James Doyle from Armagh & Darren Flynn from the host club Abbeylara club  secured the Patrick Hyland Cup with an exciting tie break win over Clare’s Niall Malone & Diarmuid Nash on Sunday 9th August.  The Armagh/Longford Combination had to withstand a determined fight back and a few tense moments before finally securing the win. Keith Kavanagh & Jerome Willoughby also had a battle in hand and had to come from a game down before lifting the John Carthy Cup in 3 games in the Junior final. Armagh bring colour to Abbeylara and brought home the trophies This year had an international flavour to it with the Cohen brothers Tom & Tom making the long journey from Chicago to take part. For the first time in its history over 100 players took part from 18 county’s in the weekend’s tournament.  Saturday seen the Juveniles take centre stage with grades in Boys/Girls U-14 to U-18 level. Conor McMahon young stars brought great colour to Abbeylara in theirArmagh shirts and a number of them were smiling that evening going home with winners trophies. Aoife McConville & Niamh Coleman both Armagh had a fine 15-11, 15-4 win over Eimear ni Bhiadha Galway & Lauren Farrelly Meath in the Girls U-12 doubles final. Daniel Curry from Wicklow a winner in this years One-Wall Nationals in Castlebar partnered Oisin Walsh Wexford in the Boys U-12 final. The duo proved too strong for a battling Tyrone team of Niall Allison & Sean Kerr. There was further success for Armagh with Niamh Henderson powering to an emphatic 15-4, 15-1 victory over Galway’s Adhna ni Bhrearonain in the Girls U-14 decider. Monaghan’s Darren Doherty is having a spectacular year in handball having already won Envirogreen 40 x 20 Nationals & Ladbrokes One-Wall Nationals. Doherty was in sparkling form as he teamed up with Down’s Pat Havern as they took the U-14 honours at the expense of Tyrone’s Gabhain McCrystal & Pol Clarke.  Niall O’Connor from the Leixlip club in Kildare had a tough final assignment  with Monaghan’s Terry McElvaney in the days U-16 finale. The young Lilywhite was severely tested before eventually winning over 3 well contested games. Lorraine Havern from Down defeated Mayo’s Amy Corrigan in the Girls U-18 final in straight games.Farrell’s Foodstore in Abbeylara kindly sponsored the trophies. Maggie Farrell was on hand to present the winners & runners-up with their trophies.
	The following day seen the adults into action. Six teams entered the Patrick Hyland Cup for senior grades and in the Junior for the John Carthy Cup there was a huge entry of 16 teams. Both Senior & Junior semi-finals were keenly contested so much so an amazing statistic afterwards had shown that in  all 4 semi-finals only 1 point separated the teams in the 4 semi’s. Having edged out the Heraty brothers from Mayo only after extra time by the minimum 23-22, Wicklow’s Jerome Willoughby & Keith Kavanagh last year’s runners-up look went in as favourites to win the Junior final. Willoughby unlaoished” as Wicklow win Carthy Cup final Jerome Willoughby & Keith Kavanagh looked the more balanced side but  Laois’s Andrew Dowling & Thomas Lennon had other ideas however.  Wicklow opened brightly and were 8-0 up before Laois found their feet. Laois with it all to do fought back bravely. With Dowling skillfully returning shorts with his left hand on his right side, and Lennon gradually getting good positions. Once Laois levelled at 8-8 the momentum was with them as they took the 1st game by 15-9. Wicklow regrouped after the break. At 3-3 Willoughby exerted pressure on Laois and moved up a couple of gears. Willoughby in particular playing on the right hand side got into good central positions near the front and he was able to dictate play. He was able to send a number of accurate passing shots past Lennon’s right hand side with Lennon caught out of position. The tide had now turned in Wicklow’s favour as they raced to an 15-5 win in game two thus forcing a tie break. Wicklow stormed into an unassailable 8-0 lead in the final game. Last year’s runners-up made up for the disappointment.  Despite 2 points in reply from Laois, Wicklow were not going to be denied as they finished strongly winning the tie break by 11-2. Marie Carthy presented the John Carthy Cup to the winners Jerome Willoughby& Keith Kavanagh and runners-up medals to Andrew Dowling & Thomas Lennon.
Flynn’s first & Doyle’s third Hyland Cup final victory The scene was set for the highlight of the weekend the final of the Patrick Hyland Cup with a good crowd now assembled. World handball champion Paul Brady was also in attendance looking fresh and relaxed.  The Armagh/Longford combination of James Doyle & Darren Flynn faced the might of the banner County in the form of rising young stars in Niall Malone & Diarmuid Nash. Doyle & Flynn took an early lead but it was soon whittled away. Doyle the experienced Irish International One-Wall player played solid throughout while Flynn despite a shaky start shook off the cobwebs and played some inspirational handball. Doyle & Flynn forged ahead by 7-3.  Clare were getting it hard to comes to terms with their opponents who seemed to be pulling away even at this early stage. Nash coolly called a time out. This seemed to have the desired effect for Clare who rallied shortly afterwards. They in turn, turned it around into an 9-7 lead.  Doyle & Flynn kept the Clare lads in their radar and drew level at 10 and again at 11.  Doyle kept encouraging  his doubles partner Flynn for more effort and he duly obliged.  Nash & Malone continually bombarded Flynn’s right but the Abbeylara man didn’t wilt under the incessant pressure. Instead like a true champion in any sport he drew strength from it. Doyle helped out his overworked team mate a nice left handed kill and a peach of a serve that landed inch perfect on the left angle of the base line to Malone’s left corner. Doyle’s return shot on game ball straight down the middle deceived both players who were unsure who was to return the ball. Doyle/Flynn taking game one by 15-11
	Game 2 was equally as close with scores tied on no less than 4 occasions at 3,5,8, & 11. The Clare men always seemed to have that little bit more in them as Doyle & Flynn were playing catch up all  the game. Malone & Nash finished strongly by 15-11 forcing yet another tie-breaker. Flynn fantastic as Doyle celebrates historic win In the tie breaker Doyle & Flynn started like an express train and they built up a good 6-0 lead.  Darren Flynn came into his own and returned everything that Clare could throw at him.  Clare managed 2 points but it was never going to be enough against a more resolute & resurgent Doyle & Flynn. The “Flying Flynn” was now in unstoppable mode and even his more illustrious playing partner could now smile at Flynn’s exploits.  Time and time again Flynn returned magnificently and Doyle cleaned up with a number of important winners. Try as they did Clare could not break the stranglehold the Doyle & Flynn now had.  Fittingly it was Flynn to won the contest in style with a kill into the left to record an 11-2 tie break win. Amusingly, it was Doyle’s third successive win in the  Patrick Hyland Cup in as many years having won 2007 with David King, 2008 with Charly Shanks and the latest with Darren Flynn.  Maggie Farrell presented the winners and runners-up with their trophies shortly afterwards.  Immediately after the presentations James Doyle in a lovely gesture handed the cup to his doubles partner Flynn. Mary & Anna O’Reilly and the hard working committee deserve every thanks for hosting this years One-Wall tournament with refreshments provided on both days. For Eugene O’Reilly Chief Organizer all his hard work paid off. His organizational abilities and good humour despite a heavy work load was greatly appreciated by players and supporters alike. The Committee in Abbeylara can be justly proud of their efforts. Even the Gods were smiling down on Abbeylara as the rain bearing clouds that threatened overhead for the outdoor finals stayed away. Already the 2010 Abbeylara tournament is eagerly awaited.

