Palmer Bows Out With Double Commonwealth Games Gold For Australia by Howard Harding August 3, 2014
- A fairy-tale climax to David Palmer's comeback appearance in the 2014
Commonwealth Games in Scotland saw the illustrious Australian veteran
win two gold medals on the final day of Squash action at the Scotstoun
Sports Campus in Glasgow.
The 38-year-old former
world number one and world champion retired from the international
circuit three years ago. But, despite having a then record six Games
medals to his credit over four events since 1998, Palmer was looking
for a first ever gold.
Minutes after winning
gold in the mixed doubles final with Rachael Grinham on the spectacular
all-glass showcourt surrounded by a capacity finals day crowd in excess
of 2,000, Palmer was back on the court with world No20 Cameron Pilley
to do battle with English pair Adrian Grant and Nick Matthew, the
defending champions eager to maintain England's 16-year grip on the
men's doubles gold medal.
Grinham & Palmer
beat England's Alison Waters & Peter Barker 11-8, 11-10 - then
recovered from losing the first game in the men's final to beat Matthew
& Grant, from 1-4 down in the decider, 10-11, 11-7, 11-9 in a
mighty 80 minutes.
The second triumph takes Palmer's total Games medal haul to eight - a new record.
"I think that's it
now," said Palmer when asked if he might compete in the 2018 Games in
his homeland. "I hope I will be at the Gold Coast Games - not as
player, but watching!
"I've achieved what I wanted to - it's a dream come true.
"Before we arrived, I
thought I had a better chance in the mixed with Rachael as we read each
other's games well and her variation and style suits my game,"
explained US-based Palmer.
"The men's was always
going to be tough as England have dominated the event since the
beginning and Nick and Adrian are so strong - we knew it would be a
huge effort to beat them.
"We were trying to
hang in there in the third game, and I dropped off the pace a bit - but
Pilley really stepped up and hit some incredible shots.
"It was good that we
got off 2/0 in the mixed - especially as they really got off to a good
start in the second and were really focussed.
"It was better to keep
going," said Palmer when asked about having to play the two matches
back-to-back. "I had a quick shower after the first match to freshen up.
"I knew the schedule
would be tough but I didn't play the singles - I enjoyed the first week
watching the matches - Nick and James's singles final was a great match.
"It probably was the toughest day of my life - especially at 38 - but in the end I got over the line.
"This is great for me
personally - but I hope it will also help Squash Australia. Winning two
golds should help the funding," concluded the double gold medallist.
Matthew, the world
No2, said after the match: "I thought the good start in the final game
was going to carry us through but you can second-guess every shot in
doubles.
"We did ourselves proud, we put our game plan into practice - but they pulled off two great shots to win.
"It's been amazing
here right from the word go. It's the best Team England I've ever been
part of - the spirit of the team has been fantastic. The fact that I
carried the flag at the Opening Ceremony still gives me goose-bumps -
it was a pity not to end on a high. Next week will probably be a bit of
a comedown.
"I think the doubles came out well - with a lot more credit than it had in Delhi. Doubles is now on a high after that."
Team-mate Grant added:
"Credit where it's due to the Australians, they fought hard and we
fought hard - that's what the crowd wanted to see. Everyone was excited
to see the doubles."
After her gold medal
success in the mixed final - a win which takes her all-time medal tally
to seven - Grinham said: "Doubles is so different - you can't relax for
a minute or it'll get away from you really quickly.
"I think I played really well considering. They put us under a lot of pressure.
"David and I have
played together so much - we've even won British Opens together! We're
a bit older than the others - but to finally get this gold together is
quite special for us," added the 37-year-old Queenslander.
Barker and Waters led
9-5 in the second game of the mixed final and were unable to convert
three game-balls. "We are disappointed to not convert that lead in the
second game," said Londoner Barker. "We played well throughout but in
the first game they just hit some unbelievable winners.
"We've got no
complaints. I actually think we played the best we've played all week
but they were just better. I felt it was a really good final - how
doubles should be played!"
Waters added: "The
Games have been absolutely brilliant, we have had a lot of success as
Team England and I have loved playing here."
Cameron Pilley won a
second medal of the day in the mixed doubles bronze medal play-off
earlier. He and Kasey Brown beat New Zealand duo Joelle King &
Martin Knight 8-11, 11-9, 11-8 in a repeat of the 2010 final.
"We won from a game down last time," said Brown. "I really wanted to come away with a medal here."
Pilley added: "We were confident going into the second. I am so happy."
The other bronze match
saw England pair Daryl Selby & James Willstrop defeat home hopes
Alan Clyne & Harry Leitch 11-9, 11-7. It was a bitter blow for the
Scots - massively supported by the vociferous crowd - who also finished
in fourth place in Delhi.
"We are absolutely gutted," said Leitch. "We came here for a medal."
A jubilant Selby, now
with a first Commonwealth Games medal to his credit, said: "It's the
biggest two weeks of my career - it's what I wanted, a Commonwealth
Games medal. This is our Olympics.
"It's a pleasure to
share it with James - we've both put in a lot of hard work for this. We
picked ourselves up from yesterday when we were punished."
RESULTS: Commonwealth Games Squash, Glasgow, Scotland
Men's Doubles final: [2] David Palmer & Cameron Pilley (AUS) bt [1] Adrian Grant & Nick Matthew (ENG) 10-11, 11-7, 11-9 (80m) Bronze medal play-off: [3] Daryl Selby & James Willstrop (ENG) bt [4] Alan Clyne & Harry Leitch (SCO) 11-9, 11-7 (79m)
Mixed Doubles final: [3] Rachael Grinham & David Palmer (AUS) bt [4] Alison Waters & Peter Barker (ENG) 11-8, 11-10 (48m) Bronze medal play-off: [1] Kasey Brown & Cameron Pilley (AUS) bt [2] Joelle King & Martin Knight (NZL) 8-11, 11-9, 11-8 (78m)
