Preview: Limerick sides hunting for glory in Domino’s Men’s and Women’s Division One Finals

Super Saturday is almost upon us, which will see both the Domino’s Women’s Division One and Domino’s Men’s Division One finals take place with the winners of each getting promoted to the Domino’s Super League. On the women’s side, it is first seed against second seed as Cleveland Rockets take on Limerick Celtics. Meanwhile on the men’s side of things, Limerick Sport Eagles are aiming for a league and cup double when they take on Titans BC, who have had somewhat of a fairytale run to the final.

In the Domino’s Women’s Division One, Cleveland Rockets will be hoping their finish at the top of the table will be rewarded with a victory in the final and earn promotion for Breda Dick’s side. Rockets opened their season with a 17-point win over their final opponents in Celtics in a game which saw Irish U18 international Aoibheann Donnelly score what would be her season-high of 27 points. Rockets would go on to win eight of their first nine games of the league stage, with the only defeat coming in game two against Limerick Sport Huskies. Rockets seven win streak would come to a screeching halt in January when Limerick Celtics handed them a 99-61 loss, just one week after a defeat in the Domino’s WD1 National Cup final against Huskies.

The Domino's Division One All-Star selections for the 2025/26 season ⭐️#DominosD1 | #IrishBasketball pic.twitter.com/2NZhspMUnh

— Basketball Ireland (@BballIrl) April 8, 2026

The loss would again send Rockets on another dominant run of form, winning six of their following seven fixtures. Despite a final day loss to Dublin Raiders, Rockets would end the season at the top of the table, one win above the three sides below them, ending with a 14-4 record. In the playoffs, Rockets would survive a scare in the quarter-finals, beating University of Galway Mystics 77-74. They would then book their place in the final with a hard-fought triumph over Templeogue in a 67-61 victory. The performances would see three Rockets players be named in the Domino’s Women’s Division One All-Stars second team with Georgie McGrath, Caitlin Gloeckner and Aoibheann Donnelly all featuring. Rockets coach Breda Dick is full of confidence heading into the weekend.

Speaking about the magnitude of the final, Dick said “This week, America launched a rocket to the moon. On Saturday, Cleveland Rockets launch their pursuit to win the Division One championship. Limerick Celtics are a very good team, but the Rockets are ready for the challenge”.

Down in Munster, Limerick Celtics are hoping to right the wrongs of their 2024/25 season, after suffering a defeat at the hands of McEvoy’s Cavan Eagles in last season’s Domino’s Women’s Division One Final, they will be hoping to go one step further and make Limerick Celtics a Super League club at both men’s and women’s level. Celtics will have recent finals experience on the sidelines, with head coach Jordan Hehir being a part of the men’s team that was promoted to the Domino’s Men’s Super League in 2025 and also coached the women’s side in their final defeat against Eagles last season. Along with Hehir’s experience, comes assistant coach Caitriona Collins. Collins coached Tralee Magic to an U20 National Cup win in the National Basketball Arena last year and is in her first season out of Tralee with the Limerick Celtics.

Celtics definitely improved as the season progressed. Four of their five defeats in the league came before the turn of the year, ending 2025 with a mixed record of 6-4 after losses against Rockets, Huskies, Tolka and Swords Thunder. Along with that, was an early exit from the Domino’s WD1 National Cup at the hands of Moy Tolka Rovers.

 Sisters Amy and Laura Buckley of Limerick Celtics, at the launch of the National League Finals weekend in the National Basketball Arena

As 2026 came around, changes started to ring in for Celtics, with the emergence of young stars making a difference, namely Irish U18 international Laura Buckley. Buckley began playing meaningful minutes in their opening game of the calendar year against Rockets, where she scored 15 points in 18 minutes, shooting 5-7 from three. From that Rockets game, Buckley would average 17 points in the remaining games of the season as Celtics would seal the second seed after the head to head record between Celtics, Huskies and Templeogue would land in their favour.

