HOME FROM HOME/Nayla Abdulla:SHE'S a 15-year-old kid with a big smile and an even bigger basketball game, but talking to Nayla Abdulla you would think she's far from the star in the making she looks to be.

The Somalia-born student at Mercy College in Coolock has made great strides on court over the last few years and will line-out with her team-mates in the Dublin Under-16 Schools final against Our Lady's of Terenure at the Oblate Hall in Inchicore today.

For Abdulla it's all about the enjoyment of playing with her friends. It's also all about girls together, there's no "I" in this team as far as she is concerned.

"It's just getting along with all the girls and having a good time, being there for each other, it's just fun," remarks Abdulla, whose height and strength have played a key part in the school making it to the decider.

She professes to be about 5ft 7in tall, although her coach, Mark Ingle, adds another three inches on that her modesty prevents her from doing so.

Ingle, an assistant coach of the Ireland women's team, knows talent when he sees it and has watched as players such as Ireland captain Lyndsey Peat have blossomed from talented school kids into international players. He sees no reason why Abdulla can't go all the way.

"I think Nayla has every chance to go on and play Superleague or even become a professional if she wanted," Ingle declares.

"It's not so much how talented she is at the moment, it's what she could be because of her size and strength. She plays up in the post position where you do all the rebounding and work around the basket

"She's come on really strong this year, she's averaging 16 to 18 points a game. Just from looking at the players I have coached in the past, she's certainly as strong as Sharon Kelly or Tara Fitzsimons, who both went on to play professional basketball from Mercy College."

Ingle has played a big part in the integration of the school and club into the DCU basketball programme and believes the structures are in place for talented players such as Abdulla and team-mate Laura Ryan to go as far as they can with their basketball.

"Historically, these kids would have had to go to America to further their basketball careers. I don't think that's the case any more," says Ingle.

"The ethos at the school and club is to provide the opportunity for good young athletes to move on. That would be at the core of our mission statement. The school is linked to the club and the club to DCU.

"We have a pathway from the school team to the club team to the Superleague team. Looking down the road, Nayla would certainly be one of the players DCU would be looking to recruit into the college."

The third-year student is really enjoying her basketball but she does have dreams of playing internationally when the time comes.

"I'd love to play for the National League teams and for Ireland, that would be great," confirms Abdulla, who looks up to the likes of Peat and Mary Fox, who star for the DCU Mercy Superleague team.

For the moment, there's a cup final to try and win with her team-mates, who are known as the "Little Devils".

"It's the way they play. It's a fun motto, but it's a mindset also," confirms Ingle

Abdulla's also working on getting the better of her older brother, a useful player himself. "I don't know if I'm better than him, I haven't had a one on one with him yet," she says.

It might take just a little longer for Abdulla to mix it with the big boys on court, but she's doing just fine at her own level right now.