A second sister act: Dwyers back on Irish basketball's biggest stage

Gráinne and Niamh Dwyer have won everything there is to win in Irish basketball over and over again – but those days appeared over after they moved to Fr Matthew’s and Niamh then retired.

Grainne Dwyer of Fr Mathews with supporters after the Pat Paudie O'Connor Cup semi-final. Picture: Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile

When near the start of the 2018-2019 season her wife had a brain haemorrhage giving birth to their twins and then at the end of it her sister Gráinne hit a buzzer-beater to win the Champions Trophy for Fr Matthew’s in their first season in the Superleague, Niamh Dwyer reasonably decided it was the ideal time to hang up the boots.

While Marie was thankfully fine, the primary prescription she had been given was plenty of rest, meaning Niamh that season had been up in the early hours feeding the newborns before heading off to teach in Glanmire, then across the city to train with or often coach in Matthew’s.