Ireland’s men’s basketball team faces two crunch EuroBasket qualifiers in Dublin in the coming days. Azerbaijan visit the National Basketball Arena on Friday, followed by Luxembourg on Monday.
After starting the qualifying campaign with losses to Luxembourg and North Macedonia, a pair of victories are vital to the national team’s chances. Ireland big man Neal Quinn said he and his teammates are ready for the challenge.
“We’re feeling very good. The last window was tough but I think we built a lot of the foundation for the future going forward,” said Quinn.
“If we win these two games and we win the next two, it means we move up a level. That means more attention and a higher level of teams coming to Dublin, hopefully inspiring the next generation to build Irish basketball.”
It’s been a positive few months for Quinn, both in the national team and at club level. A recent FIBA ruling meant Quinn now counts as a homegrown player, meaning he is no longer competing for the lone naturalised spot available.
“It’s huge for me. It means we can add another really good guard or something like that for the team. For me, it’s great to be Irish.” he said.
Quinn has stepped up a level this season at club level. Having played in France’s second tier a year ago, he is currently plying his trade with BCM Gravelines Dunkerque in the French top flight.
“I’ve grown a lot. I’ve gotten a lot stronger, a bit faster, I feel more athletic. My club does a phenomenal job developing players so I’m really happy with my time there and looking forward to the rest of it.”
The Ireland big man is familiar with both opponents and said that intensity is critical to opening this window with a win over Azerbaijan.
“We need to be together, to understand the game plan and to execute it well. We need everybody on the roster to step up and continue the intensity. Once one guy comes off, the next guy has to keep that up. If we build that for 40 minutes, we’ll win the game,” he said.
Having suffered defeat away to Luxembourg in November, Quinn said the team is ready to avenge that loss.
“We just have to be better than we were in the last window. We’ve identified where we can do well and what we need to improve on. We can build on those improvements.”
There are a few changes to the Ireland roster from the last window. CJ Fulton is making his first appearance in three years, having been unavailable due to his commitments in the US.
Ryan Leonard is set to make his competitive debut in these games while Eoin Nelson and Seán Fitzpatrick are in line for senior debuts.
Ireland veteran Adrian O’Sullivan said the fresh faces would help the side considerably in the upcoming games.
“When you play for Ireland, it’s always a privilege. I still enjoy it as much as I did 10 years ago when I first started. In terms of talking to the younger boys about it, they’re all well experienced,” he said.
“If there are any nerves, it’s about keeping it as regular as possible. They know to use their teammates and to ask questions. It’s not just myself, there’s a lot of veterans here. I’m very excited for Seán Fitzpatrick as he’s having a very good Super League season.”
Like Quinn, O’Sullivan is fully aware of what’s at stake in the two games in this window.
“This is everything. If we don’t go 2-0 in this window, we won’t qualify. We have to give ourselves the best chance possible. We need to knuckle down here to do our best to get two wins.”
