St. Conleth's College

Above the Rim

In a relatively short time, we have grown accustomed to continued success for our basketball teams, and sometimes that can be a heavy burden to bear. Not that you can tell from the play of these boys! St. Conleth’s Basketball has consistently been winning trophies for years now, a tremendous tribute to coaches Sean Ingle and Peter Gahan. No other school our size has established and maintained such a basketball pedigree, so quickly. And this year, once again, the programme has played ‘above the rim’. After reaching the Ireland East Final, they powered through the various stages of the All-Ireland Finals to earn another day of destiny at the National Basketball Arena.

Their All-Ireland Quarterfinal game was against Cobh, and it was a close affair before the Conlethians pulled away, once again led by James ‘The Tower’ Power. James was missing his usual partner at the top of the scoresheet, Enda Crowley, who is currently off impressing the filles with his basketball (and perhaps other skills) on a TY exchange in France, but the rest of the team raised their game in support of our skyscraper. John ‘Mountain Man’ Engmann played a beast of a game, filling the paint with sturdy defence and running the floor with the grace of a gazelle…. well, a cross between gazelle and a freight train. Guards Myles Moriarty-Smyth and John Byrne were rapier-quick as they repeatedly foiled the opposition’s attacks and made stylish advances, themselves. Joe Kelleher showed his characteristic intensity and athleticism, playing the three spot with aplomb and it was no surprise to classroom teachers of Hugh Leahy and Cian McMunn, that these two played like whirling dervishes, scampering around the court and fearlessly making stops and runs against players two years their senior. And, of course, the rest of the team came off the bench to do their part in this historic victory. The All-Ireland Bronze Medals were assured but the boys nearly took the next step up the podium in a hard-fought loss against traditional power, Tramore. Not to be, but the bit of metal hanging around the neck was reassuring, and with some young talent, and returning francophones, the future of St. Conleth’s Basketball continues to look bright!

POSTERIZED!

Conlethian hoops historians are welcome to correct us, but we do believe that below you see the first ever recorded in-game Conlethian dunk, as James Power led the U16s into the All-Ireland Quarterfinals. Skywalking alumnus Mark Ryan (2014) certainly threw them down with style at practice but do we have Kodachrome evidence of an in-game jam? Cian McCormack (2010) had the height and the hops but was too fond of pulling up for the speculative trey … and the Gilleran Brothers, Mark and Luke (2020), could both live above the rim but often opted for the bedeviling banker or stylish swish… Maybe even the notoriously earthbound and hops-less, but peerless Paint Premier, Jack Nolan (2011), once magically levitated for a stuff? We do have, on celluloid record, Daniel ‘Gilly, Gilly’ Gilligan’s (2016) participation in a thunderous dunk in Second Year… but as he was the dunkee and not the dunker, we will keep that in the vaults! In any event, we are sure all these past Conlethian greats will take great pride in hearing about the exploits of Jammin’ James Power and his teammates, including point-man Enda ‘The Game’ Crowley and John Engmann, the Wicklow Wild Man, and coaches Sean Ingle (he got net, once) and Peter Gahan (a possible alumnus dunker from 2012). James’s stupendous stuff/salacious slam/jiggy jam actually happened deep in the depths of County Tipperary but we could hear the reverberations all the way back in Ballsbridge, and the echoes of the rim-rattling ram confirmed what we already knew: the basketball glory days are back at St. Conleth’s!

Da Dunk

Lesser But Still Worthy Highlights

Hoop High?

Don’t tell Gav or Ms. Speller, but St. Conleth’s is quickly gaining a reputation as a ‘Basketball School’ and its not just because of the gangsta swagger of our students when they, standing tall in Jordan IXs, order No. 26 (with vegan mayo) at Donnybrook Fair! It is because we are darned good at Professor Naismith’s quirky little game! See below for the proof as our U-16 Boys made it all the way to the Ireland East Final where they lost to a school with a four digit student athlete pool. And they are still in the All-Ireland’s which will kick off after Christmas. Our 19s Boys and 16s and 19s girls also had a great season, making the Semi-Finals or Quarters in each of their leagues. And now, the New Kids on the Block, our First Years Boys and Girls Teams, have burst on the scene with stunning performance at a St. Andrew’s Blitz. Stay tuned for more all-out hoopla!

16s/19s Boys

16/19s Girls

First Year Boys

First Year Girls

Furious Finish!

