Ballina take Div I title to make Super League return
Basketball: John MelvinBallina are on the verge of returning to the Super League of Irish Basketball following their impressive performance at Ennistymon at the weekend, where they clinched the E.S.B. senior Mens first division title. It was top class basketball from Ballina who beat Clare Jets in the semi-final and Tralee in the final, confirming the belief that they never belonged in Division One in the first place. Now the club is to hold a crucial meeting in the coming weeks to decide if a future in the Super League is on the cards, and the opinion is, that Ballina will be back in the top flight next season with Liam McHale very anxious to play at the highest level again. It would need a major overhaul of their facilities in Killala with the new Ballina complex unlikely to be ready until the Millennium and a major injection of cash, but the belief is that the support is there for a team that could possibly win another Cup or league, if they get two good Americans for next season and players like McHale, Marsh and McStay proving they still can do the business with some fine displays at the weekend. It is unlikely an application by Ballina to return to the super league would be turned down given the quality of their performances in Division One, where they were really in different class, losing just one game on route to the title. Their biggest problem will be getting their house in order and that could mean setting up a dynamic finance committee and getting the Killala Hall up to standard. From the basketball point of view, there would not appear to be any problem. With both Clare Jets and Tralee bringing in some big players under the Bosman ruling, Ballina had tough semi-final but the scoring spread was an indication of the better balance in their team. Anthony McHale, won the MVP award had a superb 18 points against Clare while a back-to-form Deora Marsh hit 27, Liam McHale 23 and Paul McStay 16 with Martin conroy hitting 6 and Gerry Adams 2. Eric Butler had 26 for Clare while Rob Gibbons, their Irish-American player who has strong Claremorris connections, scored 26. Ballina led by 44-39 at the break. The final score 87-72 In the final Ballina beat Tralee 87-72, Anthony McHale again a prominent figure, while Liam McHale scored 27, Deora Marsh 17, Anthony 14 and Martin Conroy 6 Kennedy for top coaching clinicTop Ballina basketball coach, Terry Kennedy, heads for the United States for a two week stint at a major coaching clinic where he has been invited by a top U.S. coach. Kennedy has been over in the States at a number of coaching clinic where he has worked with various age groups in developing their basketball skills. Kennedy will be in Madison Square Garden, providing coaching to High School students, many of whom are on scholarship in the U.S. He will also be keeping an ear to the ground for new talent as Ballina hope to return to the super league next season.
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