“We're the underdogs now, and we're fine with that” - Arriaga

ND Audit Portlaoise Panthers guard, Xabi Arriaga is expecting a huge test for the Laois side when they take on Maree in their curtain raiser to the 2025/26 Men’s National League season at home on Saturday evening, but believes they still have the experience needed to make another big push for the play-offs.

Jack Scully’s side will be hoping for strong support in St. Mary’s Hall when they tip off their new Division One campaign against their Galway rivals, who will be looking to make an immediate return to the Super League ranks after the disappointment of relegation earlier this year.

The much experienced and hugely decorated Jason Killeen was appointed head coach of Maree only last month and has been busy assembling a squad that will, no doubt, be pushing for promotion.

Indeed, they will pose a serious test for Panthers, but Arriaga is hopeful Portlaoise can hit the ground running, despite the huge change the squad has undergone over the summer following the departure of key players like James Phelan, Liam Kinsella, Aleksandar Kovacevic, Cillian O’Connell and American power forward, Eric Anderson.

“Maree are probably the favourites from my perspective to win everything this year,” admitted Arriaga.

“They signed Jason Killeen, who I played with a few years ago in Templeogue. He's the coach and basically, he’s an Irish legend, so they’ve put in a big investment into bringing their team back up.

“He (Killeen) has taken a little bit from everywhere. He got a British guy (Justin Wickham) from Tipp Talons, he got an American that's very experienced, he’s got some Irish players. And then he has that experience with half of the team that already played Super League for the last four years, so they're going to be up to the level right away,” stressed the Spaniard.

Yet Portlaoise, while having lost a handful of top-calibre players, have been bolstered by the arrival of 6’8” centre, Rich Ashu from London and American point guard, Mike Wallace.

Add to that, the experience of Arriaga and Kevin Donohoe, along with club stalwarts, Davin McEvoy, Dylan Dunne and Kyle Burke, and Portlaoise appear to remain a serious force.

The 2024/25 campaign was, by far, their most successful to date, as they reached the final of both the President’s National Cup and the Division One play-offs, losing out to Limerick Celtics on both counts.

Equalling, if not surpassing that achievement, will be a big ask, but it is a goal this Portlaoise team are very much targeting.

And, while they may not necessarily be identified as one of the favourites as they were last season, Arriaga insists flying that bit under the radar will work to their benefit.

“From the beginning, last year, everybody was saying that us and Tolka were clear favourites in the North (Conference),” Arriaga told the *****Laois Nationalist*****.

“This year we're in the South (Conference), and everybody's talking about UL Eagles and Maree. We're the underdogs now, and we're fine with that. We know we have to outwork other teams now to perform better than them.

“One thing that we had last year is that everybody could have played 20 minutes in each game, so this year, those guys who didn't get the minutes, are playing more and they’re showing that they can do it.

“We still have players who can play big minutes like Davin and Kev, so we're not going to suffer in that way, because we’re a mature and experienced team that already knows what we can do it.

“Our goal, last season, was to make it to play-offs. Once there, anybody can win. The goal this year is the same,” he insisted.

Arriaga certainly rates highly, the new additions to the Portlaoise squad, Ashu and Wallace, insisting they can make a serious impact in the league.

Indeed, Wallace, a former Tolka Rovers and SETU Carlow player, has already demonstrated what he can bring to the table, averaging 24 and 23 points per game over the past two seasons, and twice earning selection for the National League All-Star 1st team.

And he is no stranger to the Portlaoise players and set-up, having played with the likes of Arriaga and Donohoe during his time in Carlow.

“Mike already knows us as a team and he knows us as people too, so it's far easier for him to adapt to an environment where he already knows people rather than just going into a team and having to start from zero” said Arriaga.

“Rich is getting better for us every day. He's getting used to the type of basketball that we play here.

“He’s going to be big for us and we’re going to need him on the boards, especially on defence. But he's going to be huge,” he predicted.

Certainly, Portlaoise head coach, Jack Scully has had his hands full in steadying the ship in what has been a turbulent summer with a number of exits.

But Arriaga believes they still have the personnel to stake a claim for a play-off berth and is hopeful they can lay down a marker against Maree this Saturday, insisting: “Winning the first game of the season and being able to compete, is going to let every team know where we are, and it's going to give us the confidence to perform at this level.”