BASKETBALL'S third major competition of the season, the Top Four championship, draws no fewer than 16 teams to the Maysfield Leisure Centre in Belfast for a weekend of non stop action starting tonight and finishing on Sunday evening.
The Top Four traditionally offers teams who have missed out on league and cup honours a chance to make amends and in this regard no side will want victory more than the host club Star of the Sea.
A year ago their success in the Top Four compensated greatly for near misses in both league and cup. They have finished second in the league this season and to retain the Top Four trophy on home ground would leave them with something to salvage from the season.
"We badly want to win," said Star's coach, Danny Fulton yesterday. "Neptune won the league fair and square but I still think we've got the best squad in depth in the country and we'd like to prove it," he added.
Star ended their league season last weekend with only their third defeat of the campaign, but it was a match of little consequence, against Delta. Entering the game both teams were assured of their league positions irrespective of the final result. Star released three key players, Karl Donnelly, Adrian Fulton and Ewan McGratten to play for the victorious UUJ team in the inter varsities championship the same weekend.
Star play St Vincent's tonight in the first of the semi finals. It is a repeat of last year's decider, which the Belfast club won by a huge margin of 30 points.
St Vincent's have been given permission to replace their American, Doug Arnold and will possibly bring in former Tolka Rovers player, Rob Ogden for the weekend action.
The other men's semi final, features the League champions Neptune against the Cup winners, Delta. So far this year the teams have played twice, with Delta winning the Cup semi final and Neptune gaining revenge with a subsequent league victory.
Delta, as a relatively new team in the top flight of the game, are understandably hungry for another trophy. Neptune will be travelling with a depleted squad, having completed a rigorous but successful league campaign in which they won 17 out of 18 matches.
Their two missing players are Alan Kelly and Ger Galgey, who were central figures in a fine end of season run of victories. However, Gordon Fitzgerald is back to near full fitness and will play over the weekend.
"We'll give it a go but realistically, looking at past Top Fours, it hasn't been a good event for us specially after we've won the league," said Neptune coach, Tom Wilkinson. "Still, it would be a good double to go for and we're not making the long journey to let ourselves down," he concluded.
In the Division One Women's Top Four, the league winners, Wildcats will start as favourites as they would dearly love to complete a double this season, having missed out on the Cup. Meteors, who narrowly lost out on the league title, appear to be the main threat to the Waterford women, but they must first overcome their Dublin rivals, Naomh Mhuire, who defeated them in the Cup final.
The Division One men's champions, Ballina will start their Top Four as favourites but they must first defeat a team to whom they lost in the league, Castleisland.
In the Women's Division Two Top Four, the banker team for the entire weekend are champions Blarney, who should win with room to spare.