We had a pretty hectic- and successful- close to the half term, sporting wise, at St. Conleth’s. We are still searching up more film of the already legendary First Year Boys Basketball win detailed below, but there have been several more chapters added to the St. Conleth’s Book of Sporting Lore in the short time since that winning basket snapped the net. Some of the very same boys took part in another ‘Heart Attack Kids’ special: after their stunning B-Ball heroics, the First year Boys boys followed it up on the rugby pitch against Sandford Park, winning on a last minute try by Christopher Comer in the corner, after Noah Dwan had made a great break, juggled the ball, caught it again, and zipped the killer pass! The First Year Basketball Girls may not have matched the boys for drama in their debut game but they pushed a Woodlands Academy Second Year Team all the way, showing much promise and great team spirit… and much better ability than the boys in posing for an orderly team photo! And there was another close loss (0-1) to a tough, classy opponent (Dundalk Grammar) but the Senior Hockey Girls have kept their heads, and smiles, up…. and they are still drawing the fans!

A Comeback for the Ages!

Maybe our regular basketball coaches, Peter Gahan and Sean Ingle, should stick to surfing! While the usually dynamic duo were off rolling in the breakers of Achill Island, Ronan Carvill led our First Year Boys Basketball Team in one of the most exciting victories in St. Conleth’s sporting history! In their very first game, the boys were soon down 14-0… in the first quarter. Ronan called a timeout and took out some of those over-sized yellow Maths gadgets of which he is so fond. A quick lesson in angles, resistance and velocity, and a team prayer to St. Anthony, and the boys were back on the court. They proceeded to make a gradual comeback, chipping steadily away, but were still down three, with mere seconds left. Then, Sean Keane, like a Norse god, struck a three pointer (the first of the game). Then a steal…. and a basket to win at the buzzer! And the boys went crazy! More pics to come!

Nocted Out!

When current Marian College Basketball Coach (and teacher) Eoin ‘Trust Me, I’m a…’ Noctor wandered these halls as a student (Class of 2011), he was considered by some teachers, mostly of the female persuasion, to be ‘a lovable rogue’. Others just deemed him ‘a rogue’. Maybe it was due to his combination of stylish ringlets, exotic skin tone and melting eyes, not seen since Alexander the Great charmed the bow off the Queen of the Amazons… in any event, his basketball strategy has not matched said Alexander’s tactical genius. For, our U16s and U19s, coached by Sean ‘Use the Angles’ Ingle, just did the double on him! Yes, having such quality players as James ‘Tower of’ Power, ‘Chillin’ Dylan Cosgrave, Joe ‘Just Don’t Make Me Angry’ Kelleher and quickly rising newcomer Enda ‘Wow’ Crowley, certainly helped, and we allow that Eoin’s Marian are in a ‘rebuilding phase’… but so are a lot of teams, after we demolish them! We did spare the Good Noctor the blushes of filming the total wipeout but sent our ace TY photographer Finley O’Dea to our recent games versus Colmcille’s and you can enjoy his camerawork, and our players’ moves and ridiculous size advantage, below. The wins have qualified the U16s for the Quarterfinals of the East ‘B’ Boys Region and the U19s for the Plate Quarterfinals. Stay tuned!

Straight outta Ballsbridge!

Never mind the hockey jollies… our basketball girls roared straight outta Ballsbridge last week to take an emphatic double over Coolmine. In a little pre-Maths Week lesson in multiples, our 16s won 47 – 10 and our 19s, 52-20. Lucy ‘No Bricks’ McGoldrick led the way for the 16s and Anna O’Neill for the 19s, along with some standout play from Jodi Ryan, Greta Lawless and Isabella Lombardo for the 16s and Meabh Joye and Vivienne Roberts for the senior squad. Coaches Peter ‘Gangsta’ Gahan and Sean ‘Tingle’ Ingle were chuffed. Stay tuned for some similarly winning news from the boyz!

Staff Hold Court

Okay, okay… maybe we should give the Sixth Years one more chance and play them in Chess… but we have Mr. Gahan, past St. Conleth’s Chess Champion, and Ronan ‘The Rook’ Carvill… how about Tiddlywinks? Nope, Gav Maguire has represented Leinster there… maybe we just have to accept that The Boomers (and their little X helpers) just have something The Zoomers lack: JUICE!

