Killester outlast Glanmire’s guile to advance

Glanmire played a canny game to push Killester to the brink but the Dublin club’s fourth quarter surge was too much. Emmet Ryan on a fascinating one in Neptune Stadium as Killester booked their place in the Domino’s cup final.

The thing about sports with a time limit is, well, the set amount of time. As a powerhouse, the hope is you outlast the foe and have too much for them over the duration. As the underdog, you hope the former can’t maximise the time to do so. Killester and Glanmire had a top tier battle with that clearly on the minds of both in the Domino’s women’s cup semi final.

A high paced chess match

Sometimes you can smell speed. A Sam Haiby pass to set off Audrey Roden had that odour. Then there was the quick baseline inbounds for an Ieva Bagdanaviciene three. Killester realised that acceleration was their biggest weapon against Glanmire. They had those extra gears that they could go to at will and switch back from whenever necessary.

The scoreboard was close in the first quarter but the balance of play wasn’t suiting the Cork side. Killester were setting the rules of engagement and forcing Glanmire to alternate tempo to an uncomfortable degree.

Glanmire were outgunned, outmatched, and on the wrong side of every physical comparison. What they had was guile and that served them well. Claire O’Sullivan used hers to glide in for a couple of scores and keep things honest. As the quarter wore on, more of Mark Scannell’s crew found ways to perplex Killester. After 10 minutes, Glanmire led 22-18.

Haiby digs deep

Roden and Bagdanaviciene got Killester rolling to start the second but the one fear for the Dublin club was the ease with which they were giving Glanmire second chance opportunities. Jewel Watkins was gobbling up these bonus chances and ensuring Mark Grennell’s side had plenty to think about. The developing story throughout the game was the impact of Sam Haiby’s injury. The American had missed Killester’s league game a week prior and was clearly far from fully fit here.

While still able to unleash her teammates through her passing game, the Killester star was clearly missing her explosive first step. That was having a knock-on impact on the rest of her game as that turn of pace freed up so many options for her. An uncontested drive to the bucket showed what she could do but the fear of aggravating the injury hung over her.

A three from Haiby completed a 2-1-3 scoring run for her (having missed a free throw in the middle) and roused the rest of the Killester side. Arguably the bigger play came on the next possession, when she fought to grab her own rebound in traffic. Whatever was previously holding her back mentally had been shaken off. Yet the one thing Killester couldn’t shake off was the tenacious Glanmire side. At the half, Killester led 37-33.

BallinEurope is ramping up its YouTube game this season. Subscribe to our channel now for player exclusives, analysis videos, and much more.

A matter of containment

Haiby still wasn’t looking all there as the third got under way but those around her got off to a flying start. Killester’s greatest weapon, really over the past three seasons, has been their depth. The Dublin club can go deeper in its bench than anyone else in the league and has a wealth of reliable shooting options.

That has enabled them to wear down opponents but, of course, that has been aided enormously by having Haiby to lead the charge. If an opponent can hang with them or, as Liffey Celtics did in last year’s cup final, bust open a hole early, then the questions start to get asked.

That made ensuring they got out of the third quarter in a manageable position vital to Glanmire. Watkins was almost the entirety of their offensive output and it was enough as both sides began to err wildly. With 10 minutes to play, Killester led 52-48.

BallinEurope has a book, a real life actual book called I Like it Loud, and you can buy it on Amazon now. It’s here as a book and here in Kindle form.

Time proves telling

Killester’s depth edge really began to show early in the final frame. They still had the juice to run in a way that would frustrate Glanmire and pushed into a 9 point lead quickly. That’s what favourites are supposed to do, they’re meant to have too much no matter how gallantly the underdog fights.

The lead hung in single digits for what seemed like an age. Glanmire were holding on by their fingernails to keep Killester second-guessing themselves. Then came the Haiby three midway through the fourth and this one was done.

While far from Killester’s best performance this season, it’s one they should be pleased with. For all the mistakes, they found a way to not only win ugly but to stretch it out late and control the contest for most of the 40 minutes.

The post Killester outlast Glanmire’s guile to advance appeared first on BallinEurope.