Archive for category: Handball

Leitrim Players Put Up Strong Fight in Connacht 4-Wall Semifinals

The Connacht Adult 4-Wall Singles Championship reached its semifinal stage over the Easter weekend, with Leitrim handball boasting two competitors vying for final places in their respective categories.
Proceedings began on Friday evening in Collooney, where Fenagh’s Barry McDonagh faced off against Mayo’s Vinnie McLoughlin in the Masters B category. McDonagh gave a determined performance, pushing his Mayo opponent to the limit. However, the more agile McLoughlin proved too much on the night, claiming victory with a 21-16, 21-15 scoreline.
On Monday evening, attention shifted to Aughagower, Co. Mayo, where Fenagh’s Ed Lee took on Michael Heraty in their Ruby Master semifinal. Despite Lee’s best efforts, home advantage played a crucial role as Heraty dominated proceedings in the court, with Ed struggling to find his usual rhythm from serve. Heraty ultimately took the place in the final on a 21-6, 21-10 scoreline.
These hard-fought semifinals mark the conclusion of what was a busy and action-packed 2025 adult and juvenile 4-wall season for Leitrim Handball. Attention now shifts to the upcoming summer months and “big alley” events that lie ahead.

Picture : Mayo’s Vinnie McLoughlin and Leitrim’s Barry McDonagh before their Connacht Masters B semi-final match.

David Mahon
OCP Liathroid Láimhe Liatroma
https://www.facebook.com/LeitrimHandball

Plenty of Fun at the Leitrim Community Games Handball Finals

Fenagh Alley was busy on Saturday morning last as the 2025 Leitrim Community Games Handball finals took place. Building on the success of last year’s rejuvenated event, this year’s competition was even bigger, with more areas of the county taking part.

Spectators had the chance to watch some very entertaining and exciting handball matches, with players in the U13 and U16 categories showing off their one-wall skills in the hope of winning medals and securing a spot in the national finals.

Well done to everyone who participated, and congratulations to the medal winners. The gold and silver medallists will represent Leitrim at the national finals, which will be held in Drumlish, County Longford, on May 24th-25th.

A sincere thanks to everyone who helped organize and referee matches in their local areas as well as the county finals. Thank you to JP Kane and Fenagh club for hosting the county finals.
Best of luck to everyone heading to the national finals.

Full list of winners ( – see pics below):

U13 Girls:

• Gold – Abbie Kane (Ballinamore)
• Silver – Eimer Ni Thiarnan (Drumshanbo)
• Bronze – Muireann Cox (Mohill)

U13 Boys:

• Gold – Ruairi McKiernan (Drumshanbo)
• Silver – Conor Cox (Mohill)
• Bronze – Vinnie Ferguson (Manorhamilton)

U16 Boys:

• Gold – Maxim Gilmartin (Mohill)
• Silver – Eoin Mahon (Carrick on Shannon)
• Bronze – Arro O’Reilly (Manorhamilton)

U16 Girls:

• Gold – Sophie Kane (Ballinamore)

Connacht Juvenile B Doubles Championship Finals

The rescheduled Connacht Juvenile B Doubles Championship will be played next weekend, April 12/13th in Roscommon venues. Best of luck to all the young U11 – U13 boys and girls who are representing Leitrim. Keep an eye out on the Leitrim Handball Facebook page for further details of times and venues. (https://www.facebook.com/LeitrimHandball).

Connacht Adult 4-Wall Singles Championship Roundup

The Connacht 4-Wall Singles Championship continues next weekend with two Leitrim competitors entering the alley at quarter final stage. Drumshanbo’s Leo Logan waits either a Roscommon or Mayo opponent in his Over 35’s quarter final match. Meanwhile Manorhamilton’s Joel Smith will play Roscommon’s Darragh O’Gara in their Silver Master B quarter final. Best of Luck Leo and Joel.

Collage – U13 medallists : Muireann Cox Mohill (Bronze U13 Girls), Abbie Kane Ballinamore (Gold U13 Girls), Eimer McKiernan Drumshanbo (Silver U13 Girls).
Vinnie Ferguson Manorhamilton (Bronze U13 Boys), Ruairi McKiernan Drumshanbo (Gold U13 Boys), Conor Cox Mohill (Silver U13 Boys).

