Team Garvey’s were not put out by the 700K round trip up west this past weekend.  On Saturday they met Sligo All Stars in the Cup.  Garvey’s trailed by four at the end of the first quarter, Sligo’s Shane O’Meara and Fergal Kelly having both had a good run netting 14 points of their sides 18 between them while for Garvey’s Dainius Varanauskas was on form both from play and from the free throw line where six of their 14 points came from.

Team Garvey’s stepped up in the second period and out scored their opponents by five to give them a one point lead as the sides entered the third quarter.

From here in Garvey’s played brilliant defense, Dainius continued to hit the target and Tom Fleming hit two threes towards the end of the quarter to see Garvey’s total 25 points while holding Sligo to just 11.

Garvey’s continued to defend well in the final quarter while simultaneously widening the margin. Once again Dainius went on a scoring spree, Brian Clernon and Declan Wall joined him netting five and eight points respectively.  For Sligo it was Shane O’Meara who kept them in touch by hitting three threes.  Garvey’s were 17 points up when as the clock ran out Joe Watson put the icing on the cake with a three on the buzzer.

Final Score: Team Garvey’s 93 Sligo All Stars 72  

Team Garvey’s: Dainius Varanauskas 38, Declan Wall 16, John Galvin 12, Tom Fleming 10, Donal McCarthy 9, Brian Clernon 5, Joe Watson 3.

Team Garvey’s made the trip from Sligo to Ballina on Saturday night for their game against Loftus Ballina on Sunday.  The last time the sides had met was in the league quarter final last season when Ballina had com out on top. The game started in a similar fashion to the Sligo game with Garvey’s trailing by three at the end of the first quarter. They battled to come out on top in the second quarter to see the sides level at 28 points a piece by half time.  In similar style to the previous night Dainius Varanauskas was in fine form, he shot 10 of his sides 12 points for the first quarter, in the second quarter it was Brian Clernon and John Galvin who controlled the boards with bus driver for the weekend Michael Broderick registering his first score of the game while Donal McCarthy also made his first score of the game.

Garvey’s picked up on defense in the third quarter, Donal McCarthy did a brilliant job on Liam McHale, holding him to just five points in total for the game.  Garvey’s totaled 25 points in this quarter and held Ballina to just nine giving them a 16 point lead going into the final quarter.

They played just as well in the final denying Ballina of winning any rebounds from play while pushing further and further ahead and taking the game by 31 points.

Final Score: Team Garvey’s 76 Loftus Ballina 45

Team Garvey’s:Dainius Varanauskas 27, John Galvin 17, Declan Wall 9, Brian Clernon 9, Michael Broderick 7, Donal McCarthy 6,  

Team Garvey’s meet Limerick Lions on Sunday next Nov 23rd at 3.15 pm in Castleisland.

 

 AOL Waterford was left in no doubt as to the capabilities of Team Garvey’s on Saturday last when the sides met in W.I.T.  The Castleisland sides were on fire from the tip and within three minutes led 13 points to two.  Liam Brosnan opened with a three, Waterford’s Kieran Nyhan responded with two but from here it was Garvey’s who commanded the boards from most of the quarter, Liam Brosnan taking care of the outside shots and totaling 11 for the quarter while John Galvin took care of scores inside netting 10 for the quarter, Tom Fleming, Dainius Varanauskas and Donal McCarthy all made contributions to see Garvey’s finish with 30 points.  Although it had looked bleak for Waterford in the early part, Larry Murphy came to the rescue for his team to make three late threes to leave them with 15 points at the end of the quarter.

Garvey’s continued to widen the gap in the second period, as in the first John Galvin was in command when it came to defensive rebounding and a spread of scores saw them total 18 points this quarter while their excellent defense kept held AOL to just eight points. Half time score was 48 to 23 in favour of Team Garvey’s.

Waterford ’s Gary Walsh had a good run in the third quarter and was responsible for 12 of his sides 16 points scored but they got into early foul trouble and gave away a lot from the free throw line.  Team Garvey’s has quite a few misses in this quarter but still outscored their opponents by two.

Waterford finally found their target in the last quarter, Larry Murphy hit three threes to narrow the 27 point gap that had separated the sides at the start of the quarter.  Tom Fleming, John Galvin and Dainius Varanauskas all made scores from play for Garvey’s while Brian Clernon, Conor Brosnan and Donal McCarthy added points from the free throw line however they were outscored in this last quarter by six points.

