Basketball round-up with Joe Byrne

Impressive 'Comer CS through to All-Ireland semi-final

U16 GIRLS' ALL-IRELAND QUARTER-FINAL

CASTLECOMER COMMUNITY SCHOOL 45, COLÁISTE IDE KERRY 31

Castlecomer Community School booked their place in the All-Ireland semi-final following this high quality quarter final in O’Loughlin’s.

Coláiste Ida made the long journey from Dingle in Kerry and it was they that made all the early running.  Scores from their best player Liadh Toibin and Maire Ní Bhoirne helped them into an early 9-4 advantage, Ailish O’Neill and Katie Hawley replying for the Kilkenny girls.

Anita McMahon and Sara Roche then got on the scoresheet for the winners and they trailed only by 12-13 at the end of the first period.

'Comer took the lead at the start of the second period for the first time through O’Neill and at the end of this quarter it was they who now held the slimmest of advantages.

Toibin caused 'Comer all sorts of problems in the third but midway through this period 'Comer made the switch of defence that was to change the course of the match.  'Comer captain Anita McMahon was sent to marshal Toibin who had scored 14 points up to that point.  From there to the end McMahon held her scoreless and without their captain’s influence Coláiste Ida ran out of ideas.

'Comer gradually got on top and Roche, Hawley, O’Neill and Nora Daly made their basket a fortress while piling on the scores on offence.  From what looked like a game going away from them, 'Comer showed great character to beat a team that had only lost last year’s All-Ireland final by a single point.

For 'Comer, captain Anita McMahon was excellent and as well as limiting the influence of Toibin also contributed 12 points of her own.  Ailish O’Neill dominated under her own basket and also contributed 12 points to her teams tally while Katy Hawley had her best game to date.  Sara Roche got through a huge amount of work and has become a big threat on offence while Nora Daly’s game at the point improves with every game.

'Comer now move on to the semi-final where they meet St Aiden’s, Cork in a neutral venue.

This was 'Comer Community School’s second big win of the week as they also set themselves up to progress in the South East regional league by beating Ursuline, Waterford two days earlier. 

'Comer:  Anita McMahon (captain) (12), Ailish O’Neill (12), Katy Hawley (10), Sara Roche (6), Nora Daly(6), Ailish Doyle, Abaigh Healy, Jennifer Mooney and Patricia Cass.

Great week for Club Kilkenny

Last weekend the Club Kilkenny men’s team travelled to Tralee where they took part in a tournament featuring teams from Kerry and from Cork. 

Club qualified for the semi-final after winning all but one of their pool matches which ended in a controversial manner. 

To reach the final they had to beat the favourites for the trophy, St Brendan’s 'A' Team of Tralee which they duly did by 10 points.  The final saw them face St Brendan’s 'B' Team which boasted three of their young National League Players. 

Having lost to this team the previous day, Club Kilkenny went into the game all guns blazing and went into an early 10-point lead which St Brendan’s never clawed back. 

The final score was Club Kilkenny 71 v St Brendan’s 53 making the Kilkenny boys the first team outside of Tralee to win this tournament in over 12 years. 

Then on Monday night in O’Loughlins it was back to the local league where they faced last year’s league winners Tramore.  The first quarter was a very open affair with both sides scoring at wills, Enda Roberts was in flying form for Club Kilkenny while Jack Murphy proved very accurate for the away team. 

There was only two points between the sides going into the second quarter and the game was shaping up nicely. 

This quarter has proved to be a fruitful one so far this season for Club Kilkenny and this game was no different. James Butler had his scoring boots on again, hitting 10 points in this quarter before Tramore put a score on the board.  Club Kilkenny went into the half looking comfortable with a 10-point lead. 

Both teams were very dogged in defence and apart from the first quarter, scores were very hard to come by. There was a big contrast in defensive styles, the away team opting for a high pressure man to man defence while Club Kilkenny relied on their very effective zone defence throughout. 

The third quarter saw only a combined total of 15 points scored between both teams which is a testament to the level of defence played on the night. 

Club Kilkenny went into the final quarter with a 15-point lead but had started to tire at the end of the third quarter.  From an overall squad of 14 players, only seven were available on the night due mainly to injuries sustained in the first couple of months of the season. 

Tramore had a full panel on the night and ran the bench so they started this quarter fresh and very determined.  Tramore outscored the locals in the early exchanges with Chris Grabowski and Jack Murphy hitting some big shots.  Visibly tired Club Kilkenny dug deep, Philip Brennan and Enda Roberts put in a massive effort in this quarter to keep the scoreboard ticking over and see out the final minutes of the game. 

This result has sent Club Kilkenny right to the top of the table and six points clear of Tramore and Waterford in second place and still unbeaten after the first round of games.  The next game is a tough one in the Midlands League away to Athlone on November 27.  

GIRLS' U16 SOUTH EAST REGIONAL LEAGUE

CASTLECOMER COMMUNITY SCHOOL 46, URSULINE, WATERFORD 25

Castlecomer Community School gave themselves a great chance of progressing beyond the group stages when they beat Ursuline, Waterford 46-25 in the South East Regional U16 girls' league. 

This was a big turnaround for 'Comer who had lost the away tie to the same opposition by six.  However, there was never any danger of a repeat as the 'Comer girls played some excellent basketball in this win. 

Katy Hawley and Ailish O’Neill were prominent for the winners as they edged 12-8 ahead at the end of the first quarter.

'Comer extended this to 22-15 at the break thanks to good work from MVP Ailish O’Neill and Nora Daly.  The second half saw the winners put an over worked Ursuline defence under relentless pressure with Anita McMahon and Sara Roche also breaching their lines. 

In the end there was always only going to be one winner as the 'Comer defence held solid to allow Ursuline no score during the final quarter while adding eight points through O’Neill.

