Alison Glenie

Alison Branfield (née Glenie), born in Auckland in 1945, competed in badminton at four Commonwealth Games from 1966-78 and is an important figure in New Zealand badminton history.

She won 22 national titles, five in singles from 1967-78, nine in doubles from 1967-77, mainly with her younger sister, Robin, and eight in mixed doubles from 1964-78, mainly with Richard Purser. She won the triple crown of titles in 1967, 1973 and 1975.

Along with her sister, Alison was a long-serving international and a stalwart of New Zealand Uber Cup and Whyte Trophy teams. The Glenie sisters, as they were often called, were honoured with the Exceptional Performance Award for their outstanding achievements by Badminton New Zealand in 2023.

Glenie attended St Cuthbert’s College in Auckland and before she even reached the senior ranks badminton appealed as a potential great. She was a clever player and an assiduous trainer.

She was one of four players in the New Zealand badminton team for the 1966 Empire Games in Kingston, Jamaica, the first time badminton was on the Games roster.

She was the most successful player. She was beaten in her first singles match, by Canadian Pat Espley 3-11, 11-8, 12-10 in a match the New Zealander wondered how she lost.

In the women’s doubles, Glenie and fellow Aucklander Gaynor Simpson (later Weatherley) won a tight match against Canadians Alison Daysmith and Judy Humber 17-16, 15-10. Into the semi-final, they were outplayed by Angela Bairstow and Iris Rogers of England 15-2, 15-10 and in the bronze medal play-off, Malaysians Rosalind Ang and Teoh Siew Yong edged them out 15-11, 15-9.

Glenie and Richard Purser lost their first mixed doubles match, to Robert McCoig and Muriel Ferguson 15-4, 11-15, 15-8.

Alison had three seasons playing in England, during which she honed the doubles skills that were to stand her in such good stead.

She was back for another crack at the Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh in 1970, this time accompanied by her sister. Alison lost her first singles match, to Canada’s Alison Ridgeway 11-5, 5-11, 11-2. The Glenie sisters fared no better in the doubles, unable to make any headway against Malaysians Sylvia Tan and Sylvia Ng and losing 15-9, 15-8.

Glenie and Richard Purser made a brighter showing in the mixed, though they were eliminated in their second match. After beating Malaysians Boon Bee Ng and Rosalind Ang 15-12 in the third, an excellent result, they lost to England’s David Eddy and Susan Whetnall 15-12, 15-5.

Alison Branfield as she now was, returned for another Commonwealth Games, at Christchurch in 1974. This time she negotiated the first round of the singles, beating Suzanne Hew Hin Clair of Mauritius without losing a point. However, she wasn’t able to make much progress against Australian Kay Terry and went down 11-3, 11-6.

The sisters won a round of doubles, beating Australians Terry and Joan Jones 15-8, 15-6, a promising result. However, they were unable to dent the Scottish team of McCoig and Joanna Flockhart and lost 15-11, 15-5.

Purser and Branfield played well in the mixed doubles, beating Australians Peter Cooper and Jones 13-15, 15-6, 15-2 and winning a long third round match against England’s Michael Tredgett and Margaret Boxall 14-17, 15-12, 15-4. Into the quarter-finals, the New Zealanders rolled on, beating the seeded Scottish pairing of Fraser Gow and Christine Stewart 15-3, 15-7. Their run was ended by England’s Derek Talbot and Gillian Gilks, the eventual gold medallists 15-1, 15-12. In the bronze medal play-off, Purser and Branfield lost to another English pairing, Elliott Stewart and Susan Whetnall, 15-10, 15-4.

Branfield had a fourth attempt at the Commonwealth Games in Edmonton in 1978, and made a good run in the singles, winning two matches easily before she struck a brick wall in the third round, outplayed by Englishwoman Karen Bridge 11-3, 11-3.

With her sister not playing at Edmonton, Branfield teamed with Mary Livingston in the women’s doubles, if only briefly, because they bowed out to Anne Johnstone and Pam Hamilton of Scotland 11-6, 15-11.

Branfield and Purser again impressed in the mixed. They beat Canadians Keith Priestman and Sharon Crawford 15-18, 15-7, 15-7 and Greg Carter and Wendy Clarkson 15-7, 15-12. However, the top-seeded Mike Tredgett and Nora Perry comfortably beat them in the semi-final 15-2, 15-2. Into the bronze medal play-off, Purser and Branfield were beaten by Talbot and Barbara Sutton 15-9, 15-9.

There was also a badminton teams event in 1978.

New Zealand lost 3-2 to India in the opening match. Branfield had a hand in both victories, combining with Allison Sinton for a doubles win and partnering Richard Purser to victory in the mixed.

In the next match, New Zealand beat Australia 3-2, Branfield and Sinton this time coming unstuck against Joan Jones and Audrey Swaby 15-6, 15-5. However, Branfield and Purser provided a victory by beating Paul Kong and Swaby 15-7, 15-4.

In a comfortable 5-0 win over Wales, Branfield won her singles and doubles matches.

But New Zealand fell 5-0 to England, Branfield and Mary Livingston going down in quick time in the doubles, and then Branfield and Purser losing 9-15, 15-5, 15-8 to Tredgett and Perry, a lot closer result than in the mixed doubles bronze medal play-off.

Canada beat New Zealand 3-2 in the semi-finals. Branfield and Purser had a good win over Lucio Fabris and Clarkson 15-11, 15-9 in the mixed, but Branfield and Allison Sinton lost a close women’s doubles to Jane Youngberg and Claire Backhouse 15-9, 17-15.

New Zealand were left to tussle with Malaysia for the bronze medal and missed out, losing 4-1. Purser and Branfield, so reliable, scored the sole victory, but Branfield and Sinton went down 2-1 in the women’s doubles.

At the end of the tournament, Branfield had played 21 matches in 10 days, winning 12 – not a feat to be dismissed lightly.

She finished her Games career without the medal she’d so eagerly sought, but could hardly have gone closer, four times being involved in bronze medal play-offs.

Branfield was a long-serving teacher at Epsom Girls Grammar School.

Her brothers, John and Richard sailed for New Zealand in cherub events.