Robert McCarthy Jnr provided further evidence of why he is regarded as one the brightest young handballers in the country by winning a string of titles over the past 12 months. The astounding success of Robert McCarthy Jnr proved the highlight of another eventful year for Westmeath handball. On the national front, the hugely talented youngster from Lynn Heights, Mullingar teamed up with Delvin's John O'Shaughnessy to win the under 16 doubles on both the 40x20 and 60x30 courts. McCarthy also won two All-Ireland colleges titles in the colours of Mullingar Community College. In the latter part of 2002, he flew out to Chicago to represent Ireland in the USHA 15-and-under singles and succeeded in returning home with the top prize. Throughout the tournament, McCarthy played with poise and purpose, eliminating hand errors and using his talent and intelligence to dictate every match, including his 21-4, 21-6 final win over home town favourite Carlos Lemus. The final was a testament to McCarthy's skill and fitness with his American opponent unable to set the type of pace that had taken him to the decider. The first game started with McCarthy taking a quick 6-2 lead, followed by a series of long rallies and severe exchanges that resulted in no advantage to either player. Lemus was unable to use his power stroke to any advantage, and the pace of the match was soon dictated by McCarthy. With his precision shots being handled, the Chicagoan started making hand errors that resulted in the score creeping up in two and three-point bursts in favour of McCarthy. The first game was soon over, with the Westmeath youngster winning 21-4. Game 2 took on the same tempo as only a quick three-point flurry by Lemus that closed a 9-2 gap to 9-5 brought any doubt to the outcome. McCarthy stayed on course with his error-free style to win 21-6. McCarthy ensured a clean sweep of the 15-and-under bracket by winning the doubles with partner Jerome Willoughby from Wicklow. Pitted against the American pairing of Will Hutchinson and Ian Sutherland in the final, McCarthy and Willoughby dominated the first game to win 21-2. The Americans were much more aggressive in the second game, but the Irish pair were equal to the challenge, eventually winning 21-12. Robert has carried his outstanding form into 2003, winning both Under 17 Munster and Ulster Opens. In the Ulster final, he defeated the current All-Ireland champion Brian Carroll 21-9, 21-8. More recently, he won the FBD Irish Open in the 15-and-under grade and the All-Ireland under 16 title on the 40x20 court. In the under 16 event, he proved much too strong for Belfast's Michael Turley in the final with his mixture of killer and passing shots earning him his 10th All-Ireland title. At the time of writing, McCarthy was preparing for the All-Ireland Colleges event. Similar to John O'Shaughnessy, he was also gearing up for the hardball national singles competition. While Robert was the most talked about Westmeath handballer over the past year, there were others who also made quite an impact. Natasha McCarthy won both the All-Ireland Colleges 60x30 and 40x20 first year singles. Katie McCarthy reached the semi-final of the score in what was her first year in competition. Robbie McCarthy Snr kept the flagging flying for Westmath at senior level, winning the Irish One-Wall Masters title for the second year in succession. Robbie also teamed up with Cyril McCarthy to win the Ulster Open A/B doubles at Kingscourt, Co. Cavan. Tweet

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