Six months, 5,436 points, 36 games and the MissQuote.ie Super League title race comes down to two days on St. Patrick’s weekend.
The permutations are simple. Should FloMAX Liffey Celtics or Killester win both their games and the other fails to do so, that team shall be crowned champions. If both manage to win successive games in 48 hours, a one game playoff will decide the destiny of the championship.
Some great personalities on display today as @BballIrl launched the https://t.co/ciI4HA02Jt and https://t.co/z3l9mFgBmc Super League & Division 1 Championships! 🏀 pic.twitter.com/whNbYRG8I1
— Inpho Photography (@Inphosports) September 13, 2022
It’s been a long time between drinks for the Clontarf outfit. You have to open the history book to the 1979/80 season for the last time Killester reigned supreme in the league format. Several of that roster are still involved in the club and around the team and will carry fond memories and stories of hope into this coming weekend. Given that the majority of this squad were involved in last season’s InsureMyHouse.ie Paudie O’Connor Cup success and others like Claire Melia have pocketed a MissQuote.ie Super League previously with The Address UCC Glanmire, lacking experience in closing out the final two games shouldn’t be a concern head coach Mark Grennell.
As a team had we known a few weeks back that coming into the last weekend that we had a chance to win, we would have bitten your hand off. We are grateful to be in this position," said Grennell ahead of the game. "It is a fairly simple mindset. We always focus on keeping life as simple as we can. As uninteresting as that may be, that is who we are. We have some fairly unflappable people on our team with Mimi Clarke and Claire Melia leading the way. The team won’t be phased by the games. Our focus will be on Trinity Meteors on Saturday, we will do our best to win. Then our focus quickly switches to Brunell. Travel to Cork and do our best to get the win there. What happens after that, we will deal with that too." he added.
Jiselle Thomas and Keowa Walters have been matchup nightmares for opponents all season, while Claire Melia, Mimi Clarke and Ieva Bagdanaviciene all have the ability to put up big numbers in different ways. That versatility makes it difficult for Trinity Meteors on Saturday, or Gurranabraher Credit Union on Monday to find fresh answers at this point in the season. The latter could pose the biggest threat to Killester’s title chances on their home floor, even without Edel Thornton. The Paudie O’Connor Cup winners are 7-1 at Gurranabraher Credit Union Arena this season.
At the opposite end of the scale, FloMAX Liffey Celtics last picked up the MissQuote.ie Super League title in the 2018/19 season, completing a two in a row for the club. Áine O’Connor and Sorcha Tiernan were both involved in that roster and have been key figures in their consistent run to this point. Alex Navarette and Tianna Ayulo have developed a really good understanding, but of particular importance is Navarette’s ability to get to the line, given they’re averaging more than 20 attempts per game from beyond the arc.
“It’s a really exciting week and a really exciting way to finish a league,” said FloMAX Liffey Celtics head coach Karl Kilbride. “We have great experience with Aine, Sorcha, Rachel and Kate. They been there and done that, but we know Killester are the overwhelming favourites. They have four professionals who have won at every level. Mimi and Claire are about as experienced as it comes in Irish basketball and they have a really experienced coach, so we are just trying to do our job. We have two cup finals left to go and it’ll be the narrowest of margins that will decide both of those games,” added Kilbride.
Crucially, both of those games against Ulster University and SETU Waterford Wildcats will be in Leixlip. FloMAX Liffey Celtics are unbeaten there this campaign and a sure to be packed gym will without doubt be worth a couple of points when energy reserves might be running low on Sunday afternoon.
𝘾𝘼𝙋𝙏𝙄𝙊𝙉 𝙏𝙃𝙄𝙎 👀
Who will end the Bank Holiday weekend as @missquoteie Super League champions?
📸: @Michele_LaGrue1 #BISL | #BITV pic.twitter.com/Zr8XQwax20— Basketball Ireland (@BballIrl) March 13, 2024
Elsewhere, Catalyst Fr.Mathews and Ulster University are in a shootout for the final MissQuote.ie Champions Trophy place. It would appear that the Cork side are in the driving seat. They need to muster victory from one of their final two games against Gurranabraher Credit Union Brunell or Trinity Meteors, unless Ulster University pull off a shock against FloMAX Liffey Celtics on Saturday.
A place in the promotion/relegation playoff against iSecure Swords Thunder awaits University of Galway Mystics or Portlaoise Panthers. Two-win Mystics will need to beat SETU Waterford Wildcats to leapfrog Portlaoise and end their relegation concerns.
The remaining fixture this weekend is a repeat of last year’s MissQuote.ie Super League Final between DCU Mercy and The Address UCC Glanmire. It hasn’t been the season that either would have hoped for to date, but the defending champions have built serious momentum in recent weeks and will be eyeing up a home draw in the MissQuote.ie Champions Trophy should they come away with the win and other results go their way.
