On Saturday 1st October I interviewed Tony Morrison, Head Coach at Harrow Squash Club, to learn more about squash and its future. In combination with Tony's personal story and success in the sport, his hopes and positivity towards the well-loved and intense game gave me a new-found appreciation for it.

Q: What got you into squash?

Tony: I was about 30 years old and I was at Vale Farm Leisure Centre; as I was strolling around the building, I was watching a coaching session with a woman called Helen Carter who was a coach at that time. She invited me down, I had never played squash before, gave it a go and pretty much got addicted to it from day 1.

Q: How was your experience of playing squash competitively?

Tony: I was aged 35 and someone suggested I play in the county closed: I thought okay, why not? In the first round I picked a guy who was an England ranked top player. He beat me 9-1, 9-1 and in the third game at 8-3, he served the ball and I ducked. It hit me on the head; the marker started laughing and so did everybody else. I almost gave up because it was just such a horrible experience.

Q: What do you think makes squash special as a sport?

Tony: In the scheme of racquet sports, it's considered to be the one that requires the highest level of fitness: that for me is a plus. It's like chess on testosterone because its a very mind-orientated game - a very challenging, mental, physical game.

Q: Do you think that there's a gender imbalance at Harrow Squash Club, if so why?

Tony: Yes, there definitely is a gender imbalance, it's something that we've tried to tackle for over 20 years. One of things we've not managed to do very well is attract female players; we don't seem to get them all at the same time.

Q: Do you think there are any solutions?

Tony: We've looked at some of the things people say may be barriers to women: some say it could be cost so we let them come for free. But they talk about other things like whether the car park is well lit, is it a safe environment?

Q: Could you tell us about squash stars?

Tony: Squash stars is an initiative ran by England Squash. We invested in the programme and went out and bought our own leaflets and did our own social media exposure. Fortunately it was successful. The great attraction for the kids is: free T-shirt, free racquet, free ball and free eyeguards. Now we've got them here, our job is to retain them. 

Q: Where do you see squash stars in 10 years time?

Tony: I, almost confidently, can say that some of these kids here, if they continue playing, in 10 years will be national players. Maybe they'll be representing England in the top 10; that would be my ambition.