Letterkenny Blaze duo included on Irish U17 squad

TWO YOUNG Letterkenny Blaze players have been selected as part of the Ireland Under-17 basketball squad.

Ireland U17 Head Coach Karl Kilbride has announced a 24-player squad.

Kilbride has included Blaze duo Shannon Cunningham (pictured) and Shauna Higgins in his panel.

Both Cunningham and Higgins are students at Coláiste Ailigh.

“For the players who have progressed, they have a brilliant opportunity ahead of them,” Kilbride said. 

“We’re really excited to start work with this group of 24 players. We get to spend a year working hard on individual development, giving them a great international experience; and trying to help put them in the best possible position to progress to next year’s U18 Euros squad. We can’t wait to get started.”

The squad was selected following a talent session in Limerick on Sunday and Kilbride said he was ‘pretty blown away’ by the standard.

He said: “It shows that basketball in Ireland is on a really exciting footing. However, it also made our life far more difficult than we were expecting in making this decision.”