masters icc 2026 results - super shropshire chop it up!
Shropshire proved themselves to be the masters of Masters Intercounty Racketball by claiming all three age groups at Berkhamsted this year!
They took the O40, O50 and O60 titles in an unprecedented clean sweep of categories. Herts (40s), Warwickshire (50s) and Devon (60s) finish runners up.
Massive congratulations to the Shrops lads, a great bunch and very ably Captained / Managed / Herded / Mothered by Chris Wase!
Thanks to all who took part this weekend, hope you had a great time at that lovely club. A huge thanks to John Shaw and his crew for hosting the event so well, and to Ant Stefanellifor his hard work running it.
And of course, to Karakal UK for their sponsorship of the balls and the UK Racketball Series!
We have some great write ups for the O50 final (thanks Chris Port of Warks) and O60 final (thanks Nick Billington of Shrops,) check them out below.
All pictures of the event and the prize giving can be found on our UK Racketball Facebook page here:
Intercounty Masters Weekend Images
They took the O40, O50 and O60 titles in an unprecedented clean sweep of categories. Herts (40s), Warwickshire (50s) and Devon (60s) finish runners up.
Massive congratulations to the Shrops lads, a great bunch and very ably Captained / Managed / Herded / Mothered by Chris Wase!
Thanks to all who took part this weekend, hope you had a great time at that lovely club. A huge thanks to John Shaw and his crew for hosting the event so well, and to Ant Stefanellifor his hard work running it.
And of course, to Karakal UK for their sponsorship of the balls and the UK Racketball Series!
We have some great write ups for the O50 final (thanks Chris Port of Warks) and O60 final (thanks Nick Billington of Shrops,) check them out below.
All pictures of the event and the prize giving can be found on our UK Racketball Facebook page here:
Intercounty Masters Weekend Images
O50s Write Up
Defending champions Shropshire took on first time finalists Warwickshire on Sunday morning. Warwickshire were unfortunately without their normal number 1, Andy Murray, who had a prior work commitment; a 12-0 whitewash was potentially on the cards. When 3rd string Jason Russell made light work of a slightly worse for wear Paul Bayliss (never go drinking with Murray), and when 2nd string Chris Wase won the first game 11-1 against debutant Ian Russell (no relation to Jason!), it looked like it was going to be all over quickly.
Russell, however, had other ideas and cleverly slowed the pace down in the second game. He started to frustrate the fluid Wase and took the game to level the match 1-1. Wase came back strongly though and managed to see the match out with a harder than planned 3-1 win.
The number 1 string match looked intriguing on paper. Serial UK racketball event winner Chris Morris took on former National masters squash champion and Irish International Nick Staunton. Nick does not play much racketball and had to borrow a racket; it is fair to say he looked a bit "under the weather" after a Saturday spent drinking wine and lager! Morris looked strong in the first game, winning it 11-7, but there were signs of the class that Staunton possesses. He started to find his range in the second with great shots and deception, taking it to level.
This form continued into the third game and Staunton edged a close one to lead 2-1. Morris looked to be struggling in the 4th with his movement but managed to sneak it against a tiring opponent; he indicated to the marker that his hamstring was painful but was fine to carry on. However, after a quick 5-0 and then 8-1 lead in the 5th to Staunton, it was clear that Morris was unable to move well to the front. The match soon ended with a 3-2 victory to Warwickshire.
In the doubles, the wily old Shropshire pairing of Merv Hughes and John Armitage took on Warwickshire captain Chris Port and first time doubles player Ian Russell. Russell’s deft touches and boasts combined with Port’s power hitting proved too much for the Shropshire pairing in the first two games as they raced to a 2-0 lead. The match looked over at 6-0 to Warwickshire in the 3rd game, but 7 points in a row saw Shropshire take a slender lead. Despite Warwickshire then taking a 10-7 match ball lead, the game continued until a nicely timed boast from Port saw the game out 14-12 and a 3-0 victory.
In the end, Shropshire secured an 8-7 win to retain their title with a much closer scoreline than most had predicted. Well done to all involved and congratulations to Shropshire. If Warwickshire can get their full team out next year and everyone fit, who knows what might happen....
Russell, however, had other ideas and cleverly slowed the pace down in the second game. He started to frustrate the fluid Wase and took the game to level the match 1-1. Wase came back strongly though and managed to see the match out with a harder than planned 3-1 win.
