Mourne miss out

Mourne miss out

10 April 2024

WITH the final piece of silverware up for grabs, Mourne travelled to Belfast to take on their local rivals Newry Fliers in the final game of the season. 

Newry, having already lifted the Men’s Bowl Cup competition and were recently crowned Regular Season League Champions, were looking to make it a clean sweep treble. 

Meanwhile, Mourne were looking to spoil the party and come home with a trophy to bookend a tremendous inaugural season. 

The fifth and final meeting between these two teams was a fitting end to a season long rivalry with Mourne having spoilt Newry’s perfect season three weeks previously in a narrow victory at home in Castlewellan. 

Mourne came in to the contest with a degree of confidence and belief and it showed in the first few minutes of this game. 

Any early nerves were quickly settled by Eoin Green and Ryan McVeigh, who had no hesitation burying two quick three pointers to take a six point advantage instantly. 

Fliers worked their way back in to the game and kept it close thanks to some well worked scores by Jason Morgan leaving the score tied at 14 at the end of the quarter. 

The second quarter became a back and forth battle with both teams trading scores throughout. 

A stand-out play from Anthony Green whose fake led to a layup where he was fouled and hit the resulting free throw was a highlight for the Mourne team. 

Though it was coach Michael McCabe who decided to alter defensive shape for the Castlewellan side leading to some success and he led by example on the court as well, guiding his side to a narrow one-point half-time lead. 

The second half saw Mourne stretch their advantage and stamped their defensive authority further on the contest limiting the scoring opportunities for Newry.  However, they found it increasingly difficult to stop the growing influence of Fliers point guard, Diether Lubian. 

Everything good on the Fliers offence ran through Lubian who, at stretches in the third quarter, couldn’t seem to miss, keeping his side’s arrears to only four heading in to the final frame.  

Mourne were delighted with the way the game was shaping up and started the final quarter strongly with the red hot Eoin Green again opening with an early three. 

Though Newry refused to lie down and kept the score tight through the offensive dominance of Lubian and forward Aaron Miller.  With the score all square with three minutes remaining, McVeigh struck a corner three right before fouling out of the game to edge his team ahead. 

McCabe landed home another well-worked three to stretch the advantage to six with 54 seconds remaining, leading to a Newry timeout. 

The lights out Diether Lubian kept up his scoring streak with a lay-up to reduce the deficit to four. Newry then pressed the inbounds play leading to Mourne turning it over. 

With 30 seconds remaining, Morgan found Lubian at the top of the key and he launched a long three that banked off the backboard and in to reduce it to a slender one-point Mourne lead. 

Another time-out was called, this time by Mourne, in an attempt to stem the tide. Though the resulting inbounds play was again pressed by Newry leading to yet another turnover to Fliers handing them a chance to take the lead. 

Newry’s coach Lisa O’Keeffe decided to keep the ball in Lubian’s hands and in the resulting possession he ran off a screen and found a fade away bank shot off the backboard to give his side the lead with only four seconds left. 

With Mourne shell-shocked, the team called their final time-out to draw up a final scoring opportunity to win the game. The ball was inbounded to Mark McCabe, who found his fade away jump shot hit the rim and bounce to David Wylie, whose put back hit the backboard and bounced out as time expired for Newry to hang on for an incredible comeback victory. 

Diether Lubian’s 31 point scoring effort led to him being awarded with the game’s Most Valuable Player and his team went home with a treble winning season. 

Mourne Basketball Club would like to thank their wonderful travelling support and everyone who came out to support the team throughout the campaign. 

While the season ended in heartbreaking fashion, the team are overall delighted with their performance across their entire first season and filled with optimism heading in to the next season. 

Mourne top scorers: Eoin Green and Ryan McVeigh (15), Michael McCabe (13).