Judging from the roars emanating from the Sports Hall on Thursday at lunch-time, Steph Curry draining multiple treys to shut the door on the Grizzlies has nothing on Sean Ingle singeing the nets for four straight jumpers, each a dagger in the heart of the Sixth Year Basketball Team. And the crowd of enthusiastic student supporters grew even more rapturous with each thunderous pick set by Ronan Carvill and each exclamatory block delivered by ‘Swattin” Sam Carey. The hurling boys, Mr. Lonergan and Mr. O’Neill, did their part too, transferring skills learned over their long and storied GAA careers and Mr. Latvis even chipped in with a couple of playground pirouettes. The students were full of effort and not without talent: Adam Rafter led from the helm, Claudio was his usual useful engine of endeavour, Oisín Thornton periodically established his class and Captain Rory proved a surprisingly accurate marksman but they and the others just could not stem the flow of staff swish and bang. One of the biggest problems fro the Sixth Years was the propensity for the turnover. Let us jus say that we hope they hold their drink Friday night better than they held on to the ball!

Bunch of Jocks!

The Silver Screen and, even more so, its diminutive cousin, are full of high school scenarios and tales where the jocks are the thuggish, shape-throwing villains (remember Mr. T?) and the heroes are well-meaning, toilet-cleaning, dweebish guys like Screech or Gav Maguire. Well, at St. Conleth’s you don’t have to choose between being academic and sporty… or artsy and musical, for the matter: you can be anything you want, and in any combination you would like! Our reputation for music, debating, art and chess is well established but the way our sports teams are winning lately, especially the girls’ teams, we may just have to work hard to prevent other schools’ kids from scattering when ours saunter onto the DART or the No. 10… Watch out for those Conleth’s jocks! Or is that jockesses? Jockettes? Anyways… the latest sporting triumphs? The girls pulled a trifecta last week with First/Second Year basketball beating Wesley and both Junior and Senior Hockey teams winning, 1-0. Just make sure you don’t accidentally sit at their table in the cafeteria!

Luke Drops Another Dime

The big man with the knack for a pass has been around since the dollar Bills, Russell and Walton, led their respective NBA teams to glory by judiciously giving it up to a teammate as often as stuffing it in the hoop. Luke Gilleran (Class of 2021) was just that kind of player for St. Conleth’s: drawing double-triple-quadruple coverage and dishing to a teammate on the wing, usually the sharp-shooting Colin Bolger. That dynamic duo had a glorious schools basketball destiny derailed by covidiocy, but they still managed to groan our trophy shelf with accumulated basketball swag… and swagger. And Luke is back in the news, having just led his club, Marian, to cup glory, but his greatest ‘assist’ may just be the inspiration he has given to the ballers at his alma mater. See, at St. Conleth’s, now there are some New Kids on the Block: literally, in this case, as Coaches Ingle and Gahan often sample their favourite boy band when inspiring the troops in the court-side huddle. The recipients of these half-rapped, half-crooned ditties of zone-busting wisdom? A whole raft of teams, across the ages and genders, but particularly effective with the U-16 Girls who won the Ireland East D League with both grit and aplomb. And Head of Sport Mr. Smyth responded by laying on a pizza party for the girls (and the coaches… and Gav Maguire, for some reason). We are sure there will be plenty more celebrations in the future, and a seat at them will always be reserved for house legends like Luke!

Luke Leads Marian to National Cup Glory!

B-Ball Glory Days!

The Oblates Hall in Inchicore was once again the venue for a colossal Conlethian basketball triumph as Coaches Sean Ingle and Peter Gahan led the U16 Girls to the Dublin Basketball D League Crown with a thrilling victory over Gaelcholáiste an Phiarsaigh! Hi-Scorers were Jodi Ryan and Lucy McGoldrick, netting ten points apiece, but it was a real team effort and every single player deserves notice: Ciara Prendergast, Greta Lawless, Ru O’Sullivan, Ella Smyth, Charlotte O’Donoghue, Sadbh McGonigle, Anna O’Neill and Brook O’Connor.

The first half was close but a huge third quarter, in which the green-and-black outscored their opponents 15-0, enabled the St. Conleth’s girls to pull away, rooted on by Head of Sport Ciara Smith and a raucous gang of select supporters. Yes, after the Covid lull, St. Conleth’s basketball is back with a bang and the cups and shields are starting to bulge the trophy case, once again. Well done to the coaches, all the players and the supporters!

Straight Shooters!

Our U16 Girls Basketball team are through to the Dublin Final and not only are the players accurate markspeople, so are their coaches. Here, Coach Ingle gives a straight-up account of his bball bro, Mr. Gahan’s, latest tactical triumph.

Adamstown started strongly, netting two quick baskets and getting out to an early lead. Ciara Prendergast got St. Conleth’s on the board and retaliated with a basket for St. Conleth’s but Adamstown Community College stretched their lead out further to 10 – 2 with a couple of baskets in quick succession. An early timeout by Coach Gahan and a change of team tactics to zone defence seemed to slow the scoring run.  