The number 1 string match looked intriguing on paper. Serial UK racketball event winner Chris Morris took on former National masters squash champion and Irish International Nick Staunton. Nick does not play much racketball and had to borrow a racket; it is fair to say he looked a bit "under the weather" after a Saturday spent drinking wine and lager! Morris looked strong in the first game, winning it 11-7, but there were signs of the class that Staunton possesses. He started to find his range in the second with great shots and deception, taking it to level.
This form continued into the third game and Staunton edged a close one to lead 2-1. Morris looked to be struggling in the 4th with his movement but managed to sneak it against a tiring opponent; he indicated to the marker that his hamstring was painful but was fine to carry on. However, after a quick 5-0 and then 8-1 lead in the 5th to Staunton, it was clear that Morris was unable to move well to the front. The match soon ended with a 3-2 victory to Warwickshire.
In the doubles, the wily old Shropshire pairing of Merv Hughes and John Armitage took on Warwickshire captain Chris Port and first time doubles player Ian Russell. Russell’s deft touches and boasts combined with Port’s power hitting proved too much for the Shropshire pairing in the first two games as they raced to a 2-0 lead. The match looked over at 6-0 to Warwickshire in the 3rd game, but 7 points in a row saw Shropshire take a slender lead. Despite Warwickshire then taking a 10-7 match ball lead, the game continued until a nicely timed boast from Port saw the game out 14-12 and a 3-0 victory.
In the end, Shropshire secured an 8-7 win to retain their title with a much closer scoreline than most had predicted. Well done to all involved and congratulations to Shropshire. If Warwickshire can get their full team out next year and everyone fit, who knows what might happen....
O60s Write Up
Shropshire O60s v Devon O60s Final of Intercounty O60s
After Devon managed to get through a tough semi final against their local rivals
Cornwall they came up against Shropshire O60’s
With Nick Billington, 60 and 3 days old, Guy Scott, Robin Chipperfield supported by
a strong new boy to the RB tour Chris Heath in the doubles up against Martin Shahanahan,
Bruce McDonald and Dave Brown the match looked a tough one all around.
On first to get the match started was the very experienced Robin Chipperfield
against the younger man Dave. Dave got a great start and was 9-5 up before
Robin made a brilliant fight back and snuck the first game 11-9. Dave came back
strongly in the second winning 11-4, Robin had to dig in deep, changing the game to
a straight classic game pushing Dave deep so his pace and domination on the T was
reduced. Robin came through 3-1 in a very tough game and Shropshire was up.
Shropshire 3, Devon 1
Then came the big hitting Bruce bullying Guy on the court pushing him deep then
dropping or boasting the ball short, it looked like Guy would go down 3-0 easily. But
no, a huge fight back from Guy was what was called for. Guy straightened the rallies,
got Bruce stuck in the back corners and managed to chop him up in the front 2
corners, before we knew it the score was 2-2. A 5 th game was upon us, the start of
the game was all Bruce, dominating the game, Guy fought back to 3-5, then 4-5, it
looked like Guy was going to do it again, but Bruce took a deep breath and push on
to take the game 11-6. Great match.
Shropshire 5, Devon 4
Nick and Martin took to the court with Martin trying to take the match to the doubles.
Nick’s hard drives to the back of the court punished Marting in the initial few points,
Martin fought back with great touch, chopping Nick up in the front corners. 4-3 to
Nick, Nick had a few tricks up his sleeve and started pushing Martin in short and
then putting the ball to the back, dying in the corners. 11-4 to Nick
The second was a much tighter game, Martin came out all guns, pushing Nick back
then to the front, going 5-2 up, Nick came back to 5-6 in some tough rallies and
finally pushing on to win the game 11-6.
By the time the 3 rd game was on Martin was starting to tire, his hard 3-2 win against
Cornwall had obviously taken its toll and Nick came through 11-1. Great match.
Shropshire 8, Devon 4
With an unassailable lead the doubles match was played in great spirit, all 4 players
showing off their skills and the fun side of the game.
Shropshire managed to come through 2-1 to make it 3-1 in matches and 10-5 final
score.
Great match played in the right spirit.
After Devon managed to get through a tough semi final against their local rivals
Cornwall they came up against Shropshire O60’s
With Nick Billington, 60 and 3 days old, Guy Scott, Robin Chipperfield supported by
a strong new boy to the RB tour Chris Heath in the doubles up against Martin Shahanahan,
Bruce McDonald and Dave Brown the match looked a tough one all around.
