Kennedy rolls back the years to stun McCarthy

Eoin Kennedy’s legacy as one of the greatest handballers in the history of the sport has long been secured but the manner of his extraordinary win over Robbie McCarthy last Saturday may nudge him up a spot or two in the all-time rankings.

Written off in the build-up and trounced in the opening set, 35-year-old Kennedy conjured up some of the old magic to complete a fairytale comeback against champion McCarthy in a magnificent M Donnelly All-Ireland 60x30 senior singles final in Abbeylara, Co. Longford.

The win marked a ninth title for Kennedy (35), but first since 2010, and he went into the match as heavy underdog against the four-in-a-row-seeking Westmeath man.

However, Kennedy rolled back the years with a remarkable display of controlled, aggressive handball which saw him stun his younger opponent and record the biggest upset of the season — and perhaps the decade.

McCarthy lived up to his billing in the first game, holding centre-court, pinning Kennedy back and consistently ending rallies with fly kills off either side to win 21-5.

But Kennedy clawed his way back into the contest and, killing consistently down the right side against a suddenly gun-shy McCarthy, he took game two 21-17 and, astonishingly, rode his momentum to build up a 13-1 lead in the decider.

The powerful McCarthy suddenly found his groove again and stormed back to 10-15 but the veteran’s nerve held and, utilising a lob serve and aggressive strategy, Kennedy closed the match out 21-14 amid joyous scenes.

A tearful Kennedy described McCarthy as “a great, great champion”, but gave no indication as to his immediate future.

On the undercard, Meath’s Gary McConnell defeated Galway’s Martin Mulkerrins to take home the intermediate singles on a scoreline of 12-21, 21-6, 21-7, while the minor singles went to Tyrone for the first time as Johnny Woods defeated Tipperary’s Daniel Hayes 4-21, 21-4, 21-19.