Merry Monk Ballina run out of steam against Neptune in National Cup quarter-final

U-20 National Cup Quarter-final

Merry Monk Ballina 68

Neptune BC Cork 79

In Ballina

There was an encouraging round of applause from the crowd at the end of this battle by the Moy on Sunday. The Ballina players had certainly earned it during the previous 40 minutes. 

After the third quarter, the Mayo boys were 57-55 and it looked like a massive upset was actually possible. 

"There were phases through the game where I said this is probably the best game I've ever coached," Ballina coach Derek Cunningham told The Mayo News after the match. "The level was very good. The skill was good defensively. That's what we focused on defensively."

Eventually, Ballina's scoring slump in the fourth quarter proved decisive. When Neptune ramped up their pressure defensively, Ballina found it increasingly hard to score. Eight straight missed shots meant Ballina were on a 0-10 run from which they couldn't recover.

It didn't help that Dave Murray was fouled out in the fourth quarter.

"We were conscious that we'd have to manage the fouls, and we did well," explained Cunningham. "But then David fouled out and that was huge. He got on so many rebounds and blocks, and when he was fouled out we found it hard to match up against them defensively. We ran out of steam."

Neptune could deliver more punch from their bench. And their star player, point guard Dylan O'Rouke really came alive in the final quarter. 

It was a big day for Merry Monk Ballina. Mark Cunningham, Brian Donohoe, Theo Daly, Conor Bourke and David Murray all turned in great performances. It was a valiant team effort and they had one of the top teams in the country on the ropes. 

A full match report will be carried in Tuesday's Mayo News.