Abbeylara One-Wall 2009 Full Results
courtesy of Maria and Siobhan Gilligan

Junior Doubles - John Carthy Cup

Round of 16:
Jerome Willoughby/Keith Kavanagh dft Maria/Siobhan Gilligan 21-13
Terry McElvaney/Darren Doherty (Monaghan/Armagh) dft Oisin Naughton/ Tommy McGrath (Roscommon) 28-8
Andrew Dowling/Tomas Lennon (Laois) dft Brain Early/ Tom Cohen (Longford/USA) 31-2
Danny Reilly/Jamie Murray (Dublin/Leitrim) dft Mairghread NiRiabhaigh-O’Duill/ Aoife McCArthy (Armagh/Westmeath) 20-15
Peter Flanagan/Marianna Rushe (Meath/Roscommon) dft Sinead Sheridan/Michael Hannon (Longford/Cavan) 31-12
Richard Willoughby/Tim Cohen (Wicklow/USA) dft Maria/Amy Corrigan (Mayo) 25-16
Brain/Shane Hearty (Mayo) dft Frank Semple/Tom Cohen (Wicklow/USA) 16-13

Quarter Finals:
Jerome Willoughby/Keith Kavanagh (Wicklow) dft Jamie Murray/Danny Reilly (Leitrim/Dublin) 27-13
Andrew Dowling/Tomas Lennon dft Alan Smith/Stuart Heslin (Louth) 23-11
Peter Flanagan/Marianna Rushe (Meath/Mayo) dft Richard Willoughby/Tim Cohen (Wicklow/USA) 18-7
Shane/Brain Hearty (Mayo) dft Terry McElvaney/Darren Doherty (Monaghan) 18-7

Semi Finals:
Andrew Dowling/Tomas Lennon (Laois) dft Peter Flanagan/Marianna Rushe (Meath/Roscommon) 17-16
Jerome Willoughby/Keith Kavanagh(Wicklow) dft Shane/Brian Hearty (Mayo) 22-21

