SHANE HURNDELL Shelly Te Uki's achilles injury and the unavailability of Rachael Monks has forced Hastings to withdraw from the national women's B grade team squash final which begins in Auckland tomorrow. "It was always going to be a race against time with my injury which I didn't win and whenRachael withdrew with work commitments we decided to pull out," said Te Uki. The withdrawal means Kim O'Shaughnessy, who was to play for Hastings as a loan player from the Hawke's Bay club, will miss the opportunity to collect a fifth consecutive national title after winning C, D, E and F grade titles during the previous four years. Five teams from O'Shaughnessy's Onekawa-based club will carry the Bay's hopes at various national teams finals which start tomorrow and finish on Saturday. Her 13-year-old son Liam is a member of the club's C grade men's team which will play in Tauranga alongside their club's C grade women's team. Coach of the C grade women's team, Wayne Kempton, will be aiming for his fifth consecutive national teams title. His former co-coach Jeff Silvester will chase a third national title with the club's E grade men's team in Christchurch. Should he achieve his goal it will be a mighty feat as his team is travelling south with no reserves following the withdrawal of Napier Boys' High School's headboy Josh Kempton (Wayne's son) who has exams this week. The Hawke's Bay club's F grade men's and women's teams will play at their respective Ohakune-hosted nationals. Three other teams from the Squash Eastern region, Surf City's B grade men from Gisborne and Surf City's D grade men's and women's teams will also play at national teams finals this week.
