A FIERCE stink has been caused in the Hampshire squash community after an unprecedented decision to outlaw club matches on a Sunday.

At a heated extraordinary general meeting of the Hampshire Squash Rackets Association, clubs voted by 51 to 49 in favour of the controversial ban.

The move was proposed by the Campaign Against Sunday Matches, who argued that Sunday is a family day that shouldn't be interrupted by games of squash.

Angry opponents claim the decision has split Hampshire squash players into bitterly opposed rival camps and could mean the end for some clubs.

One squash player, who did not want to be named, accused CASM of being a "load of Sunday boozers", who had coerced other clubs into their point of view.

But Alverstoke's James Carroll, who founded CASM, pointed out that it was a democratic decision involving the many hundreds of squash players in the county.

"Sunday should be a family day," he said. "I want to be able to have a roast dinner, a few beers and not worry about playing squash.

"I have been playing for 22 years and have lost count of the people who have told me they are sick and tired of playing on a Sunday.

"The committee advised members to vote against the change but we won. This is a great coup for us," he declared.

Carroll then described his Division 4A side as: "The fat, drunken, sociable Alverstoke boys' night out team, who love their squash - but not on a Sunday."

Totton is one of 12 squash clubs whose home night has traditionally been on a Sunday and club spokesman Sean Tohill predicted the change would squeeze teams out of the league.

"This has been a silly, divisive campaign," he said. "All it will achieve is less people playing squash.

"Teams often have no choice but to play on a Sunday, either because clubs have a lot of other sides or they are trying to maximise their own income.

"At the end of the day, there is never going to be a day in the week that suits everybody."

He added: "Squash is a already going through a bad patch with Hampshire losing around one club every year. A decade ago there was double the number of people playing."

County chairman, Devan Kandiah, abstained from the vote, but said he thought it was best for clubs to be able to choose their own home day.

He added that the Hampshire SRA was now looking into the possibility of setting up a separate breakaway league for people wanting to play on a Sunday.