Plate Quarter Finals:
Oisin Naughton/Tommy McGrath (Roscommon) dft Mairghread NiRiabhaigh/Aoife McCarthy (Armagh/Westmeath) 29-7
Maria/Siobhan Gilligan (Longford) dft Brian Early/Tom Cohen (Longford/USA)
23-22
Fintan Creamer/Eddie Halligan dft Amy/Maria Corrigan (Mayo) 21-9
Alan Smith/Stuart Heslin (Louth) dft Frank Semple/ Tom Cohen (Wicklow/USA) 24-13
Alan Smith/Stuart Heslin (Louth) dft Sinead Sheridan/Michael Hannon (Longford/Cavan) 23-6

Plate Semi Finals:
Fintan Creamer/Eddie Halligan (Longford/Cavan) dft Maria/Siobhan Gilligan (Longford) 31-3
Oisin Naughton/Tommy McGrath (Roscomman) dft Alan Smith/Stuart Heslin (Louth)

Plate Final:

Oisin Naughton/Tommy McGrath (Roscomman) dft Fintan Creamer/Eddie Halligan (Longford/Cavan) 15-9,15-7

Cup Final:
Jerome Willoughby/Keith Kavanagh (Wicklow) dft Andrew Lennon/Tomas Dowling (Laois) 9-15,15-5,11-2

Open Doubles - Patrick Hyland Cup

Quarter Finals:
Robert McCarthy Sr/Robert McCarthy Jr v Bye
James Doyle/Darren Flynn (Armagh/Longford) dft Niall O’Connor/Martin Mulkerrins (Kildare/Galway) 28-11
Diarmaid Nash/Niall Malone (Clare) dft Paul Fitzpatrick/James Brady 21-10
Ian McLoughlin/Stephen Cooney v Bye

Semi Finals:
Diarmaid Nash/Niall Malone (Clare) dft Robert McCarthy Sr/Jr (Westmeath) 18-17
James Doyle/Darren Flynn (Armagh/Longford) dft Ian McLoughlin/Stephen Cooney (Mayo) 16-15

Plate Semi Finals:
James Brady/Paul Fitzpatrick (Cavan) dft Martin Mulkerrins/Niall O’Connor 24-16
Ian McLoughlin/Stephen Cooney (Mayo) dft Robert McCarthy Sr/Robert McCarthy Jr W/O (Inj)

Plate Final:
James Brady/Paul Fitzpatrick (Cavan) dft Ian McLoughlin/Stephen Cooney (Mayo) 15-8,15-5
 
Cup Final:
James Doyle/Darren Flynn (Armagh/Longford) dft Diarmaid Nash/Niall Malone (Clare) 15-8, 11-15, 11-2
 
 

Abbeylara One-Wall Juvenile Results – with thanks to Eugene O’Reilly

Boys Under 12 (Doubles)
Quarter Finals:
Daniel Curry/Oisin Foley (Wicklow/Wexford) bye
David Wrynn/James McGuire (Leitrim) dft Aidan Brady/Caolan O Reilly (Longford) 38-10
Sean Kerr/Niall Allison (Tyrone) dft Michael Wrynn/Robert McGuire (Leitrim) 30-2
Daniel Browne/Tommy Mongey (Meath) dft Colm Brady/Oliver Lynch (Longford) 23-13

Semi Finals:
Daniel Curry/Oisin Foley (Wicklow/Wexford) dft David Wrynn/James McGuire Leitrim 31-1
Sean Kerr/Niall Allison(Tyrone) dft Alan Doonan/Alan Wrynn(Leitrim) 31-6

Plate Final:
Michael Wrynn/Robert McGuire (Leitrim) dft Aidan Brady/Caolan O’Reilly (Longford) 15-1, 15-2

Cup Final:
Daniel Curry/ Oisin Foley (Wicklow/Wexford) dft Niall Allison/ Sean Kerr (Tyrone) 15-7, 15-5

Boys Under 14 (Doubles)
Preliminary
Christopher Finn/Dermot Moloney (Mayo) dft Colm Brady/Oliver lynch (Longford)
John Lawlor/ Jonathan Mc Govern(Galway/Meath) dft Dean O’Shea/Mark Connell (Longford)

Quarter Finals:
Darren Doherty/Pat Havern (Armagh/Down) dft Daniel Browne/Tommy Mongey(Meath) 31-2
Robert Fox/Evan Sheridan (Meath) dft Chris Finn/Dermot Moloney (Mayo) 31-4
Pol Clarke/Gabhain Mc Crystal(Tyrone) dft Mark Leddy/Aaron Scollan(Leitrim) 31-3
Patrick Mc Rory/Jonathan Woods (Tyrone) dft John Lawlor/ Jonathan Mc Govern(Galway/Meath) 20-13

