Southern Classic Elite Men’s 4 Wall Ranking Event and She’s Ace
WPH Press, Ireland, 1/22/23
GAA Handball hosted its third Men’s and Women’s Ranking events of the 2022/23 season on the third weekend in January, with players aiming to round into peak form for the upcoming All Ireland Championships.
Southern Classic Elite Men’s 4 Wall Ranking Event
Diarmaid Nash entered the Southern Classic as the top seed but was unable to find the form that saw him dominate two of the biggest championships in 2022. After sweeping Gavin Buggy in the upper bracket quarterfinals, Nash was bounced in two games by Daniel Relihan, who announced himself as a contender for the upcoming Championships.
Playing in his second event of the season, Robbie “The Buzzsaw” McCarthy was aiming for his second title of the season after dominating the Golden Gloves in late 2022. The Buzzsaw continued his quest to regain the top spot in GAA Handball, surrendering just ten combined points in his quarterfinal and semifinal wins (60-10, 86%).
Despite losing in the semifinal to McCarthy, David Walsh authored one of the season’s biggest upsets and comebacks, rallying from 0-9 in the tiebreaker against Colin Crehan to win 11-10, as DW continues to climb the GAA rankings.
McCarthy continued his merciless assault on the GAA fields in the final, ending Relihan’s Cinderella run with a convincing two-game sweep.
“Robbie really set the bar, he was impressive all weekend,” stated WPH Ireland correspondent David Walsh. “I think it’s fair to say he’s the favourite heading into the All Ireland Championship in the next few weeks.”
Quarterfinals
Diarmaid Nash (Clare) dft. Gavin Buggy (Wexford) 15-7, 15-7
David Walsh (Cork) dft. Colin Crehan (Clare) 15-5, 10-15, 11-10
Robbie McCarthy (Westmeath) dft. Ryan Mullan (Tyrone) 15-1, 15-5
Daniel Relihan (Cork) dft Brendan Fleming (Cork) 15-7, 15-10
Semifinals:
Daniel Relihan (Cork) dft Diarmaid Nash (Clare) 15-6, 15-14
Robbie McCarthy (Westmeath) dft David Walsh (Cork) 15-2, 15-2
Final: Robbie McCarthy (Westmeath) dft. Daniel Relihan (Cork) 15-8 15-5
She’s Ace Elite Women’s 4 Wall Ranking Event
She’s Ace featured the third GAA Women’s ranking event of the 2022/23 GAA season, with the event guaranteeing a third different champion in the three events.
WR48 #2 Fiona Tully advanced to the final by overcoming Mollie Dagg in the upper bracket, while former WR48 #2 Ciana Ni Churraoin overcame Eilise McCrory, one of the WR48’s newest stars, in a thrilling bottom bracket semifinal.
Tully and Ni Churraoin kicked off what promises to be one of the sport’s most exciting rivalries in the final, as the two shot makers split the first two games before CNC was able to pull away in the decider.
“Fiona and Ciana was a great game, both players had their moments in the game,” stated Walsh. “The tiebreaker Ciana managed to gain some momentum and sealed the win.”
Semifinals:
Fiona Tully (Roscommon) dft. Mollie Dagg (Kildare) 31-20
Ciana Ni Churraoin (Galway) dft. Eilise McCrory (Tyrone) 31-25
Final: Ciana Ni Churraoin (Galway) dft. Fiona Tully (Roscommon) 12-15 15-9 11-4
Thank you to WPH Ireland correspondent David Walsh for reporting from the 2023 Southern Classic Elite Men’s 4 Wall and She’s Ace
Photos courtesy of GAA Handball
2022 GAA Golden Gloves recap HERE
2022 GAA Mick Kerr recap HERE
Follow the Southern Classic and She’s Ace and to watch the matches, go HERE
For more on GAA Handball, go HERE
David Fink and David Walsh