'The small school with the big heart'

Gallen CS, Ferbane 33 St Joseph's, Charlestown 26

Fran Mulhall

Gallen CS won their first national title in basketball after a compelling struggle with a determined St Joseph’s Charlestown in the National Basketball Arena in Tallaght on Thursday of last week.

With this victory, Gallen showed themselves to be “the small school with the big heart” as their dedicated coach Josephine McKeogh so aptly put it.
Make no bones about it, this group of Gallen CS players deserve a national title.

They simply refused to take no for an answer when it looked, for a few moments in the last quarter, that the game might slip away from them as Charlestown came back from a 21-8 deficit to level it at 26 points each. Instead, the Gallen girls dug deep into their reserves of spirit, tenacity, courage and skill. They scored seven points without reply in the final two minutes from Emma Maher (4), Ellie McEvoy (2) and a point from a free throw by Roisin Egan, to emerge glorious winners by 33-26.

Many of these Gallen CS girls know what it takes to win All-Irelands - many of them are multi-talented young sportswomen with All-Ireland Feile football titles won in 2011 (Division 2) and 2012 (Division 1). So when the game reached its frantic but wonderfully exciting conclusion, experience taught them that you  must reach out and grab your chance to make history when the opportunity presents itself. This the Gallen girls duly did, finally killing off the brave resistance of Charlestown, who had come storming back into the game by winning the third quarter 10-7, and then levelling matters with three minutes to  go.
All around the court Gallen had heroes. Roisin Egan, the MVP with 7 points; Ellie McEvoy the game’s top scorer with 13 points; Emma Maher, who had a stormer especially in the first quarter, scoring 9 points in total. There was also the determination of Anna Grehan and Eimear Flynn, who contributed two points each. Sarah Kenny played her part as did all members of the history making squad.
This scribe bestows every credit on coach Ms Josephine McKeogh whose many hours of selfless commitment, coaching and training of school teams has borne fruit in spectacular fashion.

First Quarter
Gallen CS started with a quintet of Roisin Egan, Emma  Maher, Anna Grehan, Eimear Flynn and Ellie McEvoy. Charlestown lined out with Chelsea Doherty, Heather Johnson, Elisha Duffy, Sarah Burke and Kellie Crean. Elisha Duffy got the first basket of the game for Charlestown. Gallen peppered the basket with shots but didn’t score until the excellent Emma Maher got on the end of a breakaway move to net Gallen’s first basket and level the game. Emma was then fouled and converted one free throw to leave the score 3-2 in Gallen’s favour.
After the Gallen girls narrowly missed three free throws, the game remained delicately balanced at the end of the first quarter.

Second Quarter
When people look back on this game, they will remember that the second  quarter was the one in which Gallen laid the foundations for ultimate victory. Gallen led 15- 6 at the end of this quarter, having outscored Charlestown 12-4.
Yet Gallen’s overall play also caught the eye, their defensive solidity, their movement and positioning, their attacking drives and deadly finishing.
Roisin Egan made it 5-2 and baskets from Emma Maher and Ellie McEvoy saw Gallen lead 9-2. Further scores from Ellie and Anna Grehan made it 13-2. Sarah Kenny replaced Eimear Flynn at this point before Chelsea Doherty and Kellie Crean, who would be instrumental in Charlestown’s revival, scored two points each to leave the score 13-6.
Roisin Egan was becoming an influential figure and it was fitting that she should close second-quarter scoring with a long range 2-pointer to leave the half-time score 15-6 to Gallen. The Ferbane school had one hand on the cup at this stage and we dared to dream.

Third Quarter
McEvoy and Duffy traded baskets before Ellie and the hard-working Eimear Flynn put Gallen into a seemingly unassailable 21-8 lead. But Charlestown began their revival and, led from the front by captain Kellie Crean, Chelsea Doherty and Elisha Duffy, they stormed back into the game. Doherty  got a 2-pointer, as did Heather Johnson, leaving the score Gallen 21 Charlestown 12.
Chelsea then scored two points from free throws and when the same player landed a two-pointer, Charlestown had reduced the deficit to 21-16.
Gallen got a vital point from a free throw by McEvoy to lead 22-16 at the end of the third quarter. This helped Gallen to regroup and stem the Charlestown tide.
But Charlestown won the third quarter 10-7 and went into the last quarter with their tails up. Game on!

Fourth Quarter
Charlestown started the last quarter in the same vein as they finished the third. Elisha Duffy scored two points as did Kellie Crean. It was now a 2-point game (22-20) with seven minutes to go. McEvoy got two points before Chelsea Doherty and Roisin Egan, two of the game’s stand-out figures, swapped scores to leave Gallen 26-22 ahead with four minutes left.
Enter Kellie Crean! The Charlestown girl scored four points and the sides were now level for the first time since the early minutes. Charlestown then missed two free throws and failed to go into the lead. This proved a turning point at a vital phase of the game.
In the midst of a cracking game played in an electric atmosphere, Gallen dug deep when it mattered most to score seven unanswered points through Emma Maher (4), Roisin Egan (a one-pointer) and a final basket from Ellie, which raised the roof and saw Gallen home to victory on a scoreline of 33-26.
Gallen captain Roisin Egan received the MVP award and, along with her team-mates, raised the cup in front of jubilant supporters.

Gallen CS Panel & Scorers:
Roisin Egan (7), Emma Maher (9), Ellie McEvoy (13), Anna Grehan (2), Eimear Flynn (2), Sarah Kenny, Laura Devery, Laura Kenny, Laura Bracken, Rachel Seery, Molly Stevenson, Kaithlin Rigney, Natasha Lynam, Amanda Keena.

Charlestown:
Chelsea Doherty (10), Kellie Crean (8), Elisha Duffy (6), Heather Johnson (2), Caoimhe Halligan, Sarah Burke, Shannon Cassidy, Laura Duffy, Hannah Burke, Claire Flatley, Emma Holton, Maria  Harrington.