32 players selected to participate in Ireland U17 Men's National Academy programme

Basketball Ireland can confirm a total of 32 players have been chosen to participate in the Ireland U17 Men's National Academy programme for the forthcoming season. 

It brings the total number of players participating in the programme to 73, after the announcement of 43 players to the Ireland Women's U17 National Academy programme. The U17 group serves as a bridge for players between the U16 and U18 underage international teams, to allow them the chance to develop further physically and continue to receive high level coaching in a high performance environment. 

It also keeps them engaged with the Basketball Ireland pathway. Basketball Ireland's Head of Development will oversee the delivery of the programme by a very experieced coaching ticket of Jack Dooley, Ciaran Kiveney, Jim Hughes and Pa Curran. 

Basketball Ireland's Academy Lead Martin McGettrick said: 

The programme will run with a similar ethos to the U14 and U15 programme, focusing on player development and also including a summer component. The support the players involved will get from Jack Dooley, Ciaran Kiveney, Jim Hughes and Pa Curran will be second to none and create an environment to allow them to improve and progress towards their goals on the court.