Kilkenny handballers claim success overseas

Kilkenny handballers Anthony Clifford and Kyle Jordan had a Christmas to remember after bringing home gold medals from the USHA National Junior Four-Wall Championships.

Clifford (Talbots Inch Handball Club) and Jordan (Kilfane Handball Club) were two of six Team Ireland representatives which also included Rory Carthy, Leah Manogue, Jodie Keeling and Carmel Kelliher.

In total, the Irish team brought home 11 gold and two silver medals over the course of the four day tournament in San Francisco.

There were over 70 competitors in the competition with players hailing from countries such as the USA, Ireland, Canada and Mexico.

In addition to the six Team Ireland representatives, the Irish pair of Katie Jordan and Caleb Donnellan also took part in the competition. Jordan, who is also a member of the Kilfane club, went on to have a very successful tournament when competing in three different age grades.

The Kilkenny youngster was a singles runner-up in the under-15 and under, a big ball champion in the under-17 and under and a doubles runner-up in the under-19 and under category. It was an impressive array of achievements but it still fell short in comparison to both brother Kyle and Anthony Clifford, who won gold medals in both the singles and doubles competitions.

Clifford took gold in the under-15 singles and under-17 doubles with his singles victory proving to be a very dominant one.

The Talbots Inch star was an impressive 21-0 21-1 winner in his opening match before he faced Colorado’s Eliseo Guttierez in the final.

Like in the semi-final victory, Clifford was much too good for his opponent as he won out on a 21-4 21-0 scoreline to win the gold medal in the under-15 singles category.

Clifford’s success didn’t end there as he teamed up with Rory Carthy from Roscommon in the under-17 doubles. After winning their opening two games in the round robin, they were then awarded a walkover in the final as the Irish pair brought home another victory.

It was also a great week for Kyle Jordan, who booked his place in the under-19 singles decider when having too much for David Sanchez.

California’s Ryan Watkins then awaited in the final. The match featured several incredible rallies, but Jordan was just too strong in the end as he claimed the victory.

Like Clifford, Jordan didn’t stop with the singles victory - he also grabbed success in the under-19 and under doubles category when successfully teaming up with David Sanchez.

All in all it was a really successful couple of days for the Kilkenny trio of Anthony Clifford and the Jordan siblings, Kyle and Katie, as they brought home seven medals in total. The future of handball in the county looks very bright!