Collage – U16 medallists : Sophie Kane Ballinamore (Gold – U16 girls),
Arro O’Reilly Manorhamilton ( Bronze – U16 Boys) with JP Kane,
Maxim Gilmartin Mohill (Gold u16 boys) and Eoin Mahon Carrick (Silver u16 boys)

Collage – Selection of photos from the Leitrim Community Games Handball Finals

David Mahon
OCP Liathroid Láimhe Liatroma
https://www.facebook.com/LeitrimHandball

Connacht Silver Medals for Manorhamilton’s Sadhbh and Ronan.

Two Connacht silver medals were the reward for Leitrim’s juvenile handballers who competed in the 40×20 B championships on Saturday last in Roscommon, Lisacul and Claremorris. Manorhamilton’s Sadhbh Smith and Ronan Sieber both competed brilliantly in the U13 girls and U11 boy’s singles finals, each bringing silver medals back to the north Leitrim club. Sadhbh and Ronan were part of a nine-strong group of young players who represented Leitrim with pride on the day.

Sadhbh began her journey to the U13 girl’s final against Mayo’s Mia Reid. It was the Mayo player who got off to the better start, but Sadhbh dug deep to score 7 to Mia’s 15. While Mia took the first game, Sadhbh had found a probing serve and when combined with her excellent volleying and calm demeanor, gave her victory in the second game 15-9. Mia had the all-important serve to start the third game by virtue of most points scored and while she made a few points Sadhbh managed to meet the ball and indeed hit a few nice roof shots to take service back. Both players were improving all the time, but it was Sadhbh who battled through to the final on a scoreline of 15-9.

Waiting in the final was Róise Leonard from Galway! Sadhbh battled hard in the first game but lost 15-3 while in the second she dug in and scored 6 against Róise. The Galway player was a worthy champion, but Sadhbh learned a lot from the experience and collected her silver medal for club and county.

Ronan Siebert started his U11 championship positively by beating both his Mayo and Sligo quarter final and semi-final opposition in two straight games. The final started with Ronan serving first against Roscommon’s Eoin McDermott. It was a tit for tat game with most points being won in rallies and not player error which is a credit to both players. Ronan took some difficult shots off the backwall successfully and making some very impressive pass shots. The game was tied at six apiece before the Roscommon player pulled away finishing the first game 11-6 to Roscommon.
The second game had some notable long rallies, but once again the Roscommon player pulled away to win 11-4. It was an impressive match, and the referee complimented both players on their level of play in an U11s final, with Ronan really showed he can and will be an A player of the future.

Elsewhere, Rhys Glancy came agonizingly close to reaching the U12 boys final when he lost out to his Mayo opponent by the bare minimum in a tiebreak game. Caoimhe Glancy, Muireann Cox, Eoghan Kelly, Senan Prior, Niall Loughlin & Sam Conroy all but in great performances in their respective matches but found themselves up against tough opposition. For most, this was their very first time playing in a Connacht Championship environment and they will have learned a huge amount from the experience, and will no doubt be ones to watch for Leitrim and their clubs in the future.
Well done one and all!

Top L- R:
Aengus Cunningham from Roscommon Handball presents the Connacht B U11 Boys finalists with their medals – Ronan Sieber (Leitrim), Eoin McDermott (Roscommon)
Róise Leonard (Galway) & Sadhbh Smith (Leitrim) – Connacht B U13 Girls Final
Bottom L-R:
Caoimhe Glancy (Leitrim) – Connacht B U11 Girls Quarter-final
Senan Prior (Leitrim) – Connacht B U11 Boys Quarter-final.
Muireann Cox (Leitrim) – Connacht B U11 Girls Semi-final
Eoghan Kelly (Leitrim) – Connacht B U13 Boys Semi-final

Rescheduled Connacht Colleges 4-wall Finals go ahead on Saturday next.

The re-scheduled Connacht colleges 4-wall championship finals take place in Claregalway and Moycullen Co. Galway on Saturday next, March 29th. This provincial 2nd level competition which was revived for the first time this year since Covid fell victim to storm Eowyn back in January.

Mohill Community College leads the way with four Annaduff club players in the finals. Peter Cox will compete in the Junior (u15) boys singles grade, while recent All Ireland u15 doubles finalist Maxim Gilmartin will take part in the 1st year boys singles event. Additionally, clubmates Adam Neary and Eoghan Kelly will team up for the 1st year boys doubles competition.