Plate Semi Finals:
Chris Finn/Dermot Moleney (Mayo) dft Colm Brady/ Oliver Lynch (Longford) 24-14
Dean O Shea/Mark Connell (Longford) dft Mark Leddy/ Aaron Scollan (Leitrim) 31-7

Semi Finals:
Darren Doherthy/Pat Havern (Armagh/Down) dft Robert Fox/Evan Sheridan (Meath) 31-4
Pol Clarke/Gabhain McCrystall (Tyrone) dft Patrick Mc Rory/Jonathan Woods (Tyrone) 18-14

Plate Final:
Dean O’Shea/Mark Connell (Longford) dft Christopher Finn/Dermot Moloney (Mayo) 21-18
 

Cup Final:
Darren Doherthy/Pat Havern (Monaghan/Down) dft Pol Clarke/Gabhainn McCrystal
(Tyrone) 15-3, 15-3

Boys Under 16
Quarters Finals:
Niall O’Connor (Kildare) bye
Terry Mc Elvaney dft Cathal Sheridan 19-12
Michael Lawlor (Galway) dft Fionn O’Donoghue (Cavan) 31-7
Keith Kavanagh (Wicklow) bye

Semi Finals:
Niall O’Connor (Kildare) dft Michael Lawlor 31-11
Terry McElvaney (Monaghan) dft Keith Kavanagh (Wicklow) 25-19

Plate Semi Final:
Cathal Sheridan (Cavan) dft Fionn O’Donoghue (Cavan) 11-10
Keith Kavanagh (Wicklow) bye

Plate Final:
Keith Kavanagh (Wicklow) dft Cathal Sheridan (Cavan) 15-1,15-3

Cup Final:
Niall O’Connor (Kildare) dft Terry McElvaney (Monaghan) 15-5, 11-15, 11-3

Boys Under 18
No Competition
Girls Under 12 (Doubles)
Quarter Finals:
Eimear Ni Bhiadha/ Lauren Farrelly (Galway/Meath) bye
Sinead Ni Maoilain/Anna Ni Odhrain(Galway) dft Aoibhinn Henderson/Kaitlin Fleville (Armagh) 32-9
Meabh McMahon/Aisling Kearney (Armagh) dft Lauren Burke/Shannon McIntyre (Longford) w/o
Niamh Coleman/Aoife Mc Conville(Armagh) bye

Semi Finals:
Eimear Ni Bhiadha/ Lauren Farrelly (Galway/Meath) dft Meabh McMahon/ Aisling Kearney (Armagh)  31-2
Niamh Coleman/Aoife Mc Conville(Armagh) dft Sinead Ni Maoilain/ Anna Ni Odhrain(Galway) 24-18

Plate Semi Final:
Aoibhinn Henderson/ Kaitlinn Fleville (Armagh) dft Lauren Burke/ Shannon McIntyre (Longford) 31-10
Meabh McMahon/Aisling Kearney (Armagh) bye

Plate Final:
Aoibhinn Henderson/ Kaitlin Fleville (Armagh) dft Meabh McMahon/Aisling Kearney (Armagh) 15-9, 15-7

Cup Final:
Aoife McConville/ Niamh Coleman (Armagh) dft Eimear Ni Bhiadha/ Lauren Ferrelly (Galway/ Meath)

Girls Under 14
Semi Finals:
Adhna Ni Bhrearonain (Galway) dft Ciara Connell (Longford) 32-5
Niamh Henderson (Armagh) dft Lisa Ni Cadhain (Galway) 31-5

Plate Final:
Lisa Ni Cadhain (Galway) dft Ciara Connell (Longford) 15-6,15-2

Cup Final:
Niamh Henderson (Armagh) dft Adhna Ni Bhraonain (Galway) 15-5,15-1

Girls Under 16
No Competition

Girls Under 18
Quarter Finals:
Aoife Mc Carthy (Westmeath) dft Anna Madine 18-11
Lorraine Havern (Down) dft Sinead Ni hAinli (Galway) 28-18
Amy Corrigan (Mayo) dft Ciana Ni Churraoin (Galway) 21-18
Mary Duffy (Mayo) dft Rebecca Mulholland (Kilkenny) w/o

Semi Finals:
Amy Corrigan (Mayo) dft Aoife McCarthy (Westmeath) 19-14
Lorraine Havern (Down) dft Mary Duffy (Mayo) 30-6

Plate Semi Finals:
Ciana Ni Churraoin (Galway) dft Anna Madine (Down) 31-4
Sinead Ni hAinli (Galway) dft Mary Duffy (Mayo) 20-11

Plate Final:
Ciana Ni Churraoin (Galway) dft Sinead Ni hAinli (Galway) 15-4,15-12

Cup Final:
Lorraine Havern (Down) dft Amy Corrigan (Mayo) 15-6,15-11