Before this weekends proceedings it was widely believed in the Basketball world that two of the top contenders for the U20 National title this season were coming from the Galway region i.e.Maree and Moycullen.Anyone with a knowledge of the game would be justified in this belief, as both clubs had huge success in the competition last year and had their same star players returning this season,bigger and stronger.But Basketball is a strange game and despite having humongous pedigree and a string of National titles and International representation, between both sides, there is only one Galway club going to the next round and that is the Galway City Team-The Titans!
Maree were unfortunate that they lost to Templeogue by almost double scores on Friday night in a game that was frought with indiscipline, apparently resulting in 6 technical fouls and an ejection from the gym, Maree lost 38-74.
Meanwhile, Sunday afternoon, on the East side of the City at the Renmore Community Centre a great crowd had gathered for the meeting of a well established club side Moycullen and a fine bunch of Young Titan men who had yet to prove themselves as a Team of consequence.I say this because, in their previous underage encounters, the Titans u20’s had never achieved a victory over a Moycullen team. The lads even recount losses in the previous five seasons of more than 60points.Yet these boys trained away under the Titan philosophy of L.T.A.D,Long Term Athlete Development, a staged continuum of player development which aims at invovement in Sport for Life!
Back to the game…On first glance,Moycullen were Tall and skillfull and oozing of International and Superleague talent.The Titans, were smaller with possibly two players over six feet tall and as a true microcosm of contemporary Galway City, had players from 8 other countries on court.But from the jump,the Titans showed they meant business when Gerald Echafu outjumped his moycullen counterpart who was six inches taller, and that would not be the last time he did so that evening with a total of 18rebounds in the game.
In the first quarter the teams were well matched at both ends of the floor, with each team getting used to the tight calling of the visiting national league referees.Titans would go down lay the ball up while drawing a foul,while moycullens Bleasdale and Paddy Lyons would spot up for the three pointers or push the ball inside to their Bigmen.Yet by the half, there was still nothing between them with the Titans leading 38-37 going into the dressing room. However, that was where the game ended as a competition.In the Third quarter, the Titans upped the tempo,ran at the moycullen defenders and where they weren’t going to the free throw line for the bonus point, they were kicking(figuritively)the ball out to the three point line to the awaiting gallery of prolific shooters,Kniuras,Garrity,Sahh and Brockmann who gladly dropped the rock..from Downtown!At the other end,the titans defended teanaciously with their seasoned Argentinian pairing, led by Latauro,starving the Big inside men of Moycullen of possession, while the Titans dove on every loose ball.With the Titans well up at the end of the third,coaches Consodine,Barile and Andre Tongo ran the bench to great effect and Alex Collins ,Eric Moore and stalworths,Sean Walsh and Ben-Ellie Ntumba did not dissappoint.However, it was in the fourth quarter that Oliie Brockmann, Tomz Fabriciuss and Kniuras dominated the offensive scoring, while Seamus Garrity ran the show to the bring home a historic victory to the the Galway City Titans 74-49.
At games end amidst the massive outpouring of emotion that ensued ,the only recognisable neutral was heard to say..”that was a victory for Hard Work and Hustle over polished performance”,i am more certain that it was an example of the resilience of a team of young men over a sense of entitlement portrayed by another.An example to us all in a time where too many give up too easily!(Moycullen-49,T.Bleasedale 14,p.lyons 13,S.Candon 7;TITANS 74,T.Fabriciuss 17;O.Brockmann 12;R.Kinuras 12;S.Garrity 10).