Ballinamore Community School will have Sophie Kane in the 1st year girl’s singles, and she will also be joined by Ella Crinnigan who will compete in the junior (u15) girl’s singles. St Clare’s Comprehensive School Manorhamilton will be represented by Cormac Scarff in the Intermediate (U17) boys single competition.
Best of luck to all the players next weekend. Beir Bua!

Connacht GAA Handball 4-Wall Singles Championship 2025

Adult handball springs back into action next weekend with several Connacht 4-wall singles championship Junior B and Junior C grade matches up for decision. First out for Leitrim will be Manorhamilton’s Peter Boyle who plays Galway’s Padraic McNeela in their Junior B preliminary round match on Saturday evening next, March 29th in Abbeyknockmoy. The very best of luck Peter in his championship match.

David Mahon
OCP Liathroid Láimhe Liatroma
https://www.facebook.com/LeitrimHandball

It’s All Ireland Silver for Leitrim’s Maxim and Daniel after Croke Park weekend to remember.

Two rare, splendid silver All Ireland handball medals came to Leitrim last weekend when Annaduff’s Maxim Gilmartin and Daniel Kane from Fenagh contested the U15 Doubles 4-wall All Ireland Final in Croke Park on Sunday last. Although this talented Leitrim came up short of capturing the title itself, their exploits over the weekend announced to the handball world that Leitrim’s youth can compete with the best in Ireland at underage level!
Fresh from their recent Connacht title victory, the Leitrim duo entered this weekend’s All-Ireland series as underdogs. However, played some masterful handball on Saturday, Maxim and Daniel defied all the odds, booking their All-Ireland final ticket by defeating the highly fancies Tyrone pairing of Conor Molloy and Mickey Nugent in an hour-long match needing a tiebreak game to separate the sides.

The Leitrim duo started their semi-final slowly with some obvious big game nerves showing as they allowing the Tyrone lads to get an early grip on the first game which they couldn’t relinquish. However, regrouping for the second game and with the advantage of serve Maxim pushed them out into an early 3-0 lead before Tyrone quickly clawing it back and moved 6-3 ahead. With serve changing frequently and with protracted rallies, Tyrone was leading on scoreboard at 13-9. However, momentum swung to Leitrim when some exceptional serving from Maxim and strong back play form Daniel wrestled the game to 13 apiece. A fine front-wall play by Maxim sending the ball awkwardly in front of his Tyrone opponent was enough to push the Leitrim lads ahead 14-13. In a tense conclusion where both pairs resorted to deep balls to the back, Daniel Kane found the key to unlock the game when he angled a brilliant long shot off the front wall down onto the side to outmanoeuvre the Tyrone player and take the critical point bringing the match to a tiebreaker!

Maxim and Daniel entered the tiebreaker with a renewed momentum quickly taking serve and pushing into a 7-0 lead. Tyrone was coming back at 7-4 when two lovely low kill shot and a dive to meet an attempted Tyrone kill from Maxim wrestled back server for Leitrim and moved them up into a 10-4 lead. Serve once again changed multiple time, but Maxim and Daniel continued to keep the distance between the Tyrone lads on the scoreboard. At 14-9 and playing for the match, Maxim and Daniel held their nerve in an edgy last few minutes as the Tyrone lads pushed hard. But once again a perfectly powered return from Daniel forced the Tyrone player to snap at his shot, sending it into the roof and down to the floor, giving the critical score to Leitrim and sending their travelling supporters into rapturous applause.

Sunday’s All-Ireland final pitted Maxim and Daniel against the formidable Clare duo of Charlie Collins and Sean McGee. The final developed in a similar fashion to the previous days with the Clare duo racing into an early lead playing tricky low fast serves low along the floor. However, unlike Tyrone, this polished duo never allowed the Leitrim lads an opportunity to get a foothold in the match. Maxim and Daniel rallied hard in the second game to bring the score to 6-6 and give their follows hope that they a repeat of the heroics of the previous day could be on the cards! But that was as close as they got. The Clare combination systematically closed out the match in a workman like fashion with a flurry of fast serves in low along the left wall to the dismay of Maxim, Daniel and the large Leitrim supporters present.

