2025 All-Ireland Senior Softball Singles continues

By Paul Fitzpatrick

The race for the 2025 All-Ireland Senior Softball Singles titles reach their penultimate stage this Saturday at the National Handball Centre in Croke Park, with a high-quality line-up in both the men’s and ladies’ championships.

There are numerous angles to the respective line-ups but it is likely most focus will be on whether Robbie McCarthy maintains his dominance in the ‘big alley’ and, likewise, Martina McMahon can continue her outstanding winning run across various codes.

The presence of young Kilkenny stars Kyle Jordan and Amy Brennan in the semis also adds to the intrigue, with the possibility of new young finalists, something, it is accepted, the softball code needs.

McCarthy, the king of the softball game for over a decade, is seeking his 12th Senior Singles title in the big court. The Westmeath man has not lost in this competition since 2019 and looks in ominous form once again. He breezed through the early rounds, dismantling Tipperary’s Ned Reilly 21-3, 21-2, before being tested more firmly by Kilkenny’s Shane Dunne in the quarter-finals. Dunne, a former Intermediate champion, pushed McCarthy in both games, but the Mullingar maestro had too much control and shot selection, easing through 21-16, 21-15.

His semi-final opponent is Meath’s Brian Carroll, who carries momentum after recently winning the Senior Doubles title alongside Gary McConnell. Carroll also claimed the 2024 Irish Softball Nationals and brings a wealth of experience.

In the quarters, he dispatched Wexford’s Keith Armstrong with minimal fuss, winning 21-6, 21-5. However, Carroll will know he’ll need to raise his game to a new level to unseat McCarthy, who remains the standard-bearer in the code.

The other men’s semi-final brings together two players at very different stages of their careers. Gary McConnell, like Carroll, is a proven senior operator, having added this year’s Irish Softball Nationals title to his résumé. After adding the Senior Doubles crown, in the Singles quarter-finals, the Kells right-hander was pushed to the brink by rising Sligo star Cormac Finn. McConnell lost the first game and trailed 15-1 in the second before summoning all his experience and mental resolve to produce a stirring comeback, eventually prevailing 11-4 in the tiebreaker.

McConnell now faces Kilkenny’s Kyle Jordan, a former underage foe of Finn’s who has reached his first Senior Singles semi-final. Jordan overcame James Prentice of Tipperary – a welcome returnee to elite handball of late - in two competitive games, 21-13, 21-16, and has built an impressive résumé in the underage and intermediate ranks. The Kilfane man, however, now steps onto the big stage in a marquee softball semi-final against one of the country’s most seasoned campaigners. An intriguing contest is in store.

In the Ladies Senior Singles, all eyes are on Limerick’s McMahon, who is chasing almost a clean sweep of the major titles. In the last 12 months, McMahon has claimed the World Wallball Championship, the All-Ireland 4-Wall Senior Singles, the Irish Softball Nationals and the All-Ireland Senior Softball Doubles, underlining her status already as one of the all-time greats.

McCarthy is no stranger to the big stage. A noted big alley player, she holds a career win over former champion Catriona Casey and has consistently been a force in this grade. In the last eight, she was untroubled in a commanding win over US-based student Jodie Keeling of Wexford and seems to be in top form.

The second Ladies semi-final is an all-Kilkenny affair. Amy Brennan produced one of the stand-out wins of the quarter-final round, defeating last year’s runner-up Mollie Dagg of Kildare in straight games. Her 21-9, 21-16 win marked this young player out as a serious rising contender.

Brennan’s opponent is Aoife Holden, another Kilkenny player on the up. Holden defeated Cork’s decorated doubles champion Aishling O’Keeffe 21-16, 21-5 in her last outing and has been sharpening her skills on the elite Race4Eight tour in the United States, which attracts many of the world’s top 4-wall players. Brennan’s win over Dagg could make her favourite but a good game is expected.

McCarthy and McMahon remain favourites to retain their crowns, but there is enough talent in the chasing pack to ensure they won’t have it all their own way, with Dunne’s impressive showing against McCarthy – who performed brilliantly in the recent Senior Doubles final - perhaps providing hope for his competitors that the softball kingpin can be got at.

The programme serves off at 11am and will be streamed live on the Spórt TG4 YouTube channel.