Bill Berry (Darfield) displayed the grit and fighting spirit of his old international football days when he won the over-65 squash gold medal yesterday.
At 80 the oldest player in the squash competition, Berry beat Hawera's Denis Merrisan (65) 7-15, 9-15, 15-11, 15-9, 15-13 in a dramatic final.
Berry, a dynamic centre forward, was known as Bomber Berry when he played football for Northern, Otago and three games for New Zealand between 1954 and 1958.
He missed the 1951 overseas tour with the New Zealand team because a date change in the tour clashed with his wedding to Beverley Walsh.
His wife and his sister-in-law, Mary Walsh, were watching his progress yesterday.
"I've been here every time," Mrs Berry said.
"I'm his unofficial coach."
Merrisan also had the support of his wife, Aileen.
"It's been nerve-racking up here," Mrs Merrisan said.
"I think we feel the pressure more than the players."
Merrisan's power and neat short shots gave him the advantage in the first two games, and Berry was forced to draw on his ability to analyse the game on his feet.
"He was quick coming forward so I had to force him to go backwards more by mixing up long and short shots," he said.
Berry got decisive breaks midway through the third and fourth games to force the decider in the fifth.
The fifth game was tight, with neither player able to get the advantage, but in the end it was Berry's coolness under pressure that was decisive and enabled him to win his ninth successive squash gold medal at the Masters Games in Dunedin.
Irishman Tom Hannon (71), from Tipperary, won all his games 3-0 to take the gold medal in the men's aged 60-64 grade.