After getting used to the physicality of Adamstown. St. Conleths roared back in the 2nd Quarter with baskets by Jodi Ryan, Lucy McGoldrick and Anna O Neill. With great teamwork on display from all of the girls, a lot of purposeful passing ended up with some wide open looks at the basket. The St. Conleth’s defence held firm and only allowed 2pts in the 2nd Quarter which allowed us to take a small lead into the halftime break. 
The 3rd quarter was much of the same from St. Conleth’s with some defensive contributions from Brooke O Connor and great passing from Ella Smyth and Ciara Prendergast. More timely baskets in the 3rd quarter stretched the St. Conleths lead to 9pts by the end of the 3rd Quarter. 
Another great start to the 4th quarter allowed us to pile on the points with great baskets from Charlotte O Donoghue and Anna O Neill. However, Adamstown weren’t going to lie down that easily. They scored a flurry of baskets to make it a 5pt game with 1 minute to go. The St. Conleth’s defense came through and held out for the win. 
Final Score: Adamstown Community College (25) v St Conleth’s (31)
Top Scorers: Anna O Neill:16 pts; Lucy McGoldrick: 9pts; Charlotte O Donoghue, Ciara Prendergast, Jodi Ryan: 2 pts

Double Dribble!

The girls are at it again! U16s and U19s Girls Basketball won the double over Mount Anville: 44-16 and 44-28, respectively. Lucy McGoldrick led the youngsters with 20 and Greta, Anna and Ciara chipping in 4 each while Timea returned to net a stylish 15 for the 19s with Vivienne adding 10 and Marie netting 4. Well done to both teams and Coach Sean Ingle! And the stylishly moustached Assistant Coach Adam!

Gahan’s Gangstas!

Coach Gahan’s B-Ball Gangsta Girls are off to a fast start with the U16s beating Presentation-Terenure and the U19s getting nipped by a buzzer beater. Lucy McGoldrick and Anna O’Neill starred for both teams and 19s Captain Julia Huckfeldt provided the on and off court leadership. Charlotte O’Donoghue and Ella Smyth also stepped up for the U16s and Sixth Year Emile Boostrom marked her first ever basketball game with a brace of baskets! Stay tuned as Coaches Gahan and Ingle lead our basketball teams, of both genders, to further heights of hoopla!

They’re Playing Basketball!

Yes, the Covid cops tried to spoil the fun but Coach Ingle used his ‘hood connections to apply some pressure and , lo and behold, we were tipping off and snapping nets, once again! Yes, indeed, the Basketball Boyz are back in town! Sean and Coach Gahan were biding their time while all this ‘hockey school’ talk was in the air, and once given the chance, they made a claim for their own sport as their U-16 B-Ball Boys returned to winning ways with a thumping of our near neighbours, St. Michael’s. Fionán Power led the way with 26 points while Dylan Cosgrave and Joe Kelleher each chipped in with 6. Of course, the U-19s were also in action, narrowly losing to the same opponent. Below you see both teams, and some action shots from earlier matches against Marian College.

And while we are talking hoops… the First and Second Year Boys have also been in action, and we must not forget the girls, who train all together on Mondays, from First through Sixth year, in one gregarious but garrulous gang. Nor are the Juniors neglected, as Coach Ingle makes sure another generation of hoop heroes are ready to take the court for St. Conleth’s when their time comes!

Great Sports!

We mentioned below how the St. Conleth’s rugby and hockey teams have hit the ground running, and we are soon to hear from the basketball teams, too, but sport at St. Conleth’s involves a lot more than the extramural teams. In fact, winning matches is great, but we are probably even prouder that all our students are encouraged to enjoy physical education and sport of the more everyday kind: in classes with Mr. Lonergan and the other PE teachers, at training sessions with the various coaches, on ‘Wellbeing’ brisk walks and even at break-time in the yard. Here are just a few snaps of what is going on at St. Conleth’s everyday, in a sporting way:

1) Shay Keenan, St. Conleth’s Games Master/Coach/Absolute Legend, gets the Sixth Year soccer boys lined up for a proper team photo at the grand re-opening of the Herbert Park Astro. They look great: a shame they will be crushed by the Staff Team in May!

2-3) Both the Transition Year girls and the boys get the opportunity to help improve St. Conleth’s sporting acumen. The girls are great helping Ms. Leary coach the Juniors… and the boys get to do Gav’s laundry!

