Irish Daily Star - Inside Sport
THE FINAL COUNTDOWN
O’Malley gives Tralee the nod for Cup glory
It’s all about the InsureMyHouse.ie Cups at the National Basketball Arena this weekend.
The elite games are the men’s final for the Pat Duffy Cup between Garvey’s Tralee Warriors and C&S Neptune and the women’s final for the Paudi O’Connor Cup between The Address UCC Glanmire and DCU Mercy.
Declan King sat down with the Head Coach of Killester Brian O’Malley.
DK: Thoughts on the men’s game?
BO’M: “This is the premier competition in Irish basketball, the one every team and every player wants to win so it always makes for an interesting spectacle.
“This year the added stress and difficulty in dealing with the pandemic has given another layer for coaches and players to deal with in the run up. Both teams will fancy their chances of coming out on top but it really promises to be a cracking game.
“There are few, if any, coaches in the country that have comparable experience to Colin O’Reilly. Colin has coached Hibernia, Ireland, professionally in England and he of course led Demons through a period of dominance in the last decade. That experience is invaluable as he knows what it takes to get over the line and I think that will give the Neptune lads a bit of confidence going into the weekend.”
DK: It’s a real case of experience against the rookie...
BO’M: “John has bundles of experience at various different levels of the game and has served as an assistant for a number of years down in Tralee.
“So although technically it’s his first time leading the Super League side he’s been involved in big games and has a couple of Champions Trophies and a League title to lean on”.
DK: Covid certainly played its part in making it an unusual season.
BO’M: “Yes, I suppose with the pandemic, leagues around Europe maybe contracted a little bit and that has maybe worked in favour of the Irish league as there is a few guys who wouldn’t necessarily have thought of playing in Ireland previously are now happy to be plying their trade here.
“The Americans on each side will obviously have a big impact on the game, Tralee have two American guards Aaron Calixte and Brandon Cotton, and that to me seems to show they value the consistency of output from that position. Neptune on the other hand have Richaud Gittens who’s a strong athletic wing and Miles Washington, who plays more of a forward-type roll.
“I think this gives Neptune a bit of an edge as they can adjust their game plan and be quite flexible. The European players on show have real quality, Neptune are led by Nil
Sabata and Tralee have Ronalds Elksnis, Daniel Jokubaitis and Nikola
Roso on their roster.
Sabata and Roso are fantastic players
ONE STEP TO GO: Tralee’s Kieran Donaghy; (right) Neptune’s Gary Walsh; (below) John Dowling; (below, right) Colin o’reilly and that battle inside will go a long way to see who comes out with the cup.
“Both teams will look to establish their post action early in the game, and both guys are a handful, early foul trouble could have a major impact on the game, it will be very interesting to see how the referees handle those physical guys. “Jokubaitis has been around the league a long time, he’s a high energy guy and when he is on form, it adds a completely different element to the Tralee attack”.
DK: A number of clubs are now bringing in second Americans, in fact all four in the semis had the luxury of a second, although only one can play at a time. Are we heading this way for all the clubs? BO’M: “I think it might be too early to suggest the league is absolutely going in that direction, with two Americans, teams definitely have greater flexibility. I think a lot of teams decided to go with two as with the pandemic situation, a positive test or a close contact call could impact availability, so teams maybe thought of having two would bring a bit of insurance.
“In saying that, I think it is probably an area that the league might need to make a determination on, maybe we need to just take a step back, have a good look at what we want as a league and then see can we adopt a set of rules that give us the best possible version of the league”.
DK: Would I be right in thinking that Garvey’s have the deeper bench?
BO’M: “You’d probably have to say that Tralee have a little bit more depth, but neither team certainly is lacking in that department. Both teams have had a few different starting line ups throughout the season, so that probably indicates that they both have six or seven guys that are capable of starting games or playing and contributing at a starter level.
“Each team obviously brings an American off the bench but I’m looking forward to the impact Kieran Donaghy for Tralee and Gary Walsh for Neptune make on the game.
“Everyone knows Donaghy and he’s been a mainstay on successful teams in Tralee for years, Walsh is a great bit of stuff, a deadly shooter which is probably what he’s known for but I think he’s a lot more than that, he is a very creative passer and he always seems to get the game to set to a rhythm that suits him.”
DK: Where will the big battles be?
‘We are only six years in existence so it’s a huge challenge’ – Tralee coach John Dowling
BO’M: “There is a couple of key aspects which I think will have a major impact on the game. Neptune have a very changeable and adaptable defensive style.
“They mix man to man defence with zone defence and throw in pressure here and there, that can make it difficult for teams to catch a rhythm and the zone could be a tactic to slow down Roso and Calixte and force Tralee to look for scores from the outside.
“The zone is not a silver bullet though, Fergal O’Sullivan is a top class marksman and all the Tralee team are capable shooters so if they catch fire the zone could be Neptune’s downfall.
“The battle inside will be
crucial. Donaghy v O’Reilly is a fascinating match up, both men desire to win and their willingness to do whatever it takes to get that win could lead to a feisty affair.
“Neptune want to play at a higher pace than Tralee and so it will be a battle to see who can control the boards, whoever wins that rebounding battle should be able to control the tempo provided they take care of the ball. It’s a fascinating match-up.
“Eoin Quigley is a current Irish international, possibly has been the standout Irish player over a number of campaigns, he’s a very modern player, good skills, good size and good athleticism. He’s really competitive and is not fazed by the bright lights.
“Roy Downey has had an excellent season to date, Roy is dynamic and creative, if he shoots the ball well, the challenge of defending him gets much more difficult.
“Roy has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders this weekend, offensively he’s a key component and he could be tasked with keeping Aaron Calixte quiet.
“It would not surprise me
though if Colin decided to start Gittens on Calixte to allow Roy to concentrate on getting the Neptune attack firing.”
DK: So after all that, who is going to win?
BO’M: “It’s a tough one to call, really tough. I hope that we can see everyone out on the floor moving at their best on the big day. I really hope that Covid or injuries don’t have an impact and we can enjoy two top class teams going hell for leather for the top prize.
“If the score is in the 80s or 90s that will suit the Corkmen, a defensive battle could suit the size and strength of the men from Kerry.
“Both teams are on form, both teams have star power, it is a coin toss for me, but if I had to call it, I’ll go for Tralee, just”.
VERDICT: Garvey’s Tralee to win
‘We’ll be doing everything possible to upset the odds but we have a very good record against them in cup finals’ – Mark Ingle