Preview: 2025 All-Ireland Wallball Championships
Defending All-Ireland Wallball senior men's champion, Conor McElduff.
The 2025 All-Ireland Wallball Championships will take centre stage this Saturday in Kilglass, Co Roscommon, with a packed day of action beginning at 9am.
While there are junior and overage grades, the Senior Singles will be of most interest to handball fans around the country, with a number of intriguing storylines set to play out.
Defending champion Conor McElduff heads the men’s draw. The Breacach, Co Tyrone star only recently returned from Hong Kong, where, alongside World Handball Council President Dessie Keegan, he played a role in the Chinese launch of the sport, the highlight of which was a major event attended by politicians and leading dignitaries.
McElduff will hope to shake the jetlag off in time as he faces a familiar foe in his clubmate Sean Kerr, himself a former All-Ireland champion and one of the most athletic players in the game.
In the other men’s semi-final, powerful Louth native Ben Devlin, who transferred to Kingscourt, Co Cavan earlier this year, takes on Armagh’s Fiachra Ó Dúill. Devlin’s explosive power and aggressive attacking game as well as trick shots have made him one of the sport’s most watchable players, but towering 20-year-old Ó Dúill, from the Whitecross club, arrives in top form after capturing the Irish Collegiates Wallball title last week.
Martina McMahon has been the dominant figure in Irish handball over the last year.
The women’s championship is equally strong, with Breacach’s Eilise McCrory leading the Tyrone charge. A stylish left-hander and former champion, McCrory meets Mullingar’s Aoife McCarthy, who is an established leading player in all three codes.
The second semi-final features Roscommon’s own Fiona Tully, a former county footballer and past champion in this event, who will have the home support behind her as she faces the formidable Martina McMahon. The Limerick lefty has been the dominant figure in Irish handball over the last year, producing a remarkable run of victories in the wallball, 4-wall and softball codes.
Last weekend, Kilglass also hosted the juvenile and minor All-Ireland Wallball finals. Antrim players excelled in the girls’ events, with Nina McBride and Cliona McGinley both claiming titles, a great boost for the hard-working volunteers in the county who have rejuvenated the game there.
Cork’s Carmel Kelleher, from Boherbue HC, edged out Tyrone’s Caislin Tracey in the ladies minor decider. In the boys’ grades, Wexford’s Charlie Roche, Armagh’s Kevin McGrath and Tyrone’s Shea Munroe were crowned champions in the U14, U16 and minor grades respectively.
The event will be streamed live on the Spórt TG4 YouTube channel, offering fans nationwide a chance to follow the country’s best wallball players in action.