UCC Demons Kyle Hosford back on international duty after an absence of three years

UCC Demons Kyle Hosford has earned a recall to the Ireland senior men’s squad for this week's two crucial FIBA Basketball World Cup European Pre-Qualifiers against Switzerland and Azerbaijan.

Head coach Mark Keenan has finalised a squad of 12 players for the double header, with the UCC Demons star - who served as Ireland captain before retiring from international duty in 2022 - back in the fold.

Hosford proved instrumental from the point as UCC Demons won the Pat Duffy National Cup final in 2024, before leading the club back to the final earlier this January.

Griffith College Éanna star Cork's Sean Jenkins, also returns to the roster after missing November’s wins against Kosovo and Azerbaijan.

Ballincollig's Adrian O'Sullivan, UCC Demons Dave Lehane and James Hannigan and Jordan Blount, who now plays with KCYMS are also key players in this reduced squad.

Ireland’s leading scorer in FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 European Pre-Qualifying, Taiwo Badmus misses out on the second window in succession through injury. 

The Valur Reykjavik forward is joined on the injury list by Joels Dublin Lions’ Aidan Igiehon.

"November’s games at home were must-win if we wanted to keep our qualification hopes alive," said Ireland captain Sean Flood. 

"So we were delighted to get back-to-back wins against Azerbaijan and Kosovo in front of our home fans, especially missing the likes of Taiwo (Badmus). 

"But we quickly parked that as a group because the job isn’t done."

The reverse fixture of Thursday’s clash with Switzerland saw Ireland lose out 86-63 in Dublin a year ago, but just a point separated the teams when they met in two friendlies in their previous meetings.

“For us, there’s a familiarity with the Swiss team now,” added Flood. 

“We’ve played them quite a bit in recent years and they’re a great team with so many threats, but we are also confident in our own ability to go out there and get a positive result in Fribourg on Thursday evening.” 

Speaking about his squad, Ireland head coach Mark Keenan is looking forward to continuing the momentum of November this week.

“These final two games in the group stages are massive games for us , as the previous two were in November to keep our qualifying chances alive. 

"We know now we can perform under that extreme pressure. We have put the best team together that we possibly can given the fact that we have some injury casualties. 

"Kyle Hosford comes back into the international scene after some great performances in the superleague for his club UCC Demons. 

"We will need all his experience along with big performances from all our players to get over the line and qualify from the group.

"All focus is now on our first game against Switzerland. 

"They have been consistently good during this campaign and we will have to be at our best in order to beat them."

Ireland Men's Squad: 

Adrian O’Sullivan (Irish Guide Dogs Ballincollig @MTU), Conor Quinn (Belfast Star), David Lehane, Kyle Hosford, James Hannigan (UCC Demons), John Carroll (EJ Sligo All-Stars), Jordan Blount (Flexachem KCYMS), Matt Treacy (Snaefell, Iceland), Neal Quinn (Aix Maurienne Savoie Basket, France), Rapolas Buivydas (Garveys Tralee Warriors), Seán Flood (London Lions, United Kingdom), Sean Jenkins (Griffith College Éanna).