Laois handballers enjoy great success in the Leinster 40x20 Championships
2026 Girls U/17 Leinster 40x20 Singles finalists Annie Grant (Laois) and Ruth Hassey (Wexford) being presented with their medals by Leinster GAA Handball delegate Billy Love
FOLLOWING on from a hugely successful 2025 for Laois handball that saw both provincial and All-Ireland titles captured by Laois handballers, there was optimism in the county that 2026 could deliver further handballing success. Throughout January and February our handballers were in action in the 2026 Leinster 40x20 Singles Championship with a number of our players holding realistic medal prospects.
In the Leinster 40x20 Juvenile Championships, Laois were represented in two Leinster finals with Annie Grant (St Brigid’s, Monavea) progressing to the Girls U/17 singles final and Aoife Kelly and Ellie Lafferty (Cullohill Handball Club) progressing to the Girls U/17 doubles final.
In reaching the final, Annie Grant produced a superb performance to defeat Kilkenny’s Kate Begley in her semi-final while the pairing of Aoife Kelly and Ellie Lafferty also overcame strong Kilkenny opposition to book their place in the final.
Annie Grant was first into action with homecourt advantage against Ruth Hassey of Wexford. There were high hopes that the Vicarstown native could capture the Leinster title based on her impressive performances leading up to the final. The Laois handballer did not disappoint the large Laois support on the night, with a breathtaking performance of skill and determination.
Annie won the opening game in dominant fashion recording a 21-06 victory. The second game followed a similar pattern with Annie maintaining her high level of play to take the second game on a 21-01 scoreline. It was a brilliant performance by the Laois handballer and a very well-deserved Girls U17 Leinster title for a player who has put a tremendous amount of effort into improving her game over the past 12 months.
Aoife Kelly and Ellie Lafferty travelled to Croke Park for their Girls U/17 Leinster 40x20 Doubles final against Mikaela Kavanagh and Kacey Coleman of Wexford. The Laois pairing knew that they would have to produce an incredibly performance in the final if they were to defeat the hugely talented Wexford pairing.
The Cullohill handballers battled bravely in the final and never threw in the towel. However, the Wexford girls proved too strong on the day and deservedly won the Leinster title two games to nil. Despite the loss, it was a tremendous achievement by the Laois girls to reach the Leinster final, especially having defeated a very strong Kilkenny pairing along the way.
The Leinster Adult 40X20 Championships proved very successful for Laois handball with a number of Laois handballers progressing to the business end of these championships.
Playing in the Ladies Leinster Junior Championship, Úna Brophy was expected to challenge for the title considering the excellent form she showed in 2025. The Cullohill handballer proved equal to these high expectations, progressing to the Leinster Final after a resounding 21-10, 21-12 victory over Katie Jordan (Kilkenny) in her semi-final. In the final she faced a strong opponent in Margaret Purcell (Kilkenny).
The first game was a close affair, with Brophy finishing the stronger to take it on a 21-15 scoreline. The second game was competitive throughout but it was the Laois player who had the upper hand and deservedly took the Ladies Leinster Junior Championship title on a 21-15, 21-10 scoreline.
This was a very well-deserved title for a player who has brought her game to a new level in 2026.
In the Ladies Junior B Championships, Úna Brophy’s younger sister Orla was also celebrating a fantastic provincial success when she delivered a truly outstanding performance to defeat Meath’s Sinead Forde in two games. This was Orla Brophy’s first adult provisional title having stepped up from playing minor the previous year.
In the final, she showed great maturity, confidence and skill to record a 21-15, 21-11 victory to be crowned Ladies Leinster Junior B Singles champion for 2026.
In the Men’s Leinster Championship, Brian Brennan and Eamon Brennan (Monavea) produced a battling performance but were edged out by their Wexford opponents in their Last 16 encounter in the Junior B Championships.
In the Junior C Championships, the Cullohill pairing of Pauric Walsh and Conor Delaney lost in three games to a strong Wexford pairing in Eamon Codd and Brian Busher.
In the Diamond Masters B, Eddie Dunne produced a superb performance to defeat Martin McKenna in a closely fought Leinster semi-final. Dunne then faced Dublin’s Enda Timoney in the final where the Dublin player proved to be too strong for Cullohill handballer on the day.
In the Golden Masters A, Kevin Brennan recorded an impressive opening round victory of Offaly’s Conor O’Brien. However, in his semi-final he was beaten by a very strong opponent in Barry McWilliams of Wexford.
