BASKETBALL: After a memorable autumn on the international front, the Superleague cranks back into gear on Friday night. However, the competition will not involve Waterford, as Waterford Crystal withdrew their sponsorship of the only south eastern representatives last August. As a result, Waterford cannot bring in the foreign imports - deemed so important to each team's short-term success - and the 2003 champions drop to Division One.
It means the league will be reduced to 11 teams, six in the northern conference and five in the southern conference.
"Basically, you are looking at a budget to run a men's Superleague team on average of around €55,000 per year, and Waterford had a fairly substantial sponsorship. Somewhere in the region of 50 per cent of that was provided by Waterford Crystal," explained Superleague manager Karl Donnelly.
"They didn't feel they were strong enough . . . to go into the league without obtaining two or three foreign players. You have a situation where probably 60 to 70 per cent of clubs' revenue would be spent on the incoming players between accommodation and wages."
So, another season begins with sponsorship, or lack thereof, being Basketball Ireland's Achilles' heel. A one-year deal has been retained with Nivea for Men but the big fish that would encapsulate the whole association, and fill the void left by ESB's departure, remains elusive.
"It is always a battle in basketball when you are trying to go against the big three (rugby, soccer and Gaelic games), and with the Ryder Cup coming up in golf there is a lot of spend on that as well for Irish companies.
"It's really about trying to obtain that space and show how many people are actually playing basketball and the benefits that we can provide to partners."
The recent live and deferred televising of international games on RTÉ was an opportunity missed for sponsors.
The next prime-time slot is the weekend of January 13th-15th when the cup semi-finals are again televised on RTÉ.
It's a departure from previous years when the last four and cup final were squeezed into the same weekend - the men's and woman's finals will now be held in the National Arena on January 29th.
The first-round draw was made yesterday with cup holders Tralee Tigers travelling to Ballina in two weeks' time. Shamrock Rovers Hoops, UCD and Killester have home ties, while Star of the Sea received a bye to round two. The pick of the round is the clash between old rivals Killester, under new Serbian coach Saisa Punosevac, and St Vincent's.
Men Cup Draw - Round one (October 22nd/23rd) (Winners qualify to quarter-finals, while losers go into second round with Star of the Sea) Shamrock Rovers Hoops v Killarney Lakers; Ballina v Tralee Tigers; UCD v Neptune; Killester v St Vincent's UCC Demons v Limerick.
