Basketball - Coláiste Pobail Bheanntraí

Basketball

Basketball is an extremely popular sport in the Community of Bantry and in Coláiste Pobail Bheanntraí. The school sport is Governed by Basketball Ireland and it has 4 grades from A being the top Grade to D being the lowest, where we started with both male and female teams in 2011. There are four age grades in Irish Schools Basketball. They are 1^st Year, 2^nd Year, Under 16 and Under 19. A school can enter multiple teams at each age group. In every school, the top teams at each age group must all play at the same grade. The second teams can play at any lower grade. Once you reach a national Final your school must move up a grade for that gender. Hence, currently, our top Girls teams play in the A Grade and our top boys teams play in the B Grade. Coláiste Pobail Bheanntraí play in the Basketball Ireland South League which consists of all Cork schools. In order to qualify for the All-Ireland playoffs each year a team must reach the South Final. Selected teams also enter the National Cup each Year which is an open competition at each age group in each grade for the whole country.

For the Academic Year of 2022/2023 we have the following teams entered in the South League:

1^st Year Boys B Grade
1^st Year Boys C Grade
2^nd Year Boys B Grade
2^nd Year Boy’s C Grade
Under 16 Boys B Grade
Under 19 Boys B Grade
Under 19 Boys C Grade
1^st Year Girls A Grade
1^st Year Girls C Grade
2nd Year Girls A Grade
2^nd Year Girls C Grade
U16 Girls A Grade
U19 Girls A Grade
In the Pinergy Schools National Cup we have entered our top under 16 and under 19 Boys teams for the 2022/23 season.

The Season Structure:

The Season is generally split in two. U16 and U19 before Christmas, 1^st and 2^nd Year after Christmas.

U16 and under 19 regional championships are played before Christmas. The season ends for your team if you don’t make the regional finals in December. If your team make the regional finals you are automatically entered into the All-Ireland School playoffs which take place after Christmas and if you win these you are sent forward for the All-Ireland league quarter, semi and final depending on your teams success. The competition is held in the National Arena from the quarter final stages onwards.

The Under 16 and Under 19 National Cup rounds up to the semi finals take place before Christmas and the Final is played in January.

The 1^st and 2^nd Year season starts in January and can run until May depending on the success of teams involved.

History:

When we opened our doors in 2011 it was the first time that a full size basketball court was available to the community of Bantry. We entered VEC competitions at the D grade in both Boys and Girls competitions for the first two years and quickly became promoted to the C Grade when we began to enter the Basketball Ireland Post Primary Schools Competitions.

In 2015 one of the all time great games took place in Coláiste Pobail when Ms Lane’s Under 19 Girls team beat Drogheda in the All_Ireland playoffs with a Nancy Hegarty Buzzer beater to bring the school to the National Arena for the first time to an Al- Ireland Semi-Final and then a final. The team lost the final in a tight game but were nevertheless promoted to the B Grade where they competed and won the South section at a number of age groups until reaching another All-Ireland Final in 2019 in the first year category and unfortunately losing out in the final. The girls now play at the A grade by virtue of those All-Ireland Final appearances. In 2022 Clodagh Downey of Third Year became the first Coláiste Pobail Bheanntraí basketball player to be named in an Irish underage Basketball Squad.

The Boys also started out in the VEC D Grade coached by Mr Curran and Mr Gahan and opted to play in the Basketball Ireland C Grade from 2013 onwards. After a number of South Region Championship wins at all four age groups our under 19 Boys finally reached an All-Ireland Final in 2018 in which they earned the title of All-Ireland Champions under the Guidance of Mr Curran. Since then they have won B Championships at all four age groups but the elusive All-Ireland title at the B grade has escaped them. However they look like they will finally get there this year as both U16 and U 19 teams are looking very strong.

Roll of Honour Boys

2021/2022 Academic Year

U16B South Boys Champions

U19B South Boys Runners Up

2^nd Year B South Boys B Runners Up

1^st Year B South Boys B Runners Up

2020/2021 Academic Year

No Competitions Due to Covid restrictions

2019/2020 Academic Year

Under 16B South Boys Champions

No First and Second Year Competitions held due to Covid restrictions.

2018/2019 Academic Year

1^st Year South Boys B Champions

2^nd Year South Boys B Champions

U19 South Boys Runners Up

2017/2018 Academic Year

U19 Boys C All-Ireland Champions

U19C South Boys Champions

1^st Year C South Boys Champions

2016/2017 Academic Year

U16 C South Boys Champions

U19 C South Boys Champions

2015/2016 Academic Year

U16 C South Boys Champions

U19 C South Boys Runners Up

2^nd Year C South Boys Champions

2014/2015 Academic Year

1^st Year C South Boys Champions

2^nd Year C South Boys Champions

2013/2014 Academic Year

1^st Year C South Boys Champions

2^nd Year C South Boys Champions

U16 C South Boys Champions

2012/2013 Academic Year

1^st Year C South Boys Champions

U16 C South Boys Champions

U19C South Boys Champions

2011/2012 Academic Year

VEC U16 D Chamipons

VEC U19 D Champions2010/2011 Academic Year

Roll of Honour Girls