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Handball stars shine brightly in London

Published

4 years ago

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Spa Killarney handballers Aoife Walsh, Brendan O'Donoghue, Eoin O'Donoghue and Sinéad Moriarty. Photo: Con Dennehy.

by Con Dennehy

Irish eyes were smiling in London at the weekend following phenomenal performances by Killarney’s handball stars at the prestigious United Kingdom Open One Wall Championship.

The standout players of the championships were Eoin O’Donoghue (Killarney) and John Joe Quirke (Glenbeigh) who were the pride of the Irish on Saturday and Sunday. They put in a devastating display of skill and passion to win the extremely competitive Men’s Doubles B Championship. After prevailing in a number of their opening games, they progressed to the semi-finals where they defeated the French duo of Tom Dutheil and Florina Vaujany 21-11.

In a hard-fought final, the Kerry players beat Naoise Green and Fionn Ó Súilleabháin (Ireland) 25-20 thanks in part to some great play from O’Donoghue.

“I was delighted with the win – it’s a great boost for handball in Kerry,” Eoin said. “We had to use all our experience and skill to edge past the Irish duo and win the title. It’s a great honour for my club, Spa Killarney. Many Kerry people living in London and our own families supported us on both days and this made winning the title very special.

“My doubles partner, John Joe, had a great weekend, winning the singles final and a silver medal in the over 40s doubles event.”

Teams from Ireland, England, France, Italy, USA, UK and Israel competed in the championships with four players from Killarney taking part.

In the Men’s C Singles competition, O’Donoghue finished mid-table in Group B following victories over Irish players Ger Scahill and Ray Carthy and defeat at the hands of James Toop (England) and Declan Keenan.

There was more success for Killarney in the over 40s competition as Brendan O’Donoghue and John Joe Quirke finish runners up in this hotly contested category. They were narrowly defeated by the American team of Carlos Torres and Jay Sanchez.

Elsewhere, Aoife Walsh and Sinéad Moriarty from Spa Killarney Handball Club both reached the semi-finals of the Women’s Singles competition. Walsh defeated Isabel Power (England) 21-4 but lost to Catherine Vos (England) and fellow Irish players Aoife McCarthy and Sinéad Hanley. She lost to Siobhan Prentice 21-16 in the semi-final.

Moriarty was defeated by Anastasya Spiridonov (Israel) and Irish players Sabrina Hughes and Siobhan Prentice while in the semi-final she was defeated by Catherine Vos (England) in a very exciting contest.

There was some consolation for the Killarney pair in the doubles competition where they finished a very credible third overall and just out of the medals after a classic encounter with the English duo of India Blaksley and Becky Connell.

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Contactless payments launched on Local Link services

Published

17 hours ago

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14 April 2026

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Passengers using TFI Local Link Kerry services in Killarney and across the county can now pay for their journeys using contactless card payments.

The National Transport Authority (NTA) confirmed the rollout this week, allowing commuters to simply tap their debit card, credit card, or mobile devices, such as Apple Pay and Google Pa, when boarding.

The move is designed to offer more convenience for those using high-frequency rural and regional routes.

In Killarney, the new payment option will be available on the TFI Anseo town services, which have seen a significant increase in passenger numbers since their introduction.

The contactless system is currently available for single journey fares, while those using daily or weekly passes can continue to use the Leap website or the TFI Leap Top Up App.
Alan O’Connell, General Manager of TFI Local Link Kerry, welcomed the modernisation of the fleet.

“The introduction of contactless payments is another welcome step forward for public transport in Kerry,” he said. “It complements other major projects in the county, including the expansion of TFI Local Link services and the delivery of TFI Anseo in Killarney, which is proving to be another great initiative.”

While the new technology offers a modern alternative, traditional payment methods are not being phased out. Cash payments, TFI Leap cards, and Free Travel Cards all remains fully valid across the network.

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How will our Kerry TDs vote tomorrow?

Published

2 days ago

on

13 April 2026

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Tomorrow, Sinn Féin will be tabling a motion of no confidence against the Government after the protests that took place nationwide during the week.

Earlier today we asked our readers how would they vote in a no confidence motion against the Government?

Most of our readers said they would vote no confidence, while some said, yes they do have confidence in the Government.

One reader said: “Vote confidence. The only proper leadership over the last few days came from government. Courage came when needed despite how unpopular it looked in the moment. By contrast, opposition politicians wanted the country to burn to suit themselves”.

Another reader stated: “No confidence. Shambolic and heavy handed handling of protests this past week”.

However, some people didn’t have any confidence in either side with a reader saying: “No confidence in the no confidence! Different wings of the same bird! We need a complete overhaul of the political system”.

We asked the question to our 5 Kerry TDs before lunch-time today, asking them what their vote will be tomorrow.

We received one reply from Sinn Féin’s Kerry TD Pa Daly.

He will be voting no confidence in the Government tomorrow along with his party.

Other media outlets are reporting that Independent TD Danny Healy-Rae is undecided at the moment.

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