Basketball Ireland Ready for New League Season

The fixtures for the 2019/20 Basketball Ireland National League season have been announced with two new Dublin teams taking their place in the top flight of the men’s League.

The upcoming season will feature 12 Men’s Super League teams – including newly promoted Dublin sides, DBS Éanna and Abbey Seals Dublin Lions – while the Women’s Super League boasts 10 teams once more this year, with Maree taking the place of NUIG Mystics in the top flight.

“We are really looking forward to another exciting season in the National League this year and we expect that we will see another year of thrills, wins and upsets around the four divisions,” said Basketball Ireland National League manager, Sheena Hubbard.

“We are also delighted to welcome two new clubs to the Women’s Division One and wish them the best of luck in their opening National League season.”

The Men’s Division One will feature 13 teams from around the country, including the newly amalgamated team, Limerick Sport Eagles as LIT and UL Sport Eagles join forces for the year.

The Women’s Division One will feature 12 teams, and will run across two conferences. This Division also includes two new teams, Tipperary Knights and Griffith College Templeogue.

The opening weekend of the season for the men’s National League is September 20th/21st and sees reigning champions Garvey’s Tralee Warriors host UCD Marian in the Kingdom on September 21st in a hotly-anticipated clash between the two clubs.

Elsewhere, there are three big derbies in store as newcomers Dublin Lions and Éanna go head-to-head in Clondalkin, DCU Saints face off against Pyrobel Killester in the second big Dublin showdown, while Moycullen host Maree in a much-anticipated Galway battle.

Griffith College Templeogue meanwhile are on the road to Belfast Star, while Coughlan CandS Neptune will host Keane’s SuperValu Killorglin in one of the other big clashes of the weekend.

Thw sponsor of the Killorglin team is Peter Keane, the Kerry Senior Football Manager, continuin a strong link between the sports stretching back to dual star Kieran Donaghy.

The Women’s Super League tips off the following weekend, September 28th, with one of the big games of the weekend seeing the meeting of Courtyard Liffey Celtics and DCU Mercy in Leixlip. Elsewhere, newly promoted Maree will go head-to-head with Ambassador UCC Glanmire, IT Carlow Basketball host Maxol WIT Wildcats, Pyrobel Killester welcome Singleton SuperValu Brunell to Dublin, while old rivals Marble City Hawks and Fr Mathews go head-to-head.

The Basketball Ireland 2019/2020 season will be officially launched on Wednesday, September 18th.

A number of sports with Olympic ambitions will be presenting and attending the Sport for Business Partners event taking place at the Sport Ireland Campus on Friday, September 27th. Places are still available if you would like to join us for a morning of learning and sharing about the world of sports sponsorship and the innovative programmes that are available for brands to get involved with.