Brady opened with intent, using his power serve to great effect and making Healy work for every point. The Mullahoran man opened an 8-1 gap early in the game, before eventually sealing it 21-7. Healy was unable to contain the power of Brady in the opening 45 minutes, but when the questions were asked of the four time champion, he answered them with great conviction.
The Cork man found a new lease of life in the second game, hitting wonderful kills with his left and dominating play from mid-way through the game. At 14-9 down, Brady was under pressure and when he served two short balls, something rarely seen from the man of ultimate composure, the sell-out crowd could sense the game was heading for a decider. The Ballydesmond handballer continued to storm forward, picking off aces, and eventually finished 21-14, getting his just reward of a showdown tiebreaker. Both men pulled in their last reserves, but it was Brady who had more gunfire left in the tank. The Breffni ace continued to power the ball to Healy, who found the going tough in the third game. The sheer athleticism and fitness of Brady saw him cross the finish line at 21-2, and collect the most coveted prize in 40x20 handball, the All-Ireland Senior Singles title. In taking his fourth consecutive title, the Cavan man has now emulated the feat of Kilkenny handball legend, Ducksy Walsh and the Banner County hero, Pat Kirby.
“It’s five out of six titles and it should be six in a row; that one point defeat to Tony in 2004 always spurs me on when I’m looking for a lift.
“It was a great game and started off well, but Tony came back into it and maybe I got a bit complacent, but I always felt I had another gear and I really wanted that win,” said Brady.
Now Brady will being preparations for the Hardball Championship, where he takes on Mayo powerhouse, Dessie Keegan in his first game in the code for 11 years.
Meanwhile, in the DALKIA Ladies Senior Singles Final, Antrim’s Fiona Shannon
collected her their consecutive crown, and seventh overall, when he defeated her St Paul’s clubmate, Aisling Reilly at the same Longford venue in a final that lasted almost two hours.
In the first game, Shannon raced into an 8-0 lead, before Reilly and finished strongly to take the opening game 21-18. The second game began in a similar fashion when Shannon again went 8-0 ahead, but this time the reigning champion was not giving up so easily and in taking the game 21-12, she force what would be a nail-biting tiebreaker. In the third, both players put their
