Archer/Goode try to regain England's glorious moment

Archer/Goode try to regain England's glorious moment

JAKARTA (JP): Britons Simon Archer and Joanne Goode
successfully reclaimed England's reputation in mixed doubles ten
years after Martin Dew and Gillian Gilk won the title at the
Indonesia Open in Samarinda, East Kalimantan.

"This is our fourth title after the 1998 Commonwealth Games,
the 1999 All England, which is the greatest title, followed by
the Swiss Open a week later. And this is the only event we won in
Asia and it is so special for us," Archer said at a news
conference. "This is really important as Joanne suffered a back
injury last year."

Goode, who was born in Harlow, England, on Nov. 17, 1972,
said: "This is our first title after I was laid up with an injury
from November last year to March. It gave us more confidence so
we could go further for the Olympic Games in Sydney in
September."

Their success is an awakening for England's badminton
achievement, especially after the country dominated mixed doubles
in the 1970s. However, since the 1990s the domination has
switched to Asian countries, including China, South Korea and
Indonesia.

"It's quite difficult in England because we don't have a
training camp and everybody is practicing on their own. But now
the system is starting to change," Goode said.

Since they paired up in 1998, Archer and Goode did not require
a long time for the world to take notice of their performances.
The combination of Archer's hot temper and Goode's coolheaded
style is like fire and ice. Archer's sharp smashes and Goode's
neat netting often trouble their opponents.

Their milestone was the 1999 All England, where they beat all
the best pairs in the world.

"There's no pair in the world who we fear. Not any more.
Besides Kim Dong-moon and Ra Kyung-min, who are very strong, we
are trying to recapture the moment when people didn't want to
play them," said Archer, who was born in Leamington Spa, England,
on June 27, 1973.

Both players said the absence of Chinese and Korean top pairs
gave them the advantage to win the title but they still needed to
work hard to eliminate three of the world's top five doubles of
Jens Eriksen and Mette Schjoldager of Denmark in the
quarterfinals, Tri Kusharyanto and Minarti Timur of Indonesia in
the semifinals and Michael Sogaard and Rikke Olsen of Denmark in
the finals.

Goode, who is a mother of one son, said it was difficult for
her to arrange her schedule, especially during tournaments
abroad.

"I only have time with my son in the morning, evening and
weekends. But my husband is very understanding with the
situation. I only took my son to the All England because it was
the closest to home," she said with a laugh. (yan)