MATCH REPORT
Fri 18th
November
NEPTUNE STADIUM CORK @7.00pm
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SuperLeague South Conference
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Neptune
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(FT)85
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(FT)91
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Abrakebabra Tigers
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(HT)29
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(HT)52
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26
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Dave Fanning
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20
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James Mooney
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18
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Wilder August
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18th Nov 2006
TIGERS WIN PUTTING THEM TOP OF THE LEAGUE
In a hard fought battle Tigers
went to Cork and took home the points putting them top of the Southern
Conference with a game in hand and now a 5 game unbeaten streak.
Match Report By Padraig Falvey
1st quarter
Tigers start strong gaining
possession from the tip off giving Wilder a 2pt basket and Mooney hits a 3. A
foul on Wilder gives tigers another point putting the score 2-8 with 8:32 on the clock. Good baskets from
Quirke and Mooney and a Dunk by Wilder increase the lead to 8-16 with the only
score for Neptune coming from their 6’6” American
Baker. With 3:31 on the clock Fanning gets a superb steal in his own half
and scores a layup and draws the foul giving him an
extra point with the free throw. Good defensive play by both sides kept the
scoring low at the end stages of the quarter with a hard defensive tackle on
Kieran Donaghy. 35 seconds on the clock with a scoreline of 16-23 James Mooney steps up and hits a 2
pointer at the buzzer to make the score 16-25 at the end of the first.
2nd quarter
The quarter starts
spectacularly with a super lay up by Mooney giving Wilder a dunk making the scoreline 16-27 with 10:35 on the clock and Neptune called a time out to try and slow
things down. Some hard tackles on Mooney give Tigers the foul by they fail to capitalise on it and give away possession. Tigers however
regain momentum with some Mooney 3 pointers and 2’s by Fanning and Tehan
and some tight defensive play with outstanding defensive rebounds by Auguste
extend their lead to 16-34. More 3’s by Mooney puts the score to 18-37. Tigers
then receive a technical foul giving Neptune 2 shots and possession and a chance to get back
into the game, which they capitalise on led by Baker.
Tigers and Neptune go basket for basket with 4
minutes on the clock putting the scoreline 21-39.
Baskets by Fanning and Auguste push Tigers on putting the score to 21-43
however Neptune launch some what of a comeback led by Baker and Joyce but
Tigers finish strong at half time with a scoreline of
29-52.
3rd quarter
The second half sees a
strong Tigers start with a Mooney 3 pointer however that was short lived as
they would not score for another 3 minutes as Neptune went basket for basket
with some excellent rebounding by Baker and some super 3 pointers by Kieran
O’Brien right in the face of the Tigers defence,
making the score 43-55. Finally with 7:30 on the clock Michael Quirke gets
a basket just after Fanning scored one of two free throws putting the score to
43-58. Neptune then stepped up their game (led
on by their screaming coach on the sideline) with some strong defence and offence culminating in a couple of 3 point
shots getting them back to 51-58 with 5:20 on the clock. Tigers then launch
a comeback with a Fanning 3 pointer and a basket by Quirke putting the score
53-63 with 3:43 on the clock. Neptune reply with a basket from Baker and a 3 from Muzik cuts the deficit to 55-65. The quarter ends with 2
free throws from Quirke and a basket from Auguste and responses from Baker and
Joyce leaving the score at 58-69 going into the final quarter.
4h quarter
The quarter starts with
both teams going basket for basket and with 6 minutes on the clock the score
was 68-82 however some fantastic play between Baker and O’Brien with 5 baskets
in a row cut the deficit to 78-84 and then a three by O’Brien puts it down to
the wire with 2 minutes on the clock and a scoreline
of 81-86. Misses by Mooney and Fanning give Neptune the opener they need
however they fail to capitalise and with 30 seconds
on the clock and a scoreline of 82-86 Kieran Donaghy lives up to his nickname of ‘Star’ and has a
magnificent check as Baker pulled the trigger giving Tigers possession of the
ball. Fouls on both Mooney and then on Fanning puts Neptune into foul trouble giving Tigers 2
free shots which Mooney sinks putting it 82-88 with 20 seconds left. O’Brien
then steps up and sinks a 3 but fouls on Donaghy and
Mooney give Tigers 3 back leaving the score at the buzzer 85-91 giving Tigers
the points they need to go top of the Southern Conference with a game in hand.
Post game comments
David Falvey: We started
superb in the first half gaining a comfortable lead with some great 3’s by
Mooney. However just like last week we sat back and took the foot off the pedal
letting Neptune back into the game. But we held
on with some great play by our Irish and American players giving us the win.
I’m delighted with the win and the fact that we are now 5 games in a row
unbeaten and are now top of our conference with a game
in hand. We have a tough game at home next week against Killester which if we
win will put us in a very comfortable position so we need a huge turnout next
weekend in the Sports Complex from the fans to give us that extra boost that
only the Tralee fans can give. Keep those drums
beating and let us hear the roar.