On first to get the match started was the very experienced Robin Chipperfield
against the younger man Dave. Dave got a great start and was 9-5 up before
Robin made a brilliant fight back and snuck the first game 11-9. Dave came back
strongly in the second winning 11-4, Robin had to dig in deep, changing the game to
a straight classic game pushing Dave deep so his pace and domination on the T was
reduced. Robin came through 3-1 in a very tough game and Shropshire was up.
Shropshire 3, Devon 1
Then came the big hitting Bruce bullying Guy on the court pushing him deep then
dropping or boasting the ball short, it looked like Guy would go down 3-0 easily. But
no, a huge fight back from Guy was what was called for. Guy straightened the rallies,
got Bruce stuck in the back corners and managed to chop him up in the front 2
corners, before we knew it the score was 2-2. A 5 th game was upon us, the start of
the game was all Bruce, dominating the game, Guy fought back to 3-5, then 4-5, it
looked like Guy was going to do it again, but Bruce took a deep breath and push on
to take the game 11-6. Great match.
Shropshire 5, Devon 4
Nick and Martin took to the court with Martin trying to take the match to the doubles.
Nick’s hard drives to the back of the court punished Marting in the initial few points,
Martin fought back with great touch, chopping Nick up in the front corners. 4-3 to
Nick, Nick had a few tricks up his sleeve and started pushing Martin in short and
then putting the ball to the back, dying in the corners. 11-4 to Nick
The second was a much tighter game, Martin came out all guns, pushing Nick back
then to the front, going 5-2 up, Nick came back to 5-6 in some tough rallies and
finally pushing on to win the game 11-6.
By the time the 3 rd game was on Martin was starting to tire, his hard 3-2 win against
Cornwall had obviously taken its toll and Nick came through 11-1. Great match.
Shropshire 8, Devon 4
With an unassailable lead the doubles match was played in great spirit, all 4 players
showing off their skills and the fun side of the game.
Shropshire managed to come through 2-1 to make it 3-1 in matches and 10-5 final
score.
Great match played in the right spirit.
DRAWS AND SCHEDULE ARE OUT FOR 2026!
We have our biggest entry for Masters Racketball intercounties to date!
8 teams in each of the O40, O50 and O60 draws, and some really strong line ups to boot. There will be an absolutely fantastic showcase of high level Racketball at Berkhamstead on the 18/19th April, get on down there for a watch if you can...
A huge thank you to the club for being such willing and welcoming hosts for the third year in a row, also to all the Team Captains for their hard work in getting sides together for the event.
8 teams in each of the O40, O50 and O60 draws, and some really strong line ups to boot. There will be an absolutely fantastic showcase of high level Racketball at Berkhamstead on the 18/19th April, get on down there for a watch if you can...
A huge thank you to the club for being such willing and welcoming hosts for the third year in a row, also to all the Team Captains for their hard work in getting sides together for the event.
BACK AGAIN FOR 2026!
We are heading back to the lovely Berkhamstead Squash & Tennis Club for the 2026 iteration of the Masters Racketball Intercounty Team Champs.
With more new sides joining the fold across the O40, O50 and O60 categories this year promises to be bigger and better than ever! Full info on the event below, contact Mike at [email protected] to enter or if you have any questions:
- MASTERS (O40 / O50 / O60s):
Date: 18th / 19th April 2026
Venue: Berkhamstead Squash & Tennis Club. Possibly the nearby Tring Squash Club if required too (10 mins away.)
Format:
- £50 per side team entry. Entry closing date Friday 20th March 2026.
- O40s - 3 players per team, all play singles (BO5) and one pairing doubles (BO3)
- O50s - 5 players per team, 3 play singles (BO5) then the remaining two play doubles (BO3)
- O60s - 3 players per team, all play singles (BO5) and one pairing doubles (BO3)
You are welcome to bring larger squads than the required numbers if you wish to rotate players.
All teams will be guarantee 3 matches at least across the weekend.
Hope to see you there!
With more new sides joining the fold across the O40, O50 and O60 categories this year promises to be bigger and better than ever! Full info on the event below, contact Mike at [email protected] to enter or if you have any questions:
- MASTERS (O40 / O50 / O60s):
Date: 18th / 19th April 2026
Venue: Berkhamstead Squash & Tennis Club. Possibly the nearby Tring Squash Club if required too (10 mins away.)
Format:
- £50 per side team entry. Entry closing date Friday 20th March 2026.
- O40s - 3 players per team, all play singles (BO5) and one pairing doubles (BO3)
- O50s - 5 players per team, 3 play singles (BO5) then the remaining two play doubles (BO3)
- O60s - 3 players per team, all play singles (BO5) and one pairing doubles (BO3)
You are welcome to bring larger squads than the required numbers if you wish to rotate players.
