World 4-Wall Championship
2024
The World 4-Wall Championships were held in Ireland last week in what was a huge occasion for all involved. Traditionally the Worlds are held every 3 years alternating between America, Canada and Ireland. The matches were held in Carlow Kilkenny, Kildare, Wicklow, Laois and Wexford venues aswell as our National Handball Centre in Croke Park.
St Mary’s Secondary School had three students representing their country on the World stage. Isla Mai Redmond, Elsa O`Neill and Freya Murphy entered the unknown as it was their first World Championship and unbelieveably came home with World titles and more importantly a World Medal around their necks.
Isla Mai Redmond & Elsa O`Neill (Templeudigan Handball Club) entered a very difficult 13&U Doubles campagin with the best players Handball has to offer in the World showdown. Beating some good pairings along the way they reached the final taking on up and coming star Victoria Dunbar and her partner Mollie Gilbert. It was Dunbar and Gilbert who took early advantage in this encounter as they shot into a 7-0 lead. It got worse for the Templeudigan girls as they went a further 10-2 and 14-5 down in a race to 21. After a well needed strategic timeout was called to break the concentration of their opponents Redmond and O`Neill regrouped and started to eat into that lead. 14-5 became 14-10 with the hard hitting Redmond serving rockets down the left onto Dunbar, O`Neill waiting in support for any shot that came her way. O`Neill was clinically putting balls into the corners or around the walls quickly snuffing out any danger that was arising from the Dunbar/Gilbert combination fightback. The momentum was firmly with the Templeudigan girls as they kept the scoreboard moving and swiftly closing out the match 21-14 taking the 13&U World Doubles Title back to Templeudigan Handball Club.
Freya Murphy joined forces with Mikaela Kavanagh (Taghmon Handball Club) and took the 15&U World Title back to (Davidstown Handball Club) with a superb 15-13 15-7 win over Mary-Jo Morris and Kayleigh McCoole from (Tyrone). The former Templeudigan star and her partner went through the rounds swatting their opponents aside to reach the final and eager to take on the northern duo in the Final. The first game was hugely important as it took a lot out of the girls in a closely fought match with Murphy and Kavanagh just about holding out to take the game 15-13. They had now broken the will of Morris and McCoole who didn’t have any answers to the Wexford girls who were now all over them and smelling victory as it neared the end. They did close out the game and the match 15-7 and were duly crowned 15&U World Doubles Champions 2024
