Clare duo Diarmaid Nash and Niall Malone suffered defeat in the All-Ireland semi-final of the GAA Handball 40×20 Senior Doubles Championship.
Fresh from their 21-17 21-18 Munster Final victory over Tipperary’s Ger Coonan and David Moroney, the Tuamgraney men were handed a difficult draw against ten-time All-Ireland Champions Paul Brady and Michael Finnegan of Cavan.
The Breffni men controlled affairs from the off and their strong start paid dividends as they claimed the first tie 21-3. Clare’s Nash and Malone improved on their performance in the second game but still struggled to match the might of the Cavan men. Paul Brady was in magnificent form while Nash and Malone had difficulty dealing with hard-hit serves from Michael Finnegan.
A 21-10 win for the Cavan pair was enough to send them through to the All-Ireland decider and knock out the Munster Champions. Brady and Finnegan now face Meath’s Brian Carroll and Tom Sheridan in the All-Ireland final which takes place on April 11th in St Comans, Roscommon.