4) Coaches Ingle and Gahan get the Basketball girls ready for the season, which is just about to tip off!

The Last B-Ball Game in Ireland?

In our efforts to keep some Conlethian good vibes flowing, we bring you more BC (Before Corona) News: Our U19 team were involved in perhaps the last basketball game played before the shutdown, a narrow loss to old friendly foes St. Andrew’s in the SDBL Final. Our name has been etched on this particular plaque many times, and will be so again, but this time we settled for an honourable second place, nipped by a strong, international Andrew’s team. Big man Luke Gilleran and fireplug Keane Acosta were again forces for us, as were graduating Sixth Years Suyash Patidar and Josh Bergin and rising youngsters Ralph Garing, Luke ‘C3P0’ Sherlock and Oisín Thornton, but it was Colin Bolger who really shot out the lights and earned a share of the MVP award.

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And Sixth Year Jack Doyle had the honour of captaining the side in his last appearance in a St. Conleth’s basketball jersey. Jack has been part of St. Conleth’s since Junior School days and his devotion to basketball and the school as a whole has been steadfast and strong. Like his ancestors from the middle of America, Jack has always been the epitomé of hard work, team spirit and impeccable manners.

Bring the Noise!

There was a poignant moment at the recent Past Pupils Dinner when select members of the Class of 2010 got together to recall their shared glory days of St. Conleth’s basketball: when Herron and Purcell and McCormack and McCoy and Carr and Co. shocked the world of Irish Schools Basketball, winning the All-Ireland double in 2008. And, now, current St. Conleth’s coaches, Sean Ingle and Peter Gahan are establishing quite a record of ‘glory days’, themselves. The First Year boys team have been on a rampage since the season tipped off, rivalling last year’s First Year rugby team for consistency and promise. Below you see pix (Thanks, Scott!) from a romp over St. Benildus and just last Friday they won a thriller over St. Paul’s, 31-30, with the Twin Powers (Fionán and James) and Cormac Hayden leading the way. That dramatic win has put the boys into an Ireland East Basketball Ireland Final, which will be played on Thursday at the Oblates Hall in Inchicore at 11:10. But, hang on, we have another final to support before then: the U19s will play today (Wednesday) at 4:15 at St. Andrew’s for the SDBL crown. Luke Gilleran, Colin Bolger, Keane Acosta and the the boys have a great chance to add another ‘St. Conleth’s’ to the engraver’s to-do list!

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B-Ballers Show Mamba Mentality

Basketball fans worldwide recently mourned the loss of one of the all-time greats, but Kobe Bryant’s emphasis on mental attitude and preparedness lives on in young players across the globe, including those at St. Conleth’s. Led by Coaches Ingle and Gahan, and the elder statesmen U19 Boys, Conlethian teams from First Year up had a great January, posting (and posterising) such fabled adversaries as Benildus, Blackrock, Mt. Anville and St. Michael’s. Luke Gilleran and Colin Bolger are no strangers to headlines, leading their Conlethian team to glory at each stage of development over the years, as well as playing for nationally prominent clubs and recently being named to the Irish team for their respective age groups.

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Old, friendly foes Colaiste Eoin knew they were up against it when they drew St. Conleth’s in the SDBL U19 Boys Semifinal. These plucky Gaeilgeoirs, from the poshest Gaeltach in Ireland, have faced us many times over the years, and they have (almost) had their share of the spoils, but when you are lining up crosscourt from two Irish players such as Luke and Colin, even the famous 10% Irish bonus points are not going help much! And our boys politely but firmly put our southside neighbours to the sword, with Luke pouring in buckets from the paint, including an in-game thunderous dunk, and Colin ducking and chucking from the perimeter. As usual, the supporting cast did their part: Keane cleaning the parquet with his hustle; Jolly Jack D, Jack T. and Josh doing their devil-may-care Sixth Year thing; youngsters Sherlock and Ralph learning on the go (and the give); and Suyash Patidar snapping the ropes with a NBA trey!

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Our U19 squad have given us many thrills over the years, but our younger teams seem eager to follow on the same path to success. Our First and Second Year teams have started their league campaigns with spirited performances and some impressive wins against such powerhouses as St. Benildus’s, Blackrock and St. Michael’s. First Years Fionan, James, John, Steph and Yubo have shown particular swagger… and a good bit of skill to back it up!

