Glory for Doyle family in wallball finals
Fiachra Doyle celebrates after victory in the Senior Singles Wallball Final.
It was a memorable day for Armagh and the Doyle family from Whitecross in particular as father and son James and Fiachra (Ó Dúill) claimed the All-Ireland Masters Singles and Senior Singles wallball championships respectively.
Rising star Fiachra, fresh from winning the Irish Collegiates, produced a stunning upset to dethrone defending champion Conor McElduff in the All-Ireland Senior Wallball final in Kilglass, Co Roscommon. The 20-year-old Whitecross player delivered the performance of his career, defeating the five-time winner on a remarkable 15-10, 15-0 scoreline.
The last four was an all-Ulster line-up, with Ó Dúill - the youngest player in the semi-finals in either men's or women's grades - excelling on the day.
Standing 6ft 4in, the powerful right-hander set the tone from the start, serving deep and attacking relentlessly in the front court. McElduff, 32, who has dominated the wallball scene for the past decade, struggled to find rhythm and was overpowered by Ó Dúill’s aggressive play. The Tyrone man had come through a gruelling semi-final tiebreak against his Breacach clubmate Sean Kerr, while Ó Dúill advanced with a straight-games win over Cavan’s Ben Devlin.
“I’d have to win about 500 titles to catch up with Conor,” Ó Dúill said afterwards.
“I knew I had to go for everything – you can’t beat Conor playing safe. Luckily, it came off today.”
The DKIT student dedicated the victory to his parents, James and Maighréad, for their constant support. The triumph capped a memorable fortnight for Ó Dúill, who also captured the Irish Collegiates Open Singles title the previous weekend.
Martina McMahon on her way to victory over Tyrone’s Eilise McCrory.
In the Ladies Senior Singles final, Limerick’s Martina McMahon maintained her extraordinary dominance with a commanding 15-4, 15-2 win over Tyrone’s Eilise McCrory. The Broadford left-hander’s latest success adds to a glittering haul that already includes the World Wallball Singles and 4-Wall Doubles, as well as Irish 4-Wall and Softball Singles crowns over the past 15 months.
McMahon had earlier defeated former Roscommon footballer Fiona Tully in the semi-final, while McCrory overcame Westmeath’s Aoife McCarthy to reach the decider.
Results
Men’s
Senior Singles: Armagh (Fíachra Ó Dúill) defeated Tyrone (Conor McElduff) 15-10, 15-0
Junior Singles: Cork (Cian Dunning) dft Galway (Mikey Kelly) 15-4, 15-2
Junior B Singles: Tyrone (Caolan McCartan) dft Limerick (Colin Quish) 15-13, 15-7
Masters Singles: Armagh (James Doyle) dft Limerick (JP O’Connor) 15-3, 15-4
Golden Masters Singles: Galway (Graham Casburn) dft Laois (Kevin Brennan) 3-15, 15-10, 11-7
Diamond Masters Singles: Westmeath (Robbie McCarthy Snr) dft Monaghan (Paul Cassidy) 15-6, 15-3
Ladies
Senior Singles: Limerick (Martina McMahon) dft Tyrone (Eilise McCrory) 15-4, 15-9
Junior Singles: Galway (Ava Sweeney) dft Laois (Una Brophy) 15-2, 15-2
Junior B Singles: Limerick (Aisling Shanahan) dft Tyrone (Sharon Wilson) 15-2, 15-3
Masters Singles: Tyrone (Michelle Warren) dft Cork (Agnes Hurley) 15-6, 15-0
