two-day event in future, including a doubles tournament.

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