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And how could we forget the girls! St. Conleth’s is now fully co-educational, and, if anything, our boys have had a hard time keeping up with the girls when it comes to sport! Our First and Second Years have combined into one superteam, and with wins over Mt. Anville, Woodbrook and the ‘girls school that have a purple kit’, it is clear that it is not just in hockey and athletics where our newest Conlethians are going to competitively shine!

New Heights!

Those PE classes and after-school trainings sessions seem to be paying off regarding Junior School basketball as, for the first time, we were AIJS Basketball Tournament Finalists! Our Junior School team had their best performance ever: finishing runners-up to megalithic St. Michael’s, and beating perennial powers Castlepark, both their A and B teams, en route to the final. We did notice the familiar names of Moriarty-Smyth and Sherlock on the team-sheet, proving that their athletic prowess is not limited to the noble art of fencing. Of course, it takes a full team, and then some, to compete in an intensely paced blitz-like tournament, so well done to all the boys and their coaches!

A Different Shade of Green!

He shoots, he dribbles, he passes, he scores… and now he plays for Ireland! Luke Gilleran has made the ‘final 22’ of the Ireland Under-18’s Mens Basketball Team, joining past Conlethian hardcourt luminaries such as Peter Herron and Mark Ryan, who also represented their country. Here we see Luke demolishing the competition but we will be showing you him in that other green jersey, soon!

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The Tiger Roars Again!

Most of our current students are too young to remember but for a few years after the turn of the millennium, Ireland was the happy hunting ground of the Celtic Tiger and we did things and bought things (mostly the latter) of which we will probably never be able again. Locally, we mark the height of the ‘Tiger’ with two historical events: one, when they started selling straight pomegranate juice at the Baggott St. Spar and two, when the Boys’ U19 Basketball team flew, yes- ‘flew’, to Cork for an All-Ireland Cup match. Somehow we convinced ourselves that the logistics demanded air travel, just the way one of our big men, Gavan Duffy, thought it logical that he should spend all of his €20 traveling money on sunglasses at 6:30 in Dublin Airport, in the rain. Really, you had to be there.

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Well, the cranes are up again, and there is a €200 steak available on Shelbourne Road, but we have learned our lessons and now spend our money much more surreptitiously, like holidaying at Centre Parcs in County Longford. But one thing that harkens back to the golden years is the state of St. Conleth’s basketball. Coaches Ingle and Gahan and their charges, both boys and girls, are absolutely ballin’ it! The Conlethian teams went. combined 5-0 last week, including a return trip to County Cork (alas, via coach this time) where the U19 Boys, once again led by Luke ‘Lord of the Paint’ Gilleran and Colin ‘Bomber’ Bolger, trounced the country cream of Rosscarbery. The dynamic duo had their usual support in the feverish antics of Keane Acosta and the glove-like ‘D’ of Dylan Alvez as well as some new contributors: Luke ‘Silky’ Sherlock stepping up from the 16s and off-season transfer ‘Dapper’ Daniel Duarte making his big game debut. And the boys were not alone this week in snapping the nets and cleaning the glass: the Girls, U16 and U!9 versions, beat St. Pat’s Cathedral and Pres.-Terenure, following up on their double over Ballinteer the previous week. Overall, an impressive slate of victories and a return to hoopla headlines for St. Conleth’s. Who knows? We may be on to Ryan Air for the next round of the cup…

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B-Ballers Bring the Noise!

Judging from the roars emanating from the Sports Hall on Friday at lunch-time, Steph Curry dropping 23 in the 4th quarter to shut the door the Rockets has nothing on Sean Ingle singeing the nets for four straight 3 pointers, each a dagger in the heart of the Sixth Year Basketball Team. And the crowd of enthusiastic student supporters grew even more rapturous with each thunderous pick set by Mr. Peter ‘Granite’ Gahan and each exclamatory block delivered by ‘Swattin” Shane Robertson. Rookies Mr. Smith and Coleman did their part too, transferring skills learned over their long and storied respective MMA and UFC careers and Mr. Latvis even chipped in with a couple of playground pirouettes. The students were full of effort and not without talent: ‘Jumpin” Johnny Barry was his usual engine of endeavour and Lil’ Latvis periodically established his class but they and ‘Gutsy’ Gavin Roche-Griffin, ‘Jugular’ John Kelleher, The Blyncher, ‘D-Train’ Dylan Browne and ‘Proper’ Pierce Roberts just could not stem the flow of staff swish and bang. And the crowd went wild…

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B-Ballers Still Bouncing!