 Final Score: Team Garvey’s 84    AOL Waterford 65

 Team Garvey’s meet Sligo in Sligo on Saturday next at 7.30pm in the Cup and will play Ballina on Sunday in Ballina at. 1.30 in the league.

Having registered a win over local rivals St. Brendan’s on Thursday night, Team Garvey’s added another on Sunday when they played a cross conference game against Portlaoise.

Liam Brosnan opened with a three for Garvey’s with John Galvin, Dainius, Donal McCarthy, Declan Wall and Maurice Casey all added points to put them ahead by five at the end of the first quarter.

Garvey’s widened the gap by another two points in the second quarter Maurice Casey showing the way this time with both Michael Broderick and Brian Clernon  putting their mark on the score sheet. Pierce Fagan was having a great game for Portlaoise and by half time had registered 12 points but it was Garvey’s who led 33 to 26 at he interval.

Liam Brosnan was first to register for Garvey’s in the third quarter but they went through a rough patch mid-way and trailed by seven until Declan Wall hit three threes in a row, Tom Fleming made a two and converted one from the free throw line when Wall came back with yet another three to match Portlaoise’s 20 points for the quarter and put Garvey’s back on top.

Garvey’s defended well in the final quarter and capitalised on the good run from the third quarter. They held Portlaoise to just seven points while netting 22 and taking the game by as many points.

Final score: Portlaoise 53 Team Garvey’s 75

Garvey’s: Declan Wall 19, John Galvin 14,  Tom Fleming 12, Liam Brosana 11, Maurice Casey 6, Michael Broderick 5, Donal McCarthy 4,  Dainius Varanaskus 2, Brian Clernon 2.

Team Garvey’s play away to Waterford on Saturday next November 8th. Tipoff is at 19.30 in W.I.T.

The first of this seasons clashes between local rivals Team Garvey’s and Meadowlands St. Brendan’s took place in Castleisland on Thursday last.

Mark Mitchell opened the scoring for Brendan’s, Michael Broderick responded for Garvey’s. Meadowlands won  most of the bounds at both ends of the court in the early part of the game.  Mark Mitchell went on a scoring spree pushing Brendan’s temporarily ahead but Garvey’s made some vital steals which they converted putting them five points ahead at the end of the first period.

St. Brendan’s got into foul trouble early in the second quarter. Thomas Saltonas picked up his third and was subbed out.  He was a huge loss on the floor for his side. Dainius Varanaskus came into his own for Team Garvey’s who went 11 points ahead before late scores from Joseph O’Callaghan and Mark Mitchell brought Brendan’s back to within nine points of their opponents at half time.

Garvey’s took control of the game from the third quarter. John Galvin, Brian Clernon and Dainius were superb in defence winning most rebounds. Galvin thrilled the crowd when he completed a fast break with a dunk, teammates Declan Wall, Tom Fleming and Dainius all added scores but each time Garvey’s got comfortable ahead they got lazy and allowed their opponents to make up ground. Fergal O’Sullivan and Mark Mitchell were the main scorers for Brendan’s for the quarter but their side trailed by 15 as the sides entered the final quarter.

Garvey’s kept the pressure on throughout the final quarter they continued to win ball defensively.  Both Fergal O’Sullivan and Paul O’Riordan registered scores for Meadowlands in this quarter but overall the Tralee side were not finding their target.

Niall Murphy made a late score to see Garvey’s take the game by 21 points.  

Final Score: Team Garvey’s 84 Meadowlands St. Brendan’s 63

Team Garvey’s: Dainius Varanaskus 24, John Galvin 21, Tom Fleming 13, Declan Wall 7, Michael Broderick 6, Liam Brosnan 5, Brian Clernon and Niall Murphy 3 and Maurice Casey 2.

Meadowlands St. Brendan’s: Fergal O’Sullivan 18, Mark Mitchell 13, Paul O’Riordan 9, Joseph O’Callaghan 8, Thomas Saltonas 6, Mark Sheehy 5, Robert O’Sullivan and James Murphy 2 each.

Team Garvey’s crossed the first hurdle in this seasons National Cup with ease as they had a comfortable win at home on Saturday last.

Neptune were forced to take an early time out to try and counter act the damage done following threes from Liam Brosnan and Declan Wall and a basket from John Galvin all inside the first two minutes of the game.

Ronan O’Sullivan was first to find the target for Neptune but Liam Brosnan responded quickly whit a two and added two more threes to his tally of11 for the first quarter.  Both Brian Clernon and John Galvin were winning all defensive rebounds and making it very difficult for Neptune to attempt anything inside. Garvey’s were 15 points ahead with just over two minutes to play in the first quarter and while Neptune managed to make 10 for the quarter it was Garvey’s who were well set up on the buzzer having managed 29 points.

