Report by Brendan McDonagh, Salthill HC
Fifty five players in total took part in this year’s event which was held over five courts on the weekend of 9th-11th December last and continues to grow in popularity year on year.
A massive thanks to our sponsors O'Reillys Bar & Grill in Salthill who not only sponsored the trophies but also provided sandwiches which was hugely appreciated by all involved. Many thanks also to Moycullen Handball Club for the use of their state of the art facilities and also the Arus complex for their court. Some fantastic handball was played across four divisions with all finals taking place in Salthills impressive new glass court on the Sunday. Notable performances from the weekend had to be Gavin Coyle in Mens B who continues to improve and will no doubt prove hard to handle in this year’s 40x20 championship.
Salthill Handball Clubs very own juvenile players Kaylem Grealish, Eoin Power, Eanna Wood and Evan Kerrigan all did themselves proud and were not out of place in probably there first adult tournament where the experience will no doubt stand to them. Many thanks to the organisers and the many refs who gave up their weekend to officiate. Salthill Handball Club has gone through extensive renovations over the last two years and is now a complex all can be very proud of. Added to this there are ten 40 x 20 handball courts within an 8 mile radius of Galway City, meaning the location is ideally placed to host national tournaments going forward.
Results as follows:
- Mens A Cup - Winner: Michael Hedigan (Cork), Runner up: Ian McLoughlin (Mayo)
- Mens B Cup - Winner: Gavin Coyle (Monaghan), Runner Up: Denis Creaton (Roscommon)
- Mens C Cup - Winner: Aaron Geoghegan (Carlow), Runner Up: David O’Brien (Tipperary)
- Master Doubles Cup - Winners: Fergal Coughlan & Conor Maxwell (Clare), Runners Up: William Corcoran & Martin Conneely (Galway)
- Mens A Plate - Champion: Terry McElvaney (Monaghan), Runner up: Peter Daveron (Galway)
- Mens B Plate - Champion: Jack O’Shea (Kerry), Runner up: Patrick Murphy (Mayo)
- Mens C Plate - Champion: Liam Bradshaw (Tipperary), Runner up: Ronan McNea (Mayo)
- Masters Doubles Plate - Winners: Gerry Faherty & Noel Murphy (Galway), Runners Up: Joe O’Connell & Tommy Duggan (Galway)