While initially disappointed with not capturing the All-Ireland championship, the Leitrim duo can be very proud of their Connacht championship and All-Ireland silver medals wins this year. Handball historians pointed out that this is in fact the first time that Leitrim juvenile players picked up 4-wall medals in Croke Park, as previous finals would have been played in regional venues! Everyone associated with Leitrim Handball are very proud to have players of the caliber of Maxim and Daniel, and everything they have achieved this weekend. They are a brilliant example for all younger players of what can be achieved with practice and dedication.
Congratulations Maxim and Daniel.

Leitrim Juvenile Handball Trials.

Well done to all the young handball players who took part in the Leitrim Juvenile Handball trials in Drumshanbo on Friday evening last. The prizes on offer on the night were qualification places in the upcoming Connacht Juvenile B championships.  It’s a testament to the growing strength of Leitrim Handball that 58 single and doubles entries were received from the clubs across the county and had to be reduced to 2 entries in each category after some very competitive games.  Congratulation to the following who go forward to the Connacht finals In Roscommon on 23rd March for U11, U12, and U13 categories and March 16th for U14 to U17 categories.
Best of Luck everyone.

Below is a collage from the Leitrim Handball trials, Drumshanbo Friday March 7th.

More images from an eventful weekend in Croke Park and the homecoming !

David Mahon
OCP Liathroid Láimhe Liatroma
https://www.facebook.com/LeitrimHandball

Leitrim’s Maxim and Daniel are Connacht U15 Doubles Champions.
For the third weekend in a row Leitrim was the epicentre of the Connacht juvenile handball world with 30 of the best young players from across the province vying for glory on Sunday last in Fenagh. 11 Connacht boys and girl’s title were up for decision with All-Ireland semi-final places part of the prize on offer. Leitrim Handball had a strong representation of 5 players in action on the day.

First up for Leitrim was Annaduff’s Maxim Gilmartin and Fenagh’s Daniel Kane who needed to overcome the Roscommon duo of Tiernan Hyland and Ryan McDermott in their U15 doubles Connacht Final. Displaying some early nerves, the Fenagh – Annaduff combination had to come from behind in their first game after the Roscommon duo raced into an early 10-3 lead. However, Maxim and Daniel fought their way back into the game to steal the win by the bare minimum. Upping the tempo in the second game the Leitrim pair got to grips with their opposition and went on to secure a famous Connacht title for Leitrim on home soil. Maxim and Daniel now go forward to represent Leitrim in the All-Ireland Juvenile semi-finals in the next few weeks. Times and venue are yet to be decided.
Well done but hard luck to Manorhamilton’s Cormac Scarff & Tadhg Kirwin, and Fenagh’s Katie Kane. They battled hard in their respective matches, but the Connacht title alluded them this time round. While disappointed, Cormac, Tadhg and Katie can rest assured that everyone is very proud of their achievements.

The standard of Handball on display last weekend in Fenagh was first-rate, with each Connacht county winning at least one title.
Congratulations and well done to everyone in Fenagh Handball club who hosted the Connacht Finals with great professionalism on Sunday last. They are setting the standard for other clubs in the county to follow. A special word of thanks to everybody who helped out and to all those who refereed the matches on the day. Also a word of recognition to those who kept the venue and online scoreboard updated ensuring that the results from Fenagh were available online in real-time across the world.

Left – Connacht U15 Doubles champions 2025 – Maxim Gilmartin and Daniel Kane Right Top – Galway – Caoimhe Ní Gloinn defeated Leitrim – Katie Kane in the Connacht Girls U17 final. Right Bottom – Mayo – Sean Nevin and Feidhlim Gulfoyle defeated Leitrim -Cormac Scariff and Tadhg Kirwan. Medals presented by Aengus Cunningham – Roscommon Handball.

Connacht Silver Master Final for Joel and Anthony
Everyone in Leitrim Handball wishes the very best of luck to the Manorhamilton dynamic duo of Joel Smith and Anthony O’Flynn who compete in the Connacht Men’s Silver Masters B Doubles final next weekend. Joel and Anthony will play Francis McDonagh & Aidan McNulty from Mayo in the final.

Connacht Cumann Na mBunscol Handball finals 2025.
Best wishes to all the schoolchildren from Leitrim who will be representing the county in the Connacht finals in Salthill Co. Galway on Saturday next March 1st. Win or lose, this will be a great experience for all involved. Go n-éirí an t-adh libh!

David Mahon
OCP Liathroid Láimhe Liatroma
https://www.facebook.com/LeitrimHandball