National League

Dec 21 2025

Limerick Celtics defeat playoff rivals Clunetech Kilkenny Stars in Domino’s Women’s Division One

Limerick Celtics picked up their third win in their last four as they defeated Clunetech Kilkenny Stars 79-56 on Saturday.

American guard Sidney Richards scored a season-high 23 points was backed by a strong showing from Sabhbh Edwards Murphy, who had 18 of her own. Celtics did not lose their lead throughout the second half with Kilkenny pro Stephanie Davis fouling out after 12 minutes on the court. The win has Celtics in third in the table at 6-3 tied for second with fellow Limerick side Huskies. Kilkenny fall to 5-3 with a game in hand to join the two sides at 6-3.

League leaders Cleveland Rockets are now 7-1 after defeating Dublin Raiders 72-60 in Lisburn. Rockets shared the plaudits with four of their players scoring in double digits in the game. Aoibheann Donnelly, Eimile Rogers-Dunphy, Caitlin Gloeckner and Niamh O’Leary all scored at least 10 points. Raiders took the lead in the opening minute and that was about as good as it got with Rockets controlling the game for the rest of it. The loss leaves Raiders bottom of the table at 2-7.

Limerick Sport Huskies six-win run was brought to a halt as they saw defeat this weekend with Abbey Seals Dublin Lions beating them 78-73. Shelby Harmeyer and Clara Gomez combined for 53 for Huskies but Makenzie Helms, Emily Smyth, Tara Nevin and Sinead Keane all scoring in double digits for Lions. The win puts a game between Lions and the bottom of the table as they are now at 3-6. Huskies remain second tied with Celtics.

Swords Thunder managed to get their second win in three games with a 71-52 win over Moy Tolka Rovers. Kayce Vaile had 23 points for Swords and Naomi Farrington continued her fine form with 17 for Tolka with Vaile also adding 18 rebounds with Swords dominating the boards with 59 rebounds for the game. Swords now find themselves at 3-6 and sitting in seventh after a tough start to the season that saw them at 1-5 through six games.

Templeogue ended their winless run with an 87-75 victory over University of Galway Mystics. A dominant performance for Sofia Paska with 28 points and 16 rebounds. Templeogue led by as much as 28 points in the game with Mystics only taking the lead early in the first. Mystics now fall to ninth with a record of 3-6, level with Dublin Lions and Swords. Templeogue are now 5-4 with Kilkenny having a game in hand below them in fifth.

The race for the top spot is heating up in the Domino’s Men’s Division One with three sides now tied at the summit with 8-3 records. Last week’s league leaders Maree suffered an overtime 90-89 defeat to SPK Utility Trust Lakers. Stephen Kelly hit a free throw with 11 seconds left to win the game and to his points total as he finished with 32. Isaiah Taylor scored 36 for Maree in what was his fifth 30+ point game for Maree. Lakers are now seventh with a record of 7-4 along with four other sides who are one game back from the three sides tied at the top, one of which is Maree at 8-3.

Dublin Lions joined them at the top with a 75-63 triumph over Ulster University. One of the league’s leading scorers in Russell Marr had one of his quieter games of the season with 13 points with Tiago Pereira having 21 in his best scoring game of the season. The loss now means Ulster fall to 7-4 along with Lakers with Lions at 8-3.

Killarney Cougars pulled off one of the upsets of the weekend as they defeated Limerick Sport Eagles. The Eagles trio of Ryan Leonard, Alex Carlisle and Tobias Christensen all scored around the 20-point mark with Leonard scoring 19, Carlisle with 21 and Christensen had 22 with 19 rebounds. But it was the Cougars duo of Sean Conway and Simon Olanipekun combining for 54. The win lifts Killarney further away from the bottom of the table as they reach 3-9. For Eagles, they miss a chance to join the top three as they fall to 7-4.

Team Northwest winless run continued with an 83-66 defeat to Malahide. Stephen Savo had 37 points in 37 minutes on 16-21 shooting for Malahide. The win is only Malahide’s second of the season but puts another game between them and Team Northwest at the foot of the table with Northwest now at 0-11.

Drogheda Wolves had a comfortable 40-point win over Carrick Cruisers with a 94-54 victory. Drogheda had six players in double digits with Vernon Jackson leading the way with 19 points. The loss sees Carrick now go negative for the season at 5-6. For Drogheda, they are the third side at the top of the table with an 8-3 record as we approach Christmas.

Titans BC picked up a valuable 92-88 win over Tipp Talons. It was. A game that was tightly contested from start to finish, with a 30-27 fourth quarter ensuring that Titans won what was just their second win in five games. Umar Rachid scored 28 points for Titans as he dueled with Talons’ Aleksandar Kovacevic, who scored 27 for Tipp. Talons are now 6-6 for the season and sit in ninth with Titans one place back in tenth, but have a game in hand to overtake Tipp as their current record is now 6-5.

Moy Tolka Rovers kept their playoff push going as they handed Templeogue an eighth loss of the season in a 99-83 win. Juwan Jones led Tolka in scoring with 26 points as Tolka managed to take a 30-point lead during the game. Tolka are tied for fourth with a record of 7-4 meanwhile Templeogue suffered their third straight defeat. Templeogue now sit in 14^thwith a record of 3-8 as we get to the halfway point of the season.

Results

Domino’s Women’s Division One

Saturday 20^th December

Limerick Celtics 79-56 Clunetech Kilkenny Stars

Cleveland Rockets 72-60 Dublin Raiders

Limerick Sport Huskies 73-78 Abbey Seals Dublin Lions

Swords Thunder 71-52 Moy Tolka Rovers

Templeogue 87-75 University of Galway Mystics

Domino’s Men’s Division One

Saturday 20^th December

Dublin Lions 75-63 Ulster University

Malahide 83-66 Team Northwest