All teams will be guarantee 3 matches at least across the weekend.
Hope to see you there!
2025 EVENT WRITE UP
The second full year of Masters Intercounty Racketball took place at Berkhamstead Squash and Tennis in Hertfordshire last weekend, and it was a great showcase of the game at over 40, 50 and 60 age group categories.
Despite having had some late dropouts in the lead up, the event was still really well subscribed with six teams in each category from all across the UK. It was really great to see not only some new sides in the mix from last year, but also some players who we hadn’t seen in UK Racketball series action much before. Highlighting the strength of the game across the country!
In the over 40s, last year’s inaugural winners Cambridgeshire managed to reclaim their title after a string of very solid consistent performances. They were however pushed hard by Warwickshire in the final, who also had done well to get past Leicestershire and Hertfordshire A in a very tight group. Colin Griggs, Dan Soar and co-are definitely the ones to beat in this category, and it will be interesting to see if there are any contenders next time round!
In the over 50s, last year’s champions Surrey unfortunately couldn’t get a team out this year meaning that the title was wide open for the taking. In came the mighty Shropshire side, with a very punchy lineup of some of the top age group players in the country, including three England internationals! They decimated their opponent across the two days, proving to be by far the top dogs in the age group. Essex being led by Patrick Osborn did very well to come through their own group to reach the final, especially with some late dropout from their own personnel. Patrick himself giving Jason Russell a good test at #1 in the final.
The over 60s draw saw some big upsets, with last year champions Essex losing out early on, and underdogs Cornwall and Bedfordshire managing to fight their way through very competitive groups to reach their maiden county team finals! This was fought out in a great spirit on the Sunday morning, with the South West possé coming through to take their first ever county title! A brilliant effort from a top bunch of chaps.
A massive thank you to everyone who got involved both as players and as captains, it was great to have such a social atmosphere and by the sounds of it there was a lot of good team mixing on the Saturday night in Berkhamstead’s lovely pubs and bars. Thank you to John Shaw and the Club for hosting us so nicely, it’s a fantastic venue for an event like this and we couldn’t have asked for a better set up!
We will be getting the date in the diary ASAP for next year so keep an eye out, but for now all our pictures for the weekend can be found here:
Facebook
And our results from the weekend (or as many as were handed in by the Captains!) can be found BELOW!!
Despite having had some late dropouts in the lead up, the event was still really well subscribed with six teams in each category from all across the UK. It was really great to see not only some new sides in the mix from last year, but also some players who we hadn’t seen in UK Racketball series action much before. Highlighting the strength of the game across the country!
In the over 40s, last year’s inaugural winners Cambridgeshire managed to reclaim their title after a string of very solid consistent performances. They were however pushed hard by Warwickshire in the final, who also had done well to get past Leicestershire and Hertfordshire A in a very tight group. Colin Griggs, Dan Soar and co-are definitely the ones to beat in this category, and it will be interesting to see if there are any contenders next time round!
In the over 50s, last year’s champions Surrey unfortunately couldn’t get a team out this year meaning that the title was wide open for the taking. In came the mighty Shropshire side, with a very punchy lineup of some of the top age group players in the country, including three England internationals! They decimated their opponent across the two days, proving to be by far the top dogs in the age group. Essex being led by Patrick Osborn did very well to come through their own group to reach the final, especially with some late dropout from their own personnel. Patrick himself giving Jason Russell a good test at #1 in the final.
The over 60s draw saw some big upsets, with last year champions Essex losing out early on, and underdogs Cornwall and Bedfordshire managing to fight their way through very competitive groups to reach their maiden county team finals! This was fought out in a great spirit on the Sunday morning, with the South West possé coming through to take their first ever county title! A brilliant effort from a top bunch of chaps.
A massive thank you to everyone who got involved both as players and as captains, it was great to have such a social atmosphere and by the sounds of it there was a lot of good team mixing on the Saturday night in Berkhamstead’s lovely pubs and bars. Thank you to John Shaw and the Club for hosting us so nicely, it’s a fantastic venue for an event like this and we couldn’t have asked for a better set up!
We will be getting the date in the diary ASAP for next year so keep an eye out, but for now all our pictures for the weekend can be found here:
And our results from the weekend (or as many as were handed in by the Captains!) can be found BELOW!!
| masters_icc_rb_2025_scores_-_tables.pdf |
| masters_icc_rb_2025_scores_-_matches.pdf |
