By David Kelly, Belfast Telegraph – 16 February 2015
Belfast Star coach Danny Fulton praised his "magnificent seven-and-a-half" after they went down fighting in a heartbreaking last gasp 83-81 defeat to second placed Killester in the All Ireland Premier League.
Fulton, taking the reins with head coach Neal McCotter away on business, had travelled to Dublin with a weakened team and it didn't get any better when at the end of the first quarter Keelan Cairns had to leave the match through injury.
Then in the third quarter Conor Quinn hurt his ankle and had to take a break before returning for the majority of the fourth quarter of the match.Nevertheless, Star played with real desire and intensity which had the Dubliners on the back foot in the opening half and at the break the Belfast men only trailed 41-40.
With top performances from young guns Liam Pettigrew and Matthew Jackson, Star gave themselves a real shot at an upset victory.
Ricky Taylor had two free throws to give them a three-point lead with 38 seconds remaining but only hit one and with six seconds on the clock Killester tied the game up.
Just when it seemed that overtime was inevitable, Michael Westbrookes drew a foul from American Taylor with a second remaining and he clinically slotted home the two free throws to seal victory.
Coach Fulton said: "I couldn't have been more proud of my players.
"It was a case of the magnificent seven-and-a-half when you consider that we lost Keelan at the end of the first quarter," he commented.
"Keelan was always going to be a crucial player for us so it was a big blow when we lost him," he added.
"But Liam Pettigrew and Matthew Jackson came of age at this level with two great performances. Everyone really raised their game and they didn't deserve to lose," he said.
Belfast Star coach Danny Fulton praised his "magnificent seven-and-a-half" after they went down fighting in a heartbreaking last gasp 83-81 defeat to second placed Killester in the All Ireland Premier League.
Fulton, taking the reins with head coach Neal McCotter away on business, had travelled to Dublin with a weakened team and it didn't get any better when at the end of the first quarter Keelan Cairns had to leave the match through injury.
Then in the third quarter Conor Quinn hurt his ankle and had to take a break before returning for the majority of the fourth quarter of the match.Nevertheless, Star played with real desire and intensity which had the Dubliners on the back foot in the opening half and at the break the Belfast men only trailed 41-40.
With top performances from young guns Liam Pettigrew and Matthew Jackson, Star gave themselves a real shot at an upset victory.
Ricky Taylor had two free throws to give them a three-point lead with 38 seconds remaining but only hit one and with six seconds on the clock Killester tied the game up.
Just when it seemed that overtime was inevitable, Michael Westbrookes drew a foul from American Taylor with a second remaining and he clinically slotted home the two free throws to seal victory.
Coach Fulton said: "I couldn't have been more proud of my players.
"It was a case of the magnificent seven-and-a-half when you consider that we lost Keelan at the end of the first quarter," he commented.
"Keelan was always going to be a crucial player for us so it was a big blow when we lost him," he added.
"But Liam Pettigrew and Matthew Jackson came of age at this level with two great performances. Everyone really raised their game and they didn't deserve to lose," he said.
