The Handball Alley

NEW SERIES - 'Throwback Thursday', featuring photos of club championship games from years gone by.

First up is related to how St Martins will play Faythe Harriers in McCauley Park Bellefield this coming Sunday (August 2). It shows Rory McCarthy and Joe Kearns in action during the corresponding meeting between the sides in O'Kennedy Park, New Ross, back in the year 1998. Anyone remember the outcome of that one?

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A Nationwide GAA Handball Special will be re-broadcast on RTE at 7pm this evening. Marty Morrisey takes a visit to the National Handball Centre.

RTÉ One

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GAA Handball Co.Wexford 60X30 Softball League Division 6 in St.Marys,Emmet Place,Tuesday 28th July 2026 ~ Micheal Sheil (Bridgetown) beat Darragh Cloake (Castlebridge) 21-3,18-21,11-8..🔴

# Attracting none of the crowds that had filled the courts of Wexford over the last few weeks this Division 6 League match was a run of the mill encounter which proved to be anything but ordinary..GAA Handball is on its knees in other counties and their commitment to it is farcical..Lads on social media commenting on this and that and they wouldn’t get off their backsides to promote the game at any level in their own counties,juvenile or adult..They would have gotten some eye opener last night in St.Marys at the level of determination and sportsmanship in a mere league fixture..Both players turned out as is always the case in Wexford in club jerseys and club shorts and they battled it out for the points for close on an hour and three quarters..Micheal Sheil who has always been a talented player easily won the opening game 21-3 against the ‘Over The Water’ man and he probably thought he was in for a comfortable evening but what followed was the complete opposite as Darragh Cloake gave a virtuoso display of keeping it simple and he established an unassailable lead in the 2nd with a relentless determination that simple wore the Bridgetown man down, Micheal rallied close home but ran out of road and lost it 18-21..The 3rd Game (Tie-Break/11 Aces) was a bruiser, where both lads were under severe pressure, Darragh it seemed less so, but Micheal found a ‘scotch serve’ to the right hand side which allowed him turn a 2-7 deficit into a 9-7 lead before he eventually, after a titanic struggle saw it out 11-8..

Brilliant endeavour from both lads who showcased what it means to play Handball at any level on Slaneyside, no ball was too far away to chase and every Ace was played for as if their lives depended on it. If anybody wishes to know what is great about our game in Wexford, they need look no further than Emmet Place on this occasion. There were no trophies on offer, no county titles at stake and no All Ireland medals to be won, yet both lads produced a contest of real honesty and determination. Handball will never survive on social media posts alone, fair play to Micheal Sheil and Darragh Cloake, who continue to pull on their club colours with pride and give absolutely everything for the game..If the same level of administration and organisation that is prevalent in Wexford could be replicated throughout the country, then perhaps GAA Handball’s future would be a great deal brighter..🔴

# The opinions expressed above are solely my own and should not be interpreted as representing the views or position of Wexford Co.Board. Readers are, of course, entitled to form their own opinions, whether they agree or disagree with the piece is a matter for their own judgement..

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Preview: GAA Handball Senior Softball Doubles finals By Paul Fitzpatrick History will be on the line when Kilkenny and Wexford contest the Men's Senior Softball Doubles final on Saturday (first game, 2pm), with two of the sport's traditional powerhouses going head to head. Kilkenny's Kyle Jordan and Jack Holden arrive after surviving a dramatic semi-f...