Basketball/Superleague finals: So, the southern conference produces superior teams, eh? St Vincent's turned this theory on its head by winning their first Superleague title since 1994 at a dumbstruck Mardyke Arena. After beating the hosts and supposed champions elect, the UCC Demons, on Saturday, the Dublin club completely overawed the Limerick Lions, 104 to 73, in yesterday's final.
In Irish basketball the team that blends imported talent with the home-grown troupe usually prevails. The fallen Demons seemed to have the patent on such a tonic.
Jermaine Turner and the Donnelly brothers disagreed.
Turner was sensational all weekend, scoring 38 points to dismiss the Demons and registering another 34 yesterday, which included some shuddering slam dunks early on that gave the travelling north Dublin support plenty to cheer.
Robert Taylor played a similar role for Limerick, but it was the Irish contributions that steered the title to the most unlikely of destinations.
St Vincent's failed to ever really threaten Ballina's march to the top of the northern conference, but James Donnelly's arrival in the second quarter yesterday made the regular-season form irrelevant.
His three-point shooting kept them in control.
James is the youngest of the Donnelly clan; the eldest brother is Superleague manager Karl, now retired from basketball but still plugging away for Na Fianna GAA club.
Taylor replied for Limerick, but a 10-point gap had opened by the interval.
Then came a third-quarter blitz. Team captain David Donnelly also started to get in on the three-point act, while another respected foreigner, Kenny McFarland, was up to his old tricks.
McFarland has been around the Superleague so long now he is considered quasi-Irish.
Of course, Turner kept on scoring throughout.
The margin went out to 27 points and Limerick capitulated.
The final quarter was a sweet experience for long-standing St Vincent's supporters. The players enjoyed it too.
Limerick's Robert Lynch departed prematurely after picking up a fifth technical foul of the evening with six minutes remaining.
Taylor and Jon Steven continued to press the issue for Limerick, but the Dublin club maintained their dominance with Simon Flynn and Joey McGuirk also playing crucial roles.
It was no surprise when Turner was named Most Valuable Player of the finals weekend.
Meanwhile, in the women's Superleague final, Glanmire gave the locals at the Mardyke something to cheer as they won their first Superleague title by overcoming Mercy 69-38.
The Cork club have moved on from a drugs scandal, in which their behaviour was exemplary, and fifth in last year's competition to become champions.
The Cork club brought domestic basketball into an unwanted national spotlight last year when their American player, Adriana Spears, tested positive for cocaine.
They recovered to show good form this year, only to lose the last three games in the regular season to the Waterford Wildcats, UL-Aughinish and Mercy (73-64).
However, the result of yesterday's final was never in doubt. Michele Fahy eventually finished with the MVP award after shooting 12 of her 16 points in the third quarter. Marie Breen and American Karen Habrukowich also played substantial roles.
Mercy's challenge was not helped by Lindsay Peat getting into foul trouble before half-time. She sat out the fourth quarter, leaving Treacy Gahan to toil alone in the primary scoring stakes.
The victory confirmed the demise of UL-Aughinish and their three-year dominance of women's basketball, but, more importantly, it is a fairytale ending to a year that began in such nightmarish fashion for Glanmire.
