Preview: oneills.com All-Ireland Senior Singles handball semi-finals
The Men’s semi-finals have produced two intriguing ties. First up is the meeting of 2022 champion Diarmaid Nash of Clare and Kilkenny’s Peter Funchion.
Funchion is in the form of his life, having won his maiden All-Ireland Senior Doubles title last year alongside his brother Paddy and added the Irish Nationals Open Singles crown in November last. He came through Meath’s Brian Carroll and Corkmen Shane Hedigan and Daniel Relihan, all in straight games, to reach this point.
Nash has the edge on experience, having won all of the major domestic titles in singles and doubles as well as the US Nationals; the Scariff hurler also made the final of the World Championships in 2024, losing in a tiebreaker to Paul Brady, and he remains as hungry as ever to add more titles to his CV.
While he stated afterwards that he felt he had played relatively well in his quarter-final against Cork’s Michael Hedigan, which went the distance, Nash will know that improvement will be needed. However, the left-hander can generally be relied upon to produce the goods on the big occasion and while this is quite likely to be a long match, Nash deserves the favourite’s tag.
The last of the semi-finals sees David Walsh of Cork take on Westmeath’s Robbie McCarthy. The Mallow right-hander (26) is the youngest of the four remaining and arguably the most exciting to watch, with a penchant for low-percentage kills and spin serves.
After reaching the final last year, where he lost to Brady in three, Walsh’s form dipped a little but he is coming good again and will be hopeful of repeating his stunning 2024 Worlds quarter-final win over McCarthy.
The Mullingar maestro took some time out after the softball season, having intimated he was hanging up his gloves, but he has made a welcome return and has been moving very well. McCarthy’s legacy is secure whereas Walsh is still seeking a first senior title.
The clash of styles – McCarthy’s deft touches and clinical placement versus Walsh’s shoot-on-sight approach and blistering hop serves – should make for an enthralling match, with McCarthy arguably the safer bet. A Walsh win, however, would not rank as a seismic upset.
All four matches will be streamed live on the Spórt TG4 YouTube channel.