It was a hectic end to the official basketball season as Coaches Gahan and Ingle led both boys and girls teams into the postseason. Our Second Year boys lost very narrowly to Rathcoole in the Semifinal of the Basketball Ireland Dublin Plate and our Second Year Girls team (filled out with several First Years) won a thrilling Quarterfinal match against Choláiste Chillain, but lost a very close game to Lucan Community College in the Semifinal of the Basketball Ireland Dublin League. The fact that their opponents had at least three club players, and were probably playing down at least a league level or two, makes our girls’ accomplishment even more impressive. But if you think that with the leagues finished, the gym will now only be filled with the becalming vibes of Mr. Porzadny’s Wellness workouts, think again, for Gahan and Ingle are readying their 80s mix-tapes and their boomboxes for their famous OG Post-Easter ‘3 on 3’ Tournament. The beat, and the bounce, go on!

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Juniors Win Basketball Derby!

Nothing gets the blood up like a local ‘derby’. Just think of the blue versus the red of Manchester or the hoops versus the bigots in Glasgow… well St. Conleth’s also has its fair share of neighbourhood rivalries. Our Senior School Chess teams particularly love taking points from Gonzaga; the rugby and basketball teams get particularly ferocious against Marian and, before they relocated to a higher sphere of being, John Scottus and we used to have epic yogic flying races. Well the recent Junior School Basketball match in our Sports Hall (our first ever ‘official’ home basketball game) took it to a new level as we were facing St. Mary’s of Haddington Road, a school we know well from epic chess battles and the express queues at Tesco. And there was something extra on the line, for St. Mary’s was coached by none other than the brother of St. Conleth’s Head of Basketball Sean Ingle! This showdown had the makings of a Hollywood movie, or at least a Hallmark channel tearjerker.

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But there were no tears, only cheers as the two teams competed in a spirited but friendly manner and the nets were snapping at both ends of the court. The final score had St. Conleth’s winning 31-29 and that in itself tells a story: many junior basketball games end with baseball scoreboard totals: 8-6, 12-7 etc… But such was the enthusiasm and skills on display from both sides, that the scoreboard was spinning like it was an NBA All-Star game: a true tribute to the players and the Coaches Ingle!

Two Wheels Good!

Now, that’s a real ‘pick and roll’! TYs enjoyed a day of sporting fun with a social dimension as they took part at Gormanston College in the Irish Wheelchair Association’s fundraising basketball league. It was a great day out and everyone played their part. Of course, our ‘regular’ basketball stars such as Luke Gilleran, Colin Bolger and Keane Acosta were wheelin’ and dealin’ all over the court but it was great to see newcomer Ian Mauer showing off his skills and Vanshika Shukla and Ciara MacNally absolutely dominating the mid-court with their stylish pivots and passes. Check out the (many) pics below!

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Balling with the Best!

Another busy Conlethian international sportsman!   TY Luke Gilleran recently travelled with the Irish Basketball U17 Development squad to an international three day tournament in Mulhouse, France and played against top European competition from France, Serbia and Russia.  Luke scored 63 points in 6 games including 21 points v KK FMP Belgrade and 19 points v Lokomotiv Kuban. He also ‘cleaned up’ a lot of defensive boards in particular.  And it was raining 3s for Luke – he hit 5 3s in one game and 4 3s in another, and was selected to participate for the Irish team in the tournament 3 point contest.  Luke’s Irish team played in the 3rd/4th place play-off in the main arena in the Palais de Sport in Mulhouse (7,000 capacity).

 

U19s’ Future Looks Bright!

With essential parts Mark ‘Ronan’ Connor and  Johnny ‘Taz’ Barry on the shelf due to injury, the Boys U19 Basketball team was always going to be up against it in the SDBL Semifinal and when we drew perennial nemesis, St. Andrew’s, it was assured to be a dogfight.  Only seven brave young men suited up, but they gave the perennial powers a run for the money, and though we lost on the scoreboard we won on the style and the swagger, in a sport where they matter, too.   Like Philly last year and Brooklyn this, these kids may not always win, but they always put on a show!  Colin Bolger was Iverson-like as he shot the lights out  and hounded the St. Andrew’s guards relentlessly.  Luke Gilleran was his usual rebounding and shot blocking machine and the quintessential big man dime dispenser.  Andrew ‘Casimir’ Latvis, emulating his Eastern European NBA heroes, plied both the paint and the perimeter like a junior Jokić.  Josh Bergin and Jack Doyle were doubling their minutes but showed no let-up in effort or skill and Keane Acosta was again a streak of green as he dashed up and down the court, shooting at a whim.  And barrel-chested Jack Topliss, like a 1980s Piston, came on for some thumping picks…  but somehow found time to also take the amazing pics below!  Well done to the boys and Coach Sean on a great season.  The future bodes well, with only Andrew and Johnny declaring for the draft.

