The stage is set for the throw-in of the All-Ireland Senior Softball Doubles Championship, which starts tomorrow at Carlow and Offaly venues, writes Paul Fitzpatrick.
At Garryhill, former champions Eoin Kennedy and Carl Browne (Dublin) take on Coolboy, Co Wicklow clubmen Michael Gregan and Chris Doyle.
Nine-time singles champion Kennedy is rightly regarded as one of the greatest to ever step into a 60x30 court and his involvement in competitive action is a major boost for the ‘big alley’ code. A magnificent competitor and one of the marquee names in the sport for 25 years, Kennedy won his first Senior Singles title in 2002 and the first of four doubles crowns alongside Egin Jensen in 2005 and, needless to say, he will be aiming to go all the way.
The skilful Browne, who learned the game in the handball hotbed of Kells, Co Meath, is no stranger to the big occasion having won Intermediate Singles and Senior Doubles crowns and will be relishing another crack at the doubles crown. Gregan, for his part, has overcome injury problems and won the Over 35 doubles in the 4-wall grade earlier this year and boasts vast experience at the elite level in the sport while partner Doyle has had terrific success in the big court in recent years, winning the Junior Singles and Intermediate Singles All-Irelands.
Second on the card in Garryhill is the meeting of Wexford and Kilkenny. Gavin Buggy partnered Galen Riordan to a fairytale Senior Doubles triumph last year against Brian Carroll and Gary McConnell before a raucous home crowd in Castlebridge.
With Riordan away travelling, youngster Mark Doyle, fresh from a great year gaining experience in the United States, steps in on the right and they look a formidable pairing.
In the opposite corner are Doyle’s Mankato University colleague Shane Dunne and Padraig Cooney. Dunne won the Intermediate Singles in 2019 and will be keen to make a big splash in the senior ranks now that he is home from the States.
At Crinkle, former winners Brian Carroll and Gary McConnell of Meath face Wexford’s ‘youth and experience’ combo of Tommy Hynes and Adam Walsh. Carroll and McConnell were beaten in a tiebreaker in last year’s final and are a superbly balanced pair with McConnell’s smooth strokes, power and craft complemented by the speed and killing ability of Carroll, who has nine 60x30 Senior Doubles medals to his name.
When the conversation turns to power in the big alley, however, Hynes’s name is always top of the list. The veteran Wexford left-hander is one of the hardest hitters in the game over recent decades and his spectacular style is always a treat for spectators.
Tommy won a Senior Doubles title way back in 2000 in tandem with Colin Keeling. On this occasion, he is partnered by Adam Walsh, a talented player in all codes.
Finally, in another game featuring a powerful citeog, Ciaran Neary and Michael Clifford take on brothers Martin and Diarmuid Mulkerrins.
The Kilkenny men are anchored by Neary on the left, with Clifford a smart and effective presence in the tricky right-side role. The Mulkerrins’s have shown terrific recent form, with Martin going to the Senior Singles final with a couple of impressive wins along the way while Diarmuid was very narrowly beaten in the Intermediate Singles semi-final.
This could be the game of the day between four super big alley players.
Fixtures here.