Ballincollig's Ciaran O'Sullivan named as Super League coach of the year

Ballincollig Basketball Club coach Ciaran O'Sullivan and star player Latavious Mitchell captured two of the biggest awards at the Basketball Ireland Annual Awards and Hall of Fame inductions at the Osprey Hotel in Naas recently.

Ciaran won the Super League coach of the year and Mitchell was voted the Super League player of the year.  

Both were the standout candidates for each award after a superb season where Ballincollig won the National Cup and Super League title.

UCC Glanmire's star player Jewel Watkins received the Domino’s Women’s Super League Player of the Year, after finishing the league’s top scorer and helping them to the Domino’s Women’s Super League playoff final.

Other Cork winners on the day were Abbie Lyons, who won the U20 Female Player of the Year award.  

Lyons is a great player and will be a key player for the Brunell senior side for years to come.

The Women’s Underage Coach of the Year award also came to Cork with Jodie Black, Brunell picking up the award. 

Ken Black, Jerome Westbooks, Michelle Fahy and Shane Coughlan were formally inducted into the Basketball Ireland Hall of Fame at the 2026 Basketball Ireland Annual Awards and Hall of Fame. 

The quartet took their place as the 23rd, 24th, 25th and 26th members of the Hall of Fame.

Shane Coughlan is the first Irish men’s player to be inducted. 

The former Blue Demons player, who won six Pat Duffy National Cup titles and three Men’s Super League titles in a 17-year career was thrilled to be inducted into the Hall Of Fame.

“It's an honour to be selected into Basketball Ireland’s Hall of Fame. It was something I would have never thought of or imagine. 

"My dad is the first person who I think of, who sadly passed in 2018 and would have been extremely proud, as he was my inspiration. 

"My mam kept the show on the road for all of us in the family, where we all played basketball. But it’s the tremendous coaching, committee members and people of Blue Demons who this award is really for and without doubt I have played with lads who made our club and Demons successful, because they were superbly talented. 

"This award symbolises all of them for the great success we had and I dedicate it to all the players I played with.” 

Ireland international Michelle Fahy won six Women’s Super League titles and five Paudie O’Connor National Cup’s at Glanmire and UL Huskies, during a distinguished career, which also saw her playing NCAA D1 basketball with Iona College in New York. 

Jerome Westbrooks, who came to Ireland in 1981 as Killester’s first ever American pro and went on to multiple Men’s Super League and Pat Duffy National Cup titles with the Dublin club and St. Vincent’s. Testament to his longevity he won the double with Killester in 2001, the Super League in 2007 and finally in 2007/08 - aged 51 - a Pat Duffy National Cup. 

Ken Black, who won multiple Men’s Super League and National Cup titles with Neptune, as well as coaching Chanell College, Loreto Swords and Swords Basketball Club, was also inducted. 

He was unable to attend the ceremony due to ill health.

In total, 57 awards were handed out on the day.

Basketball Ireland Annual Awards winners:

Referees:

NBRA Referee of the Year - Cathy Kilkenny NBRA 

Most Improved Referee - Ronan Kelly 

NLOP Senior Referee Development Award - Maciej Nazimek 

NLOP Young Referee of the Year - Sam McEntee 

CTOC Awards Table Official of the Year - Catherine Bannon 

Young Table Official of the Year - Michaela Buckley O'Riordan 

Primary Schools Mini Basketball National Committee Primary School Appreciation Award - Eileen Stapleton, Limerick Mini Basketball Board 

Primary School of the Year - Bohermeen National School, Meath 

Post-Primary Schools Girls A School of the Year - Presentation College, Kilkenny 

Boys A School of the Year - Coláiste Éanna, Dublin 

Girls B School of the Year - St. Dominic's Grammar School, Belfast 

Boys B School of the Year - Kildare Town Community School 

Girls C School of the Year - Coláiste Chú, Chulainn 

Boys C School of the Year - Dundalk Grammar School 

Girls D School of the Year - Coláiste Éamann Rís 

Boys D School of the Year - Rathdown School, Dublin 

Male U19 Schools Player of the Year - Adam Charles 

Female U19 Schools Player of the Year - Aoibheann Donnelly 

Male U16 Schools Player of the Year - Ógie O'Leary Griffin 

Female U16 Schools Player of the Year - Kayla Wall 

Girls School Coach of the Year - Puff Summers 

Boys School Coach of the Year - Hillary Netsiyanwa 

Tom Collins Award - Adrian O'Neill 

Colleges:

Div 1 -Male Collegiate Player of the Year - Mikah Blackwell, Griffith College Dublin 

Div 1-Female Collegiate Player of the Year - Hazel Finn, Trinity College Dublin 

Div 2 -Male Collegiate Player of the Year - Luke Donnelly, Ulster University 

Div 2-Female Collegiate Player of the Year - Aisling Marmion, Royal College of Surgeons 

Div 3 -Male Collegiate Player of the Year - Eoghan McPartlan, Maynooth University 

Div 3-Female Collegiate Player of the Year - Kate Kelly, Dundalk IT 

IWA Irish Wheelchair Basketball:

Women's Player of the Year - Kate Reddy, North East Thunder 

Irish Wheelchair Basketball Men's Player of the Year - Jack Mangan, South East Swifts 

National League:

Domino's Men's Super League Player of the Year - Latavious Mitchell, Ballincollig 

Domino's Men's Super League Young Player of the Year - Ronan Byrne, UCD Marian 

Domino's Men's Division One Player of the Year - Alex Carlisle, Limerick Sport Eagles 

Domino's Men's Division One Young Player of the Year - Darragh Horkan, Limerick Sport Eagles 

Domino's Men's Super League Coach of the Year - Ciaran O'Sullivan, Ballincollig 

Domino's Men's Division One Coach of the Year - Niall McDermott, Limerick Sport Eagles 

Domino's Women’s Super League Player of the Year - Jewel Watkins, UCC Glanmire 

Domino's Women's Super League Young Player of the Year - Hazel Finn, Trinity Meteors 

Domino's Women's Division One Player of the Year - Clara Gomez Santa, Limerick Sport Huskies 

Domino's Women's Division One Young Player of the Year - Caitlyn Gloeckner, Cleveland Rockets 

Domino's Women’s Super League Coach of the Year - Mark Grennell, Killester 

Domino's Women's Division One Coach of the Year - Breda Dick, Cleveland Rockets 

U18 Male Player of the Year - Mykyta Hural, Dublin Lions 

U18 Female Player of the Year - Laura Buckley, Limerick Celtics 

U20 Male Player of the Year - Fortune Igbokwe, Titans 

U20 Female Player of the Year - Abbie Lyons, Burnell 

Underage Coaches 

Men’s Underage Coach of the Year - Jack Considine, Titans 

Women’s Underage Coach of the Year - Jodie Black, Brunell 

Presidents’ Lifetime Achievement Awards 2026 – Mark Keenan 

Presidents’ Lifetime Achievement Awards 2026 – Maciej Nazimek