Ireland national basketball team
Ireland's men's international basketball team represent the island of Ireland. It is organised by Basketball Ireland, with players from both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Ireland play their home matches at the National Basketball Arena in Tallaght, Dublin. The team has yet to qualify for the final stages of EuroBasket or the FIBA World Championship.
History
Ireland (white) against Luxembourg (blue) in 2009
The Amateur Basketball Association of Ireland (ABAI; now Basketball Ireland) was formed in 1945 and affiliated to FIBA in 1947. An indoor version of Basketball had been played in the Irish Army from 1936, but using non-standard rules to create an indoor winter substitute for Gaelic football; until 1943, the Army Athletic Council officially recognised only Gaelic games.[1] The ABAI sent a team of the best Army players to the 1948 Olympic tournament in nearby London, despite the refusal of Army command to release the players for intensive training. The team coaches were officers unfamiliar with the sport, who outranked the players and ignored their advice. Although many top sides were absent from the London Games in the aftermath of World War II, the Irish team finished last, losing every match heavily; the worst a 71–9 loss to Mexico, who finished fourth.[2] Only two of the team were over 6 feet (1.8 m) tall.[3]
The team's standard improved gradually from the 1970s to the 2000s, as more school leavers won scholarships to play US college basketball, and some Irish American professional players took up eligibility to compete for their ancestral country. Ireland entered European-zone Olympic qualification tournaments in 1972,[4] 1976,[5] 1984,[6] and 1988,[7] losing every match each time. In 1988 Ireland finished runner-up in the inaugural Promotion Cup, the third tier of EuroBasket, later named EuroBasket Division C, and now the FIBA European Championship for Small Countries. In 1993 the National Basketball Arena opened in Dublin, which became the team's new permanent home. Division C was hosted there the following year, and Ireland beat Cyprus 81–78 in the final to gain promotion to EuroBasket Division B. Ireland narrowly failed to win promotion to Division A in FIBA EuroBasket 2005 Division B, losing to Denmark by 4 points after having won the first game in Dublin by 10 points.
In February 2010, during the Irish financial criss, Basketball Ireland announced that it was €1.2m in debt and was deactivating its senior international squads to cut costs.[8] In December 2015, the team was reactivated for 2016.[9]
In December 2015, it was announced that the men's national will play the 2016 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries.[10]
EuroBasket 2009 Qualifying campaign
- 15 Aug: Ireland 50–66 Sweden, National Basketball Arena, (Eurobasket B)
- 19 Aug: Ireland 73–98 Georgia, Vere Basketball Hall, Tbilisi, Georgia (Eurobasket B)
- 22 Aug: Ireland 100–83 Luxembourg, National Basketball Arena, (Eurobasket B)
- 29 Aug: Ireland 68–75 Slovakia, Inter Arena Pasienky, Bratislava, Slovakia (Eurobasket B)
Current roster
| Ireland National Basketball Team roster |
| Players | Coaches |
| Pos. | # | Name | Age – DOB | Ht. | Club |
|---|
| 1.5 !G |
4 |
Westbrooks, Aaron |
7001240000000000000♠24 – (1986-01-11)11 January 1986 |
1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) |
Free Agent |
|
| 5.0 !C |
5 |
Killeen, Jason |
7001290000000000000♠29 – (1981-01-22)22 January 1981 |
2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) |
Cheshire Jets |
ENG ! |
| 1.5 !G |
6 |
O'Boyle, Ian |
7001260000000000000♠26 – (1984-03-06)6 March 1984 |
1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) |
Neptune Cork |
IRE ! |
| 1.5 !G |
7 |
Westbrooks, Isaac |
7001250000000000000♠25 – (1985-04-02)2 April 1985 |
1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) |
Travelodge Swords Thunder |
IRE ! |
| 3.5 !F |
10 |
O'Reilly, Colin |
7001210000000000000♠21 – (1989-04-02)2 April 1989 |
2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) |
Cheshire Jets |
ENG ! |
| 1.5 !G |
12 |
Mullins, Bryan |
7001230000000000000♠23 – (1987-01-13)13 January 1987 |
1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) |
Champagne Basket Reims Chalons |
FRA ! |
| 5.0 !C |
13 |
Williams, Mike |
7001280000000000000♠28 – (1982-01-21)21 January 1982 |
2.11 m (6 ft 11 in) |
Free Agent |
|
| 3.5 !F |
14 |
Grace, Conor |
7001280000000000000♠28 – (1982-01-31)31 January 1982 |
2.05 m (6 ft 9 in) |
Norrköping Dolphins |
SWE ! |
| 5.0 !C |
15 |
Naughton, Justen |
7001290000000000000♠29 – (1981-07-31)31 July 1981 |
2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) |
Free Agent |
|
| 1.5 !G |
21 |
Westbrooks, Michael |
7001280000000000000♠28 – (1982-10-26)26 October 1982 |
1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) |
Dart Killester |
IRE ! |
| 1.5 !G |
22 |
Kinevane, Scott |
7001230000000000000♠23 – (1987-03-31)31 March 1987 |
1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) |
UL Eagles |
IRE ! |
| 3.5 !F |
24 |
Kelly, Patrick |
7001270000000000000♠27 – (1983-04-14)14 April 1983 |
1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) |
Dart Killester |
IRE ! |
|
- Head coach
Jay Larranaga
- Assistant coach(es)
Mark Keenan
and
Pat Price
- Legend
- (C) Team captain
- (DP) Unsigned draft pick
- (FA) Free agent
- (S) Suspended
 Injured
|
Head coach position
- Mark Keenan – 2014 (Irish Superleague Select Team)
- Colin O'Reilly – 2015 (Hibernia Basketball - selection of players from Irish National leagues)
Competitive record
At Promotion Cup
| Promotion Cup |
|---|
| Year |
Position |
Pld |
W |
L |
 1988 | Runners-up | 5 | 4 | 1 |
 1990 | Fourth place | 5 | 3 | 2 |
 1992 | Fourth place | 5 | 2 | 3 |
| 1994 | Champions | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| Total | 20 | 14 | 6 |
|
At Olympic Games
|
At Basketball World Cup
At EuroBasket
|
Notable players
Honours
See also
References
External links
|
|---|
|
- A1 GP
- Basketball
- Cricket
- Field hockey
- Football
- Handball
- Hurling
- Ice hockey
- Korfball
- Netball
- Pitch and putt
- Racquetball
- Roller derby
- Rugby league
- Rugby union
- Soccer
- Squash
- Tennis
- Volleyball
- Water polo
| | |
|
Gold: 1994
Silver: 1988