The second quarter was much the same with Garvey’s netting 28 points, Declan Wall and Tom Fleming hitting three’s while John Galvin continued to win ball under the ball as well as delighting the crowd with a dunk. The scoreboard read 57 to 25 at half time in favour of Team Garvey’s.

Neptune upped the pressure in the third quarter and held Garvey’s to a miserable seven points for the quarter but still only managed 13 themselves.  Leaving the home team 26 points ahead going into the final period.

Ronan O’Sullivan and Gordon Fitzgerald were strongest for Neptune throughout the game and they kept their side in touch during the final quarter but were in foul trouble early in the quarter and gave away five points from the free throw line, Garvey’s added13 from play to this to run out winners.   

Final Score: Team Garvey’s 82 Neptune 53 

Top Scorers: Team Garvey’s: Dainius Varanaskus 18, John Galvin 16, Tom Fleming 13, Declan Wall 12.

Neptune: Gordon Fitzgerald 20, Ronan O’Sullivan 11, Jason O’Callaghan and Thomas O’Sullivan 7 each.

Team Garvey’s meet Meadowlands St. Brendan’s in Castleisland on Thursday next October 30th.  Tip off is at 8.15pm.  

Team Garvey’s suffered their first loss of the season on Saturday last at the lhands of a strong Moycullen team.  Moycullen had several members of their 2008 U20 cup winning team on board and from the tip they let it be known that they meant business. Although Garvey’s won the tip they failed to convert and Moycullen took the rebound and netted the first score of the game.  Offensively, Team Garvey’s were challenged throughout the game.  Moycullen played a tight defense and made it near impossible for Team Garvey’s to shoot.  As a result Garvey’s had several turnovers but despite this only two points separated the sides at the end of the first quarter.

Moycullen started the second quarter well and mid-way through held a 15 point lead but Team Garvey’s made a great comeback with 11 points coming from Dainius Varanaskus and by half time only five points separated the sides.

Cian Nihill came into his own for Moycullen during the third quarter, to this point he had secured 10 points for his side but added a further nine during the third quarter.  Team Garvey’s however reduced the gap further, threes came from Liam Brosnan and Brian Clernon while Donal McCarthy and Dainius add two each, the remainder of Garvey’s scores for the quarter came from the free throw line.  Garveys outscored Moycullen by two for the period leaving just three points between the sides as they entered the final quarter.

Cian Nihill went on a spree again in the final quarter adding 11 to his tally. Team Garvey’s lost Brian Clernon to foul trouble.  Moycullen’s defense proved once again to be a problem for Team Garvey’s who managed only six points in the final quarter while their opponents mad 13 to come out winners by 15. Top scorer for the game was Cian Nihill who had 33 points.

Final Score: Team Garvey’s 54 Moycullen 69

Team Garvey’s  Dainius Varanaskus 19, Liam Brosnan 13, Brian Clernon 8, John Galvin 6, Donal McCarthy 5, Michael Broderick 3.

Moycullen: Cian Nihill 33, g. Griffin 14, Glenn Hynes 13, E. Maxwell 4, D. Cunningham 3, Nollaig Cunningham 2. 

Team Garvey’s meet Neptune in the National Cup on Saturday next in Castleisland. Tip off is at 8.15pm

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Team Garvey’s finished the week off with a one point win over Titans in a thriller of a game on Saturday to give them three wins in their first three league games of the season.

The game was close from the start with a spread of scores coming from both sides.  Titans had started well going ahead by seven inside the first two minutes but some brilliant defense from both Brian Clernon and John Galvin was converted to scores and the home team led 17 points to 15 at the end of the first quarter.

The second quarter saw both sides net 19 points, for titans it was former super league player Paul Freeman who was most impressive while once again scores were evenly spread amongst the team Garvey’s squad.

Titans picked up the pace in the third quarter.  matched his second quarter tally of seven points while at this point in the game Team Garvey’s seemed to lose focus and had several miss-hits. Titans outscored the home side by four and led 55 to 51 going into the final quarter.

Titans increased their lead early in the final quarter and with just six and a half minutes remaining they held a seven point lead.  Team Garvey’s, who had missed several opportunities, did not make their first score of the final quarter until five minutes in.

This came from John Galvin and was quickly added to with a three from Liam Brosnan and scores from the free throw line from both Brosnan and Dainus Varanaskus.

