Clare's Willie Roche will be the next president of the Irish Handball Association after defeating Tyrone's Eugene Maguire by 57 votes to 40 last weekend.

The Wexford native, who has been based in the Banner County since 1971, will take over from incumbent Walter O'Connor of Meath next year for a three-year term. He will be the third Clare official to hold the top job, following in the footsteps of Michael Boyce and Caimin Jones.

"This is a case of a childhood dream coming true and I will do everything I can to ensure the continued great development of handball when I take up this role," he said in the Clare Champion.

"A high standard has been set by the previous Clare officials who held this post and it will be a big challenge to maintain that." Tweet

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