National League

Jan 11 2026

Buckley and Richards star as Celtics halt Cleveland Rockets winning streak with 99-61 win in Domino’s Women’s Division One

Rockets suffered their first defeat since October at the hands of Celtics with strong showings from Sidney Richards and U18 Irish international Laura Buckley.

After a loss to Rockets in Belfast in Cleveland’s opening game of the season, Celtics came out of the traps with a vengeance with a 30-16 first quarter with American guard Sidney Richards scoring nine of her 22 points in the first quarter. The second quarter provided more of the same as Celtics took a 25-point lead in at half-time, but Laura Buckley was the standout in the first half with 12 of her 15 points on an efficient 5-7 from three for the game. Louise Scannell and Sabhbh Edwards Murphy added 18 each but it was Richards who led the way on multiple fronts as her 22 points and 13 rebounds gave Jordan Hehir’s side a 38-point triumph to go 7-4 for the season.

Limerick Sport Huskies now sit on top of the table following Rockets defeat and getting a win for themselves following a 70-34 win over Clunetech Kilkenny Stars. Clara Gomez maintained her strong form that earned her a player of the month award as she scored 21 points for Huskies along with 12 from Shelby Harmeyer as Huskies managed to build a lead as large as 40 during the game. The win for Huskies has them at 8-3 with Cleveland Rockets playing one game fewer below them in second. For Kilkenny, Stephanie Davis and Ava Coogan combined for 20 of Kilkenny’s 34 in what will be a day to forget for Puff Summer’s side. They now sit in fifth with a 6-4 record.

Dublin Raiders have remained at the foot of the Division One table after a 59-64 loss to University of Galway Mystics. It was the Kara McCleane show for Galway as she scored 25 points and pulled in 13 rebounds for Mystics. As close as the game was, Raiders lost the lead in the first quarter and could never recover enough to regain the lead from there on. Raiders now fall to 2-9 and sit in 10^th spot with their closest competitors being Abbey Seals Dublin Lions.

Lions suffered their eighth defeat of the season as they lost 58-95 to Swords Thunder, who have now won two of their last three games to kickstart their season. Swords never went behind in the game and led by as much as 40 with Kayce Vaile having one of the performances of the weekend, scoring 34 points, getting 18 rebounds and six assists for Swords in a dominant victory to see them to seventh place in the Domino’s Women’s Division One table.

Templeogue remained in the top three with an 80-94 victory over Moy Tolka Rovers. Sofia Paska also had a huge weekend for Templeogue with 31 points and 18 rebounds. The supporting cast for Templeogue also put in a strong shift with Hannah Murphy scoring 22, Aoife O’Connell getting 15 and Aoife Whelan contributing with 11. For Tolka, it was Dane Bertolina doing everything she could as she scored 31 of her own points, but after the first quarter, it was a very much a dominant showing from Templeogue. They led by as much as 19 as they picked up a seventh win of the season and stay in third, level with Limerick Celtics below them at 7-4.

In the Domino’s Men’s Division One, Dublin Lions and Drogheda Wolves remain joint-top of the table as Lions defeated Team Northwest 84-47. Lions had four players in double digits with Tiernan Howe, Tiago Pereira, Aran Lee and one of the league’s leading scorers in Russell Marr all scoring well. Lions showed their dominance in the second half, scoring 44 points and only conceding 17 in the entire second half. The loss for Northwest sees them now at 0-13 for the season whilst Lions are now at 10-3.

For Drogheda, they also ran out convincing winners with a 98-72 win over Malahide on Saturday. Vernon Jackson scored 34 points on a very efficient 15-21 shooting performance from the field in what has already been a stellar offensive season for him as he averages 27 points per game. Drogheda are also 10-3 with Dublin Lions, but the loss for Malahide keeps them in 15^th in the table as they fall to 2-11 for the season.

Limerick Sport Eagles cruised to a 91-51 win over Tipp Talons in St. Munchin’s with five Eagles players scoring well in the game. The duo of Alex Carlisle and Ryan Leonard combined for 36 points and Tobias Christensen added a triple-double performance of 14 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists. Eagles now sit in third, level with SPK Utility Trust Lakers at 9-4. For Tipp, they are 6-7 and sit in 12^th, but they are just one win away from the chasing pack for the playoff spots.

Moy Tolka Rovers have overtaken Ulster University in the table after defeating them 91-73 in UUJ on Saturday. The trio of Daniel Ayoade, Sean McManus and Stephen Cummins combined for 56 points for Tolka. A lot of the battle seemed to be decided on the boards as Tolka managed to pull in 50 rebounds across the team compared to Ulster’s 45. Tolka are now up to fifth in the table and Ulster fall to sixth as they now share identical 8-5 records.

Carrick Cruisers kept pace with the playoff hunting sides with an 86-77 win over Templeogue. Templeogue started the brighter side in the game, but a 17-point swing in the second quarter really gave Carrick a foothold in the game through Keon Edwards and Tyler Mutemasango, who combined for 40 in the game. The victory for Carrick has them currently occupying the final playoff spot in the table in eighth. However, just one win seperates them from 12^th spot in the table. Templeogue are currently in 13^th after what was their fifth consecutive defeat as they fall to 3-10.

SPK Utility Trust Lakers held off Titans BC with a 74-72 win in Galway despite a 7-0 run in the final two minutes of the game for Titans. Umar Rachid, who led Titans with 25 points, had a chance to level the game and potentially send it to overtime but his effort did not convert. Lakers had a 74-65 lead with just short of two minutes on the clock, and did not manage to score again but did just enough to secure a ninth win of the season. The loss for Titans is a big blow to their playoff hopes as they now sit in ninth with a record of 7-6.

Maigh Cuilinn picked up their fourth win in five games with an 81-49 win over Killarney Cougars. Grant Olsson was the standout performer of the game, scoring 32 points in 30 minutes of action, along with 12 rebounds. Two single-digit scoring quarters for Killarney was a damning indictment of the performance on Saturday as remain in the bottom three with Maigh Cuilinn now slowly making more of a push back towards the playoffs.

Results

Domino's Women's Division One

Saturday 10th December

Abbey Seals Dublin Lions 58-95 Swords Thunder

Limerick Celtics 99-61 Cleveland Rockets

Dublin Raiders 59-64 University of Galway Mystics

Clunetech Kilkenny Stars 34-70 Limerick Sport Huskies

Moy Tolka Rovers 80-94 Templeogue

Domino’s Men’s Division One

Saturday 10^th December

Ulster University 73-91 Moy Tolka Rovers

Dublin Lions 84-47 Team Northwest