The gap was reduced to two points with just three minutes remaining and a three from Tom Fleming saw Team Garvey’s take the lead once again Pauliud Peldzius had an opportunity from the free throw line to put his side ahead again but he missed the first and made the second to see the sides level with a minute and a half on the clock.

Garvey’s had possession with a minute to go, they shot and missed but although Titans won the rebound they immediately turned it over and sent Dainius to the free throw line for Team Garvey’s.  He netted one putting the home side ahead.

With nine seconds remaining Titans had possession; they shot on the buzzer but failed to score giving the home side a win.

Final Score: Team Garvey’s 64 Titans 63

St. Mary’s: Declan Wall 14, Liam Brosnan 13, Dainius Varanaskus 12, John Galvin 12, Michael Broderick 4, Brian Clernon 4, Tom Fleming 3 and Donal McCarthy 2.

Titans: Paul Freeman 19, Rimvydas Visockas 16, Danny Finn 8, Darren Callanan 6, Pauliud Peldzius 5, Jack Considine 5, Conall Mac Michael 3, Sarunas Zvirblinskass 1.

Team Garvey’s meet Moycullen in NUIG at 4pm Saturday October 18th and on Saturday 25th October they meet Neptune in the Cup in Castleisland.

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Team Garvey’s had a comprehensive win over Longford Falcons when they played their first National League game of the season last weekend.  This first game of the season was one of eight cross conference games that the will be played over the next 26 weeks and it was brilliant start to the season.  Longford Falcons however it was their second league game as they had had a game also on Saturday night and were undeniably tired from this.

Team Garvey’s opened with a series of scores from Dainius Varanaskaus and Brian Clernon who are both new to the squad this season and also from Declan Wall and Liam Brosnan. By the end of the first quarter Garvey’s held a comfortable 23-point lead.

The second quarter saw John Galvin and Declan Wall contribute to increasing the lead further.  Team Garvey’s proved to be extremely accurate on the day increasing their lead as the game progressed.  By half-time 33 pints separated the sides and Longford were showing signs of having has a game the previous night.

A spread of scores in the third and fourth quarters saw Garvey’s score an all time high of 102 points and take the game by 55 points in what given the number of games and double header weekends should make an interesting division one men’s league. this season.

Final Score: Team Garvey’s 102  Longford Falcons 47

Team Garvey’s; Declan Wall 24. Tom Fleming 18, Liam Brosnan 16, Daniaus Varanaskaus 16, Brian Clernon 10, John Galvin 7, Conor Brosnan 3, Donal McCarthy 2, Niall Murphy 2, Maurice Casey 2, Joe Watson 2.

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 Team Garvey’s Castleisland have announced details of some new signings for the forthcoming  basketball    season. Former St. Mary’s member Brian Clernon will join them.  Clernon, a native of Kanturk is to be player coach and is expected to be a huge asset to the side. He is no stranger to St. Mary’s as he played National league with River Island St. Mary’s in the ‘96/’97 season; from here he joined St. Paul’s with whom he played Super League in 1998, next stop was Blue Demons in 1999 where Brian had a hugely successful few years winning the Super League and two National Cups .He retired in 2006 having captained Demons for four years. Last season Clernon played with his native Kanturk before completing the circle and rejoining St. Mary’s.

Garvey’s have also signed Dainius Varanaskus, a former St. Paul’s member.

The season is expected a tough one with each team in the Southern Conference playing each other twice while playing each of the Northern conference teams once, this amounts to a total of 22 league games in all and of course at least one Cup game each.  However for Kerry basketball fanatics it should make an exciting season as with the inclusion of St. Paul’s, there are now three Kerry teams in the men’s division one league.

Team Garvey’s, who are sponsored by Garvey’s Supervalu for the fifth season, will tip of their season on Sunday October 5th   at 2pm, when they are away to Longford Falcons.  Then on Wednesday October 8th all roads lead to Killarney Sports complex when they meet St. Paul’s. Team Garvey’s first home game will be on Saturday October 11th against Titans of Galway.  Tip off at 8pm in Castleisland Community Centre.

In club news St. Mary’s have announced that, under the heads of agreement, they have linked with Super League side Tralee Tigers.

This agreement is made between the clubs with the objective of working in partnership to assist in the development of each entity, with the overall objectives of developing the game of basketball and the Super League Licence. The Super League Licence will provide the potential outlet for St. Mary’s players to play Super league.

Tralee Tigers are expected to play a super league game against Dublin side Hoops in Castleisland on November 1st.