Hall of Famer Hosey: “My closeness to Carlow has never waned”

Is it really 35 years ago that Willie Hosey travelled to Canada to work and play squash? Yes it surely is. In the intervening years, the ten times Irish squash champion has been a regular visitor home to Ireland and has always kept in touch with family and friends.

“My closeness to Carlow has never waned,” says Willie who will be the Hall of Fame recipient at the Carlow Nationalist Sports Star Awards night which takes place on Friday January 23rd at the Woodford Dolmen Hotel.

Already a squash award winner in 1978, 1981, 1982 and 1994 it is surely unique that he follows in the footsteps of his late father, Willie Hosey, who himself was an inductee into the Hall of Fame in 1984.

This year’s Hall of Fame recipient has enjoyed a hugely successful career in his chosen sport. The Canadian aspect of his life all started with a simple request.

“A friend of mine suggested that I go. They had a six week tour there. I met Belinda on that trip. Here we are now,” he recalls. Willie and Belinda married and had two children. Emma and Natalie are 28 and 25 years old now.

“I came on a one year deal and here I am still. It has been great. I have to say no way am I Canadian. I am still very much Irish,” Hosey stresses.

He was recently asked to represent an American team in what has become a Master’s Transatlantic Competition involving four countries, Ireland, the United States, England and Canada. The event took place in Dublin last year and in the US the year before “This year someone said he would love me to play for Canada. I said to him that if he thought I would be on a court playing against Ireland, that will never happen.”

With one slight caveat, he is chuffed to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. “I was surprised. I thought you usually you have to be a little older. I am delighted. Honoured. I am more than happy to come back,” says Willie who hopes to fly in to Ireland on the Thursday before the Gala Night. He will return to Canada early the following week.

Willie has enjoyed a fascinating career. In his teens, he initially played tennis but his father and teacher, Rody Kelly, introduced the young lad to squash at the Carlow YMCA on College Street. Aidan Kelly who lived in Carlow but was originally from Galway was a big influence on the young squash player.

“Aidan was number one in Carlow in the mid-seventies. He was a real role model. A lovely fella. A real good influence. Very respectful of the sport,” recalled Willie.

“They entered me in the Leinster Open Junior in Sandymount in 1977 when I was sixteen years of age. I think I lost in the semi-finals to a fella called John Fleury who was Irish champion the following year,” recalled Willie.

He caught the eye of a number of coaches when he played in the Irish Open in Fitzwilliam. They also pushed him in the direction of squash. When Willie won an Irish junior title in 1978, his conversion from tennis to squash was all but complete. The Carlow teenager completed his Leaving Certificate at St Mary’s Academy in Carlow. From there went to work in the bank in Dublin. That lasted for two years. By then, the game of squash was a major part of his life. It opened up doors for him and other young players.

Some, including Willie, went exploring the world. “France was a great base. We were all young and we could travel all over Europe for free on the trains. Almost every country in Europe had squash. Fantastic. A great way to see Europe. I travelled as far as Asia, New Zealand, Australia. Played everywhere. I did it all,” related Hosey.

He eventually came back to Ireland ending up in the West.

“I was working for a friend of mine in Dublin. He had these gambling arcades. He got me one of my own in Roscommon. There were old rules which were governing the legality of the industry. I ended up working there but the one I had in the West of Ireland closed down.” And so Canada beckoned. His life changed and he settled well in his adopted country.

Over a stellar career, he won ten Irish National Titles which is one more than Derek Ryan while another Carlow squash player, Arthur Gaskin, accumulated eight. In 1984 Hosey won an Irish Open Squash Title. That was massive as the competition is open to players all over the world.

He got a great kick out of it when he won his tenth national title in 1994. He took out one of his great friends who was also a court rival.

“Derek Ryan had gone into the top sixteen in the world and I was ranked 33rd. I had lost to Derek the year before and this was absolutely a no chance for me. By the time I had started losing to him, that was as it should have been. Derek got as high as seven in the world.

“Derek was in England at the time and he had to go back and explain to his pals that he had lost to an aul fella,” laughed Willie. In addition to what he won in Ireland, as the years rolled by, Willie accumulated 4 World Masters singles, 2 World Open Double titles and 10 Canadian Masters Titles. He doesn’t have a photographic memory and a contact in Squash Ireland went through the archives with him.

In 2026 Willie will play in his sixth World Doubles Master’s in Perth Australia where his brother Kyran is living. He does admit he is not entering as many events as he used too. Willie has also made decisions which allows him to spend more time with his family.

“I am almost in retirement. I worked at a big commercial club for over 30 years and took a package out of there after Covid. I work now in a smaller club now and teach the elite kids of Ontario. This involves about 2-3 hours work a day.” Many people take the opportunity to golf when they retire. Willie is not one of those. He did play a lot at one stage but when the pandemic came he didn’t really go back to it at all.

“Before Covid, I did a lot of trips to Ireland with squash contacts from America. There was the whole uncertainty in the first and second year of Covid where my job was on the line. I think I stressed more than the average person which I didn’t need to do.

“My wife is the exact opposite. She doesn’t worry about anything until it happens. People are different but I am not like that. Suddenly, golf did not become that important. Then when all the courses reopened, I don’t know. I got invited to a lot of great places but I turned them down. I have probably played about five times in 2025,” he says.

Both of Willie’s nephews, Sam and Fintan Olwill, are flying the flag for squash in Carlow now. Under Dermot O’Brien, Carlow enjoyed a golden era in squash. Willie says he would like to take some credit but he says he cannot.

“By the time I had finished, Dermot had taken an interest. He did a lot more for squash than ever I did. I was away. His children took an interest. Then my sister’s (Marie Olwill) kids took an interest. The game exploded for quite a few years. Almost 100% credit I would give to Dermot. His wife and my sister drove those kids everywhere. All over the country,” says Willie as he reflects on the success that has come out of Carlow.

“It is hard to believe that between me and Arthur (Gaskin) we covered eighteen years. Pretty impressive in a small town. All the big squash clubs are in Dublin but we competed successfully against them.”