Moycullen will be looking to salvage some pride on Saturday when they host Neptune in the second leg of the the Irish Cup in the Kingfisher at NUIG.
SSE Renewables Moycullen went down to the National Cup champions in the first leg last weekend by 104 - 59 as the experience of the hosts was too much for Moycullen’s young side.
Moycullen did start well and for the first quarter it was nip and tuck, but a poor last three minutes of the second quarter saw them go in at the break with a large deficit.
Try as they did to claw back that lead, Neptune’s experience was always going to play a massive part and, with Mike Callaghan fouling out with nearly five minutes to go, the writing was on the wall.
The club u-18 teams were also involved in their respective National Cup qualifying tournaments in Dublin and Killorglin.
The u-18 boys produced two excellent performances against St Brendan’s of Tralee and Limerick Lakers to top their group and qualify to play Templeogue of Dublin in the last 16 of the cup.
A poor first quarter against their Dublin opponents left them with a mountain to climb for the rest of the game, but they set about hauling in the lead to keep in contention. As a result a titanic battle ensued in the final quarter with neither team up by more than two points. With 11 seconds to play Moycullen were down two points and despite a good option at the end, Templeogue secured the win by the smallest of margins.
The u-18 girls entered the cup more in a desire to gain some valuable experience, but have qualified for the quarter-finals.
Underage again next year, Moycullen produced two solid performances against Carraig na bFhear of Cork, which they defeated by four in a shoot-out, and Meteors of Dublin to qualify second in their group. Against a more experienced Oblate Dynamos team from Dublin, Moycullen produced a superb third quarter to outscore their opponents by 10 points and secure a victory for the club by 55-45. Moycullen now meet Glanmire of Cork on the weekend of December 7/8.
Moycullen u-18 boys: Sean Candon, Darragh Mulkerrins, Kyle Cunningham, Joseph Tummon, Sean Kelly, Joshua Marvesley, Jack Costelloe, Dara O’Sullivan, Rory Heffernan, Eoghan Kelly, Ronan Clancy, Connor Curran, Max Brennan.
Moycullen u-18 girls: Cliona Regan, Roisin Thornton, Megan Davoren, Emily Molloy, Claire Guinnane, Ailbhe Davoren, Aine McDonagh, Sorcha Whyte, Catherine Connaire.