 

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A Thousand Words…

…is the supposed value of a picture but the frequent visitor to these pages knows that we often throw in the thousand words anyways, for good measure!  This time, however, we will let the photographs speak for themselves.  Our usual TY ace reporters Edwin and Seoyeon were joined by new recruit, Adam Rafter, and he proved a quick learner as he traipsed around the various sporting venues, snapping away with his usual good humour, despite having just roused himself from his sickbed .  The events themselves were a trifecta of moral victories but actual losses: our JCT went down to Blackrock College (yes, that Blackrock College!) but put up a darn good fight; our Senior Hockey girls lost to Louth powerhouse Dundalk Grammar; and our U16 Boys Basketball team was edged out in the SDBL Semifinal by perennial foreign student-enhanced powers, St. Andrew’s.  Three losses yes, but all against top-notch competition, and there is more to come in each sport as the JCT face the rugged farm-boys of Ardee (pronounced ‘AR-deeeee’) in the Duff Shield quarters; the Minor Hockey team is steaming into the post-season; and the U19 Boys have a SDBL Semifinal vs. St. Andrew’s later this week. We feel that… oh yes, enough said.  Now, the photos!

JCT Rugby

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Senior Hockey

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U16s Basketball

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Holiday Hoop News!

We already know that our U19 boys basketball team have continued their winning ways under Coaches Ingle and Gahan and they have another postseason appointment with glory in the New Year, but let us bring you up to date with a couple of our other teams.  The U16 Girls certainly had a successful season, narrowly losing their league semifinal in a toughly contested match but having a season full of wins to look back upon proudly.  There was a one-point loss to start the season but then the girls reeled off victories against Sandford Park, Presentation-Terenure, Larkin CC and Mt. Anville, and mostly by comfortable margins!  Well done to the girls and we look forward to one even stronger team next year.

 

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And our First Years have picked up in basketball where they have been all year in rugby: winning! Coaches Ingle and Gahan lead them to the final of their first blitz of the year. Stay tuned as their season gets into gear in the new year!

 

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Basketbrawl!

The deck was stacked against the Staff basketball team from the start.  The Sixth Years (the Man City of schools basketball) had a veritable All-Star team ready to roll, having recently bought up most of the available free agents at the trading deadline, including the expensive foreign imports, Marlon ‘Air’ Marishta and Michael ‘Lethal’ Lee.  What could the Staff team do but resort to the time-honoured Irish method of trying to nip a victory with heart and grit (and a bit of hold and trip) or, at least, making the loss as difficult and as bloody as possible!  There was also some native talent on the student team: Conor ‘Tower’ Power performed his usual, thankless task of impersonating a Wisconsin farmboy and methodically pulling down rebound after rebound; Oisín ‘Puck’ Gilligan floated around the 3-point arc all day like his Shakespearean hero, flitting from side to side and occasionally inflicting dagger treys; Alex Murphy, despite feeling a bit queasy as it was all a bit cosier and sweatier than a lawn tennis match at the Fitz, still managed to make some spirited drives; Luke ‘McHey’ McKay’s quickness, dexterity and cockiness transferred well from rugby as did Gavin Nugent’s heart and hustle; and Captain Harry launched shots from every possible position and angle, even making a couple.  Coupled with Marlon’s F-15 assaults on the rim and  Michael’s lethal defence, it is no wonder the Staff team felt the pressure!

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Coach Sean Ingle’s dramatic, just-in-time, tip-off arrival harkened back to 1970 when Willis Reed stumbled out of the locker-room at half-time and spurred the Knicks to championship glory.  And the support of the many watching student fans 9both Junior and Senior), decidedly Staff supporters, gave us extra impetus.  Our own ‘High-Tower’, Mr. Magee, battled nobly with the student giants; relative youngsters Gahan and Robinson ran and jumped with abandon;  and Mr. Lonergan brought his usual Wolverine effort to loose ball pursuit and Mr. Sheridan showed a bit of French flair with his passing, all complementing true pro Ingle’s masterclass in floor generalship, but in the end, alas, it was not to be, as the study march of time and Mr. Keenan’s quick whistle eventually did us in.  It is a good thing we not have long to wait for revenge: the Staff are looking to extend their ten-year unbeaten streak vs. Sixth years on Tuesday in the annual soccer match in Irishtown!