InsureMyVan.ie Men’s Super League 2023/2024 – Round 16
Irish Guide Dogs Ballincollig 80
Garvey’s Tralee Warriors 71
Garvey’s Tralee Warriors hopes of securing a home quarter final in the upcoming Super League playoffs suffered a huge blow yesterday when going down 80-71 to Irish Guide Dogs Ballincollig at the MTU Arena in Cork. The result, allied to Maree’s overtime win over UCC Demons, sees the Warriors drop to third on the South Conference table and they now face a battle to secure a favourable spot in the top four as the race to the playoffs come into sharp focus.
The Warriors got off to a great start and led after captain Eoin Quigley knocked down efforts from either side of the arc and Rap Buivydas, Jarvis Doles and Caleb Jordan combined to build a 12-5 lead. Ballincollig’s response was channeled through Andre Nation who took on the scoring brief with the absence of the free scoring Shawndale Jones Jnr. who was out through injury. Nation hit five on the bounce with Sean McManus chipping in to cut the Warriors lead to 16-13 midway through the quarter. Former Warriors Nikola Roso hit a late double either side of a score from Luke O’Sullivan. However two late threes from Daniel Jokubaitis and Darragh O’Hanlon saw the visitors lead 24-20 at quarter time.
The second quarter was a low scoring affair with Ballincollig taking a 27-25 lead with Nation and Adrian O’Sullivan adding before Keelan Cairns drilled a corner three early on. The Warriors strategy of shooting from distance was yielding a poor return and it was with scores from inside the arc from Jordan and Buivydas that saw them wrestle the lead back. Roso and McManus were in range late on but Quigley’s two from two from the line saw the Warriors lead 34-31 at half time.
The Warriors half time team talk must have referenced the lack of accuracy from distance as the visitors immediately improved with five threes in a row from Jordan, a double from Jokubaitis and another double from Quigley. Ballincollig’s player coach Ciaran O’Sullivan fired down a double of his own from beyond the arc to keep the Warriors lead to single figures. However when McManus and Nation added again before Adrian O’Sullivan planted his feet and launched a huge three, Ballincollig edged ahead. A minute later he repeated the dose to give the hosts a big momentum swing as they led 55-49 at three quarter time.
The final quarter saw the sides go score for score but importantly for Ballincollig they managed to keep their lead intact with scores from Nation, McManus and Cairns negating a double each from Buivydas and Doles. Daniel Jokubaitis knocked down an inspirational trademark effort from distance to cut the gap to a single score that prompted a Ballincollig timeout. Out of the timeout a corner three from Quigley pared the lead down to a single point as the Warriors looked primed for a late run. However the hosts steadied and when McManus and Nation added with baseline drives and Roso hit four from four from the line the gap was out to 75-68. With the seconds ticking down Sean McManus landed the decisive score to settle the contest with a brilliant score from outside the arc to seal the 80-71 win and give Ballincollig the priceless three League points on offer and their run to the playoffs a huge boost.
Irish Guide Dogs Ballincollig: Andre Nation 22, Sean McManus 15, Adrian O’Sullivan 14
Garvey’s Tralee Warriors: Eoin Quigley 18, Daniel Jokubaitis 14, Caleb Jordan 13
Next up for the Warriors is a potentially season defining clash at home to Maree in Tralee on Sunday 3rd March. The fine margins in the race for the playoffs mean a win for the Warriors will put them right back in the mix for a home quarter final but a defeat will see them face the daunting prospect of a trip to face either Belfast, Éanna or Killester away. The final standings will be made clear on St. Patrick’s weekend and with three games remaining the Warriors need every one of the nine points on offer.
Thanks as always to Liam Ryan for the images.