LOCAL squash hero, Nick Taylor, is thriving overseas as he is thrilled to have accepted the role of head national coach in the United States.
“I’m so fortunate to have been offered this phenomenal opportunity,” Taylor stated.
“I’m confident I can do a lot of good things in this role.
“Obviously I don’t know everything, but I think my years of coaching and playing experience stands me in good stead.”
Taylor is a former professional squash player and currently works as a squash coach in the United States of America.
A native of Manchester, England, Taylor competed as a professional player on the PSA World Tour from 1991-2004, reaching a career high World No.14 and England No.3, winning 10 PSA World Tour titles along the way.
Most notably, the Mancunian took home the European Squash Championships title back to back in 1996 and 1997.
As a veteran, he added the Over-35s British Open and Closed Squash Championships to his illustrious collection.
And in 2016, he won his first World Masters Squash Championships title, repeating the feat in 2018, solidifying his legacy as a two-time world champion.
Locally speaking, Taylor was the director of squash at the Jersey Squash and Racketball Club from 2008 to 2017.
Since his arrival on the Island in 2008, Taylor massively increased the popularity of squash and racketball locally and moreover, he was the driving force behind Jersey becoming recognised as a nation by European Squash.
Originally, squash was an relatively niche sport on the Island. Towards the start of Taylor’s stint in Jersey, the club boasted around 120 members and was said to be looking “old and run down”.
As the new director of squash on Island, Taylor recalled his first priority was to engage the grass roots by going out to local schools and delivering mini-squash lessons, he reminisced:
“I remember speaking to the director of sport [in Jersey] at the time, and I said to him my aim is to get into every single school on the Island and deliver a minimum of 30 minutes of squash to them.
“He said I had no chance and that I’d be lucky to get into eight schools.
“After that, I just remember thinking to myself, I’m going to do this, watch me.”
After his relentless efforts, by the end of 2009, Taylor had visited 26 local schools, introducing squash to over 8,000 children between the ages of 5-11.
Thinking about the impact of his school’s programme, Taylor said: “We had around 20,000 go through that programme, even if it was just a short introductory session, that was enough to capture imaginations.
“We got thousands of kids playing squash at all levels, from playing once a week just for fun, to representing Jersey and competing off-Island.
“I’m incredibly proud of that.”
By 2011, the club’s membership had doubled and the junior academy had increased three-fold.
Subsequently, after the sport’s increase in popularity, the Jersey Squash and Racketball Club in St Clement was renovated and expanded with help from the recreation grounds, sponsors and charity from members.
Particularly of note, the improved club now had a new state-of-the-art glass-backed show court and a fully-stocked members bar now in situ.
As interest continued to grow on the Island, Taylor was able to bring the professional squash circuit back to Jersey for the first time since 1988 with the Jersey Squash Classic.
The annual professional tournament launched in 2013, a phenomenal opportunity not only for local players to watch or play, but also to learn as some of the competitors kindly delivered coaching sessions to local players .
By 2014, the club membership was around a healthy 260 with thriving youth and outreach programmes, as well as an abundance of competitions, coaching and social events for members and non-members alike.
Eventually, Taylor was able to a make a push for Jersey to get recognised by the European Squash Federation as a National Federation.
In 2017, the Island hosted the European Team Championships and shocked the world earning themselves two bronze medals.
The local team punched well above its weight in what Taylor described as his “personal highlight” from his legacy on Jersey.
They were able to beat the likes of Russia, Romania, Croatia, Latvia and Greece on their way to the silverware in both Men’s and Women’s events.
However, after an impressive nine years at the helm, Taylor handed the reigns over to his protégé Antony Harkin as he pursued an opportunity to develop his sport in the USA.
Currently, Taylor is the director of squash at Cross Courts in Natick, Massachusetts.
He was able to prove himself on the US national stage as he was a part of Team USA’s coaching staff during their record-setting 2023 and 2024 British Junior Open.
Given his impressive curriculum vitae – building academies and helping top players thrive – Taylor was offered the role of US Squash head national coach, which he promptly accepted and is due to start on 1 October.
Speaking about his upcoming role, Taylor explained: “It’s a new position in US Squash, so the job description was never particularly clear.
“Obviously I’ll spend a lot of time working the high-performance players from around the country.
“But I’ll also be helping out with the general programme being run from the Specter Center.
“To me, being a national coach, is not just about high performance, it’s about understanding coach education and the development of the sport as a whole.
“I want to bridge the gap between the national governing body [US Squash] and the coaches around the country – help educate them, inspire them and overall, be available to them if they need anything.”
“We also need to keep developing and defining player pathways, particularly highlighting the connection between playing squash in college and then making it a living as a professional.”
Adding to his already well-saturated list of responsibilities, squash is due to make its debut appearance at the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028. It is a particularly enticing prospect for the Islander as many of his high-performance players will be looking to become Olympians.
Taylor’s first test of his new role is set to be in early-to-mid December as US Squash’s best tackle the 2024 WSF World Team Championships in Hong Kong.
However, his players performance is not his only concern ahead of the Olympics. The head national coach is also highly motivated to prove his sport belongs, and therefore remains, in the Games for years to come.
“Squash is a phenomenal game, and this is our chance to bring it to a mainstream audience.
“I’ll be working with the associations: World Squash, Professional Squash, among others, just making sure that we have a product that is very appealing, not only to the squash player, but to those who might be new to the game.
“We need to make squash as engaging as it can be for spectators, particularly those on the TV.”
Taylor concluded: “I’ve got a lot of work ahead, but I’m up for the challenge and I’m looking forward to it.”