For 'Comer, Anita McMahon left her sick bed to play a captain’s part and Nora Daly was excellent at the front.  Ailish O’Neill was the best player on view and held Ursuline’s Wildcats Centre and Irish International Ruth Kelly to just two scores from play while adding 19 points to Comer’s tally.

'Comer lost key player Sara Roche to injury early on but her replacement Abaigh Healy had a fine game.  Katy Hawley too played her part and scored eight points while Ailish Doyle and Jennifer Mooney also did well

Comer:  Ailish O’Neill (19), Nora Daly (12), Katy Hawley (8), Anita McMahon (3), Sara Roche (2), Abaigh Healy, Ailish Doyle and Jennifer Mooney. 

BOYS' U12 LEAGUE: 'COMER LAKERS 33, BERKELEY 4

Berkeley were no match for 'Comer Lakers in this boys' U12 league game going down 4-33 in O’Loughlin’s. 

Ciaran Fahy led the 'Comer charge with the opening three baskets before the Thomastown boys had settled.  This set the tone for the first quarter as Evan Morrissey, James Brennan, Jack Manning and Adam O’Grady all added baskets to leave 'Comer 16-0 ahead at the end of the period.

Daragh Galway opened Berkeley’s account early in the second and this seemed to help stem the Comer tide as the Lakers were reduced to just one basket in this quarter.

'Comer again got going in the new half with Sean Coogan, Conor Kelly, Ben Hamilton, Ciaran Farnan and Cathal Holland all putting their names on the scoresheet.

Thomastown tried hard through Patrick Harte, Eoin Coady, Martin Walsh and Can Kelly, but they could never really trouble the winners.

'Comer:  Ciaran Fahy (12), Ben Hamilton (4)' James Brennan (2), Evan Morrissey (2), Jack Morrissey (2), Adam O’Grady (2), Liam Barcoe, Sean Coogan (2), Cathal Holland (2), Daniel Barcoe (2), Ciaran Farnan (2), Conor Kelly (1), Adam Grogan and Conor Phelan.

Berkeley:  Daragh Galway (2), Patrick Harte, Eoin Coady, Martin Walsh, Brendan Fitzpatrick, Jason Devereaux, Eddie Hanrahan, Jason Cleere, Jack Cahill, Cian Kelly and Oisin McMahon

'Comer beat Waterford on the double

Castlecomer U12 girls and boys travelled to Waterford to take on the local club and after two cracking games came away with two wins.

The girls were first to take the court and with captain Anna Boland driving her team on, the Comer girls raced into a 10-0 first quarter lead.  Chloe Coogan, Aoibhlin Brennan and Laura Mooney were others on the scoresheet during this period. 

Waterford fought back strongly in the second quarter and reduced the lead to 7-12 at the interval.

'Comer then went into a 19-7 lead and seemed to have the game wrapped up.  However another fight back by Waterford saw their best player Jane Fortune score five baskets to help tie the game up at 19-19 with two minutes left. 

Just when it seemed 'Comer were down and out, a free throw by Chloe Coogan was followed closely by baskets from Eireann Korff and Francis Farrell and the winners closed out the game 24-19.

'Comer:  Anna Boland (4), Francis Farrell (4), Chloe Coogan (4), Laura Mooney (6), Aoibhlin Brennan (4), Erin Korff (2), Marie Muldowney, Ciara Curran, Amy Brennan and Maeve Delaney.

The boys' game too was an exciting affair as this time it was Waterford that made all the early running.  Scores from Zac Dunphy, Matthew Cartwright and Craig Sweeney helped them on the way to an 8-3 first quarter lead.  Comer Celtics came more into the game thanks to good play from Shane Dunne, Pierce Nash and Sean Buggy but still trailed 10-7 at the break.

Shane Dunne looked the best player on view and contributed nine of his game high 14 points as 'Comer gradually got on top in the third quarter to lead 16-14.  From there to the finish Celtics took control allowing Waterford only two baskets while Eoin O’Rourke, Richard Brennan, Pierce Nash and Dunne saw Celtics home by a 28-18 margin in the end.

Comer Celtics recovered well from a very shaky start to eventually out-play a strong Waterford side and now sit proudly at the top of the table.

'Comer Celtics:  Shane Dunne (14), Pierce Nash (6), Sean Buggy (4), Eoin O’Rourke (2), Richard Brennan (2), Matthew Cullen, Patrick Darcy, Eoghan Molloy, Kevin Brennan, Kevin Young, Ian Holohan and Paul O’Neill. 
 
 

Results 

U16 girls All-Ireland Schools' Cup

Castlecomer Community School 45, Coláiste Íde (Kerry) 31 

Boys' U12

Waterford 18, Comer Celtics 28

Berkeley 4, 'Comer Lakers 33

Club Kilkenny 'B' 9, Old Leighlin 42 

Girls' U12

Waterford 19, Castlecomer 24

Tipp Talons 2, Berkeley 32

Old Leighlin 'A' 30, Club Kilkenny 7 

Girls' U14

Tipp Talons 42, Berkeley 11

Old Leighlin 31, Club Kilkenny 19 

Boy' U14

Portlaoise 20, Club Kilkenny 6 

Boys' U16

Waterford 18, Portlaoise 33 

Girls' U16

Berkeley 33, Club Kilkenny 25 

Men’s Division 1

Club Kilkenny 58, Tramore 53 

Men’s Division 2

Tramore 54, Paulstown 22

Kilkenny Sharks 78, Club Amber 57

St Patrick’s 58, Old Leighlin 'A' 69

Old Leighlin 'B' 48, Tipp Talons 28 

Ladies

Berkeley 47, Club Kilkenny 35 
 

Fixtures