Jewel Watkins and Sydney Richards pick up the Player of the Month awards in Domino's Women's Super League and Division One ⭐️

Mark Scannell of UCC Glanmire and Jordan Hehir from Limerick Celtics are voted as Coach of the Month in their respective leagues. #DominosWSL |… pic.twitter.com/XXDQ5GEYvi

— Basketball Ireland (@BballIrl) April 2, 2026

In the playoffs, Celtics would be battle-tested, defeating Swords Thunder 81-73 in a back and forth affair, with American Sidney Richards scoring 21 points. In the semi-final, Celtics would overcome local rivals Huskies in a 12-point triumph with Richards dropping another 21. The two performances would earn Richards her first player of the month award in the Division, and would also hand Hehir his first ever coach of the month award with his side.  Hehir believes his side are ready to take the next step this Sunday.

Speaking about the fixture, Hehir said “ It is a huge week for the club. We know how great and consistent Rockets have been this year and we are training very hard to prepare for the challenge. But myself and Caitriona are confident and very proud of the work the players have put in, along with the level we have played at in the playoffs so far. We are very excited for a great game and it will hopefully result in the clubs second promotion in two years”.

 Ryan Leonard and coach Niall McDermott of Limerick Sport Eagles with Titans BC coach Erin Bracken and Umar Rachid

Another Limerick side hoping to join the table of the Domino’s Men’s Super League, is the Limerick Sport Eagles. They will be hoping to cut short the unlikely run made by Titans to become the second Limerick club in the Domino’s Men’s Super League with a win this Sunday. Niall McDermott’s side are aiming for a historic double this Sunday for the Eagles after defeating Drogheda Wolves in the Domino’s MD1 National Cup Final back in January.

Eagles have managed to maintain a relatively composed run this season, bouncing back from most of their defeats with promising runs of form. Eagles began the campaign with four victories from five, with a 101-80 loss the only blemish on the record early on. Ending 2025 with a win over ND Audit Portlaoise Panthers, would be the beginning of their strongest patch of form, winning eight of their nine games between January and February. After a loss to eventual table-toppers Dublin Lions, Eagles would pick up their largest victory of the season on the final day of the league phase, beating Killarney Cougars 131-46.

In the playoffs, Eagles would get revenge on Tolka for the loss earlier in the season, with a 17-point win in the quarter-finals with lead attacking duo Alex Carlisle and Irish international Ryan Leonard combining for 36 points in the victory. In the semi-finals, Eagles would repeat history, defeating Domino’s MD1 National Cup final opponents Drogheda Wolves 88-64 to advance to the final this weekend.

Titans BC have managed to make an unlikely run to the final after two upset victories over league leaders Dublin Lions and local rivals Maree in the earlier stages of the playoffs. Erin Bracken’s team will be hoping to make it one step further and secure Super League basketball for the club from Galway.

Titans ended the season with a record of 15-9. However, they started the season on a bumpy road of results, despite winning their first two fixtures of the season, they ended November with a negative record of 4-5 after nine games had been played. Titans rebounded well in December, ending the month with three wins out of three against Team Northwest, Tipp Talons and also a one-point triumph over Maree in the local derby. The new year wasn’t particularly kind to Titans either, winning just two of their next six games. Titans would end the season in strong fashion however, winning their last four games to secure a late place in the playoffs.

 Umar Rachid of Titans BC.

As the playoffs began, Titans pulled of the shock of the opening round, toppling the top record in the division of Dublin Lions in an 82-78 win away from home. This set up a derby semi-final against Maree. Titans would again overcome the odds to set up the final against Eagles and pick up an 80-55 victory behind 23 points from their leading scorer, Umar Rachid. Titans coach Erin Bracken is excited for what’s to come in the National Basketball Arena this weekend.

Speaking ahead of the weekend, Bracken said “ We are very grateful and privileged to be preparing for a final this week and we are definitely not taking it for granted. Eagles are a fantastic side, cup champions and also 2-0 against us this season. So we are under no illusions. We do have momentum with us and there is a great buzz around the club, having three teams competing this weekend, so everyone around the club are all very much looking forward to it”.

The Domino’s Women’s Division One Final between Cleveland Rockets and Limerick Celtics and the Domino’s Men’s Division One Final between Limerick Sport Eagles and Titans BC will take place this Saturday, live and exclusive on BITV.