"It's a massive boost to the club" - Limerick Sport Eagles Head Coach Niall McDermott on National Cup Final

PREPARATIONS are well under way for the Limerick Sport Eagles as they gear up for a Domino's Men's Division One Cup Final against Drogheda Wolves in Dublin.

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Head Coach Niall McDermott is delighted with his side's semi-final display over Templeogue, an 84-68 win over their Dublin counterparts, which now sets up a final date against Drogheda on Sunday at 2.30pm. 

"We're delighted with the result, we played them earlier on in the season and it was only a two-point game so we knew we were in for a real challenge. We had a great start but they kept coming back at us and that's credit to them, they stuck around but we managed to pull away in the fourth quarter when we managed to put another run together.

"The end result was brilliant but it was by no means an easy game, they stuck with us all the way through. It was a fantastic result. I'm really happy for the lads, all the work they are putting in is paying off so really, really happy."

Derry native McDermott states that he always believed his side were capable of putting in such an impressive performance against a top side like Templeogue. 

"I did think this performance was in us to be honest. We are a team that's a mixture of youth and experience. With young teams the issue is always consistency. Young players always have the talent but it's always hard for young players to be consistently good and that's the case in every sport.

"So you never know is it going to be a high level performance every week but in the games and in the trainings leading up to the game, you could tell everyone was really, really focused. 

"The lads only had two days off over Christmas and at every session over that period, nobody missed a single session which gave me great confidence as a coach, everyone was pushing hard and pushing each other."

The Eagles head coach was pleased that it was a real team performance that saw his side over the line in the semi-final. 

"In the semi-final, everyone that played, played really well, which is great for us. Alex was our top-scorer (with 32 points) but there were also five players scoring double-figures and we had load of young Irish guys coming in. 

"Fryderyk Klimas is only 16-years-old and he scored 10 points in a National Cup semi-final. Daniel Shahab scored 10 points as well, Darragh Horkan was excellent on defence, Colm Hackett and Seán Ryan came off the bench as well and they all played beyond their years.

Looking ahead to the final, McDermott is under no illusions as to how tough the Drogheda challenge will be.

"We beat them away this year but again it was a very tough game, it was one of our toughest games we had this season. They are a very big, physical team.

"They have one of the best American's in the country playing for them in Bernard Jackson who scored 44 points in their semi-final. They also have Mark Keenan as Head Coach who is the former Irish Men's coach who has also won numerous Super League and Cup titles so it's going to be a tough challenge. 

McDermott states that reaching the National Cup final is 'huge' for the club, who are enjoying a fine season both in the cup and league. 

"It's huge. The Eagles have a great history at the highest level at Irish basketball. They won leagues and cups in the past but maybe since then the club has gone through a bit of a rough time but being back in Division One with the last number of years has been great and this current squad, the vast majority of them have come through our youth ranks.

"A lot of them boys would have been boys watching those teams back in the day. It would be a massive boost to the club to get a piece of silverware. Everyone in Ireland is obsessed with the cup, it's such a big deal. It's where you want to be, it's a massive occasion for the whole club.

"We had such great support in the semi-final and that's really important for us. It's great to be able to give those fans a day out in Dublin as well and hopefully there will be a result for them to cheer on," McDermott concluded.