Beragh, Co.Tyrone, WPH Press, 12/30/23
Breacach Handball Club in Beragh, Co.Tyrone played host to the 2023 GAA Mick Kerr Memorial kicks, the third GAA ranking event of the 2023/24 GAA handball season. The top GAA stars were in action, to include Diarmaid Nash, Peter Funchion, Shane Dunne, Daniel Relihan, David Walsh, Catriona Casey, Ciana Ni Churraoin, Fiona Tully, Eilise McCrory and Martina McMahon and were joined by Race 4 Eight stars Killian Carroll, Martin Mulkerrins, Mark Doyle and Diarmuid Mulkerrins.
Men’s Singles
The Men’s Singles field was one of the strongest in GAA recent history, with current GAA Irish National champion Diarmaid Nash earning the top seed, Peter Funchion grabbing the second seed and current R48 #2 Martin Mulkerrins and 22-time R48 champion Killian Carroll floating in the draw unseeded.
Mulkerrins and Carroll made their way to the finals, as Mulkerrins overcame Nash in three games in the upper bracket semifinals and Carroll also needing three games to oust Funchion in the bottom bracket semifinals. Both Mulkerrins and Carroll dropped close first games of their semifinals matches, with both dominating the second and third games; Mulkerrins outscored Nash 26-6 in the second and third games, while Carroll outscored Funchion 26-3 in the second and third games.
Mulkerrins and Carroll’s rivalry dates back nearly twenty years to their junior clashes. The pair had faced one another twice in 2023, with Carroll defeating Mulkerrins in the final of the 2023 R48 Montana Red Death in the winter and Carroll defeating Mulkerrins again at the 2023 Milwaukee Classic in December. Mulkerrins became one of just five different players to defeat Carroll in a Race 4 Eight final at the 2022 R48 Player’s Championship, snapping Carroll’s seven-tournament, thirty-two match winning streak.
Mulkerrins and Carroll quickly demonstrated why they are two of the world’s most dynamic and exciting players, with the pair playing outrageous shots and rallies from the start of the Kerr final. In his last match before his wedding on December 31, Carroll showed no signs of distraction, as his razor-sharp concentration enabled him to track Martin’s powerful drives and kills. Just as Carroll had done in Montana and Milwaukee, “Flash” ousted Martin in two games to win the Kerr.
“The men’s final saw Mulkerrins and Carroll go at it again,” stated WPH Ireland correspondent David Walsh. “Martin had some great shots and serves in the final but Killian’s intensity and tenacity proved to stand to him again with some unbelievable retrievals and kill shots. It was the first time playing on Irish soil since 2016 for Carroll and Killian impressed the crowd in Brackey Handball Club all week.”
“There was a great atmosphere there today with a big crowd filling the gallery,” stated R48 pro and Mick Kerr player Diarmuid Mulkerrins. “From the very first rally the lads brought a savage intensity to the game. The atmosphere was electric, the game finished as it began, with a crazy rally which had everyone on the edge of their seat.”
Semifinals
Mulkerrins def Nash 12-15, 15-1, 11-5
Carroll def Pet. Funchion 14-15, 15-0, 11-3
Final: Carroll def Mulkerrins 15-10, 15-8
Ladies Singles
Catriona Casey continued her dominating play in the upper bracket in her third GAA start of the 2023/24 season, defeating Aoife Holden in the quarterfinals and Eilise McCrory in the semifinals to advance to her third final of the season and extending her unbeaten streak on the GAA season.
Third-seeded and WR48 #4 Fiona Tully scored the biggest win of her career in the bottom bracket quarterfinals, overcoming 2018 World Champion Martina McMahon in an 11-9 tiebreaker.
Tully would find herself in another tiebreaker in the semifinals, this time coming up short against current 2023 All Ireland 40×20 champion Ciana Ni Churraoin. Ni Churraoin advanced to her second consecutive final of the season, having lost to Casey in the Irish Nationals final in late November.
Casey and Ni Churraoin’s finals clash would be their third in six weeks, with Casey winning their first two encounters in two games at the 2023 Golden Gloves and the 2023 Irish Nationals.
Casey continued her mastery on this season and every season since she entered the GAA Ladies Senior (Open) bracket a decade ago, solving the Ni Churraoin puzzle with alarming ease to win her third event in as many starts this season.
“Catriona played very consistent controlled handball all week and her play in the final was no different,” stated WPH Ireland correspondent David Walsh. “Eilise McCrory said in commentary that it’s very difficult to find a weakness versus Catriona and that proved to be the case for Ciana.”
Semifinals
Casey def McCrory 15-1, 15-6
Ni Churraoin def Tully 10-15, 15-9, 11-2
Final: Casey def Ni Churraoin 15-4, 15-5
2023/24 GAA Ranking Events
Golden Gloves Men’s Open Champion: Robbie McCarthy
Golden Gloves Women’s Open Champion: Catriona Casey
WPH GAA Golden Gloves recap HERE
Irish 4-Wall Adult Nationals Men’s Open Champion: Diarmaid Nash
Irish 4-Wall Adult Nationals Women’s Open Champion: Catriona Casey
WPH GAA Irish Nationals recap HERE
Mick Kerr Men’s Open Champion: Killian Carroll
Mick Kerr Women’s Open Champion: Catriona Casey
To watch the matches, go to the GAA Handball Facebook page HERE
For more on the 2023 GAA Mick Kerr visit GAA Handball HERE
Thank you to David Walsh and Diarmuid Mulkerrins for updates from the 2023 Mick Kerr.
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer