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Middlesbrough Lions U15 40-74 York Vikings

York delivered a hefty blow to Lions confidence when the two sides met in December but with Patrick O’Connor returning for this fixture and new signing; David Budd in the squad, the Middlesbrough side were hoping for a more competent display against their Yorkshire rivals.

As captain; Philip Findlay led the side through its warm ups and stretch, there was an air of optimism in the Lions. The presence of David Budd would provide some additional security as the talented 15 year old from Redcar Community School is a strong lad and strength will be required against a huge and imposing Vikings outfit. The Vikings themselves only travelled with seven players but they were big, powerful and experienced, three attributes the young Lions lack, with the exception in height of 6’7” Shane Beadle and even he was dwarfed by the behemoth gigantic James Brown, standing at 6’10”

The game began with Lions producing some early pressure in the hope that they could pick off a few passes and score some fast breaks, meaning to take advantage of their speed and agility. Lions scored the first basket of the game with Dan Brown going coast to coast, from one end of the court to the other, finishing with a sleek lay up off the glass. Jon Shepherd responded for Vikings, four minutes into the game as the power forward received the ball from Stephen Dodsworth and made a close range shot. The defence from both teams was in full effect keeping shots to a minimum. In the sixth minute, David Budd entered the game and scored his first basket almost immediately with a controlled left hand drive down the centre of the key and laying the ball in off the backboard. Angus Fisher made a shot shortly after to tie the game 4-4 with neither side allowing an easy opportunity to extend a lead.

The positive start that Lions always seem to have in a game was again in effect, especially their up tempo defence. In the eighth minute, Vikings took their first lead when star man, James Boyes drove the lane for the easy bucket. Vikings were taking more shots now, but their accuracy was slightly off leading to rebounding opportunities which should have been grabbed by Lions big men; Shane Beadle and Danny Chirnside, although they were beaten too easily on far too many occasions. The introduction of James Parkin provided an ignition of sorts which led to a more determined rebound approach, but still the height and hunger of the Vikings was beginning to prove a problem. At the end of the quarter, Lions were very much in the game, although 5-8 down.

In the second quarter Boyes opened up with a fast break as Beadle and Brown chased back. Brown then dribbled between two defenders at half court and continued to the basket to reduce the deficit to 3pts, which the talented guard then cancelled with a 3 pointer in the next play to tie the game.

At such a significant stage of the game, Lions had to extend their traditional good first quarter, and they managed to do this for four minutes into the second before York produced a 12-2 run, James Brown instigating with two nice moves and James Boyes beginning to turn on the heat. Only Chris Chapman managed a response for Lions, although it was a lovely one as the guard produced a killer crossover to lose his defender and drive baseline for a sweet floating shot. By the eighth minute, Lions were down 12-21 and the rest of the first half would be no kinder as Vikings plundered their hosts yet again for a 10-2 run. A Chirnside shot and Brown free throw brought little respite to the Lions score line as the teams left the court for half time with the score board indicating a 16pt lead for Vikings, 15-31.

After the break Angus Fisher picked up his second foul as he stopped Dan Brown from making a lay up. Brown went to the line to convert both attempts, but Vikings reply was even better as Parkin fouled Jon Shepherd, with Shepherd’s shot dropping for the And 1 play, of which he also converted the free throw to take the scores to 17-34. Shane Beadle then received a pass from Patrick O’Connor for a nice cut and basket. Brown followed this up with another drive to the basket and the Lions would have had a lot more but for the presence of Vikings big man; James Brown who was blocking shots for fun.

Lions good start was again spoilt by a 10-0 run, these runs now amounting to 30-4, a simple explanation for the 44-21 score, however also an indication of how different the game could have been if these lapses in concentration could be avoided. Boyes was stealing the show by now, with 6 of the 10pts and looking hungry for more. In the seventh minute, four minutes without a basket, Lions found the net through the reliable Dan Brown. The remaining three minutes were a show of heart as Dan Wright entered the game and in an almost repeat of the previous fixture, made an instant impact by throwing a great pass to Beadle who was then fouled on the shot, although he missed both attempts. The defence from both sided was smothering and at the end of the third, the visitors had crept slightly further ahead 48-26.

The fourth quarter was make or break for Lions and they could already hold their heads up high on comparison to the game at York, but the feat was an uphill task, literally, taking into account the vertical size of their opponents. Jon Shepherd and Angus Fisher both picked up early fouls, with the second sending Lions’ Alan Slasor to the line for 1 of 2 attempts. Lions had now dealt the first blow in every quarter, but a habit of allowing runs would continue as the, by now cruising Vikings formed a 10-2 run with Slasor the only response while Fisher, Beresford, Dodsworth and the ever present Boyes were all on hand with the points. Boyes in particular was making easy work of the Lions defence as he just seemed to ease past players for easy shots. All of this action happened in the first to minutes, leaving Lions down 27pts, 29-56.

Beadle, who was not enjoying his best performance, but nevertheless an important piece silently crept into the key for a pass from Slasor on the fourth minute to secure the basket. Beadle would actually make a bigger impact in the remaining six minutes as he added 6 of his total 10pts. In what was a true reflection of the spirit of the team, Lions continued to battle away, never giving up and restricting the visitors to just 9pts in the final four minutes, whilst adding 7pts of their own through Beadle and a Brown 3 pointer. Beadle finished the game with a huge block on Shepherd, whose frustrations continued long after the game finished, 40-74.

Dan Brown was the hero for Lions with 17pts, 6 rebounds, 7 steals & 3 assists with Shane Beadle providing good support on 10pts & 13 rebounds. There was also a good performance from Alan Slasor and Chris Chapman showed a more lively display while David Budd gave a glimpse of how much of an asset he will be to the team. Philip Findlay struggled at times, which can be forgiven due to his recent knee injury whilst Patrick O’Connor also struggled to gain a footing in the game. O’Connor had entered the game in the second quarter after arriving straight from a Middlesbrough FC football game. The talented youngster, with mud along his legs looked a pale shadow of his usual self, but shows the kind of passion and dedication the young Lions have for their team.

 

The MVP was awarded to James Boyes, who was a cut above the rest in an excellent performance at both ends of the court. Boyes top scored  with 27pts but also added 12 rebounds, 2 steals & 1 block.

In what was a valiant effort by Middlesbrough, the strength of conviction on display by Vikings is something that the home team can learn from. The York side however could also learn from the young Lions composure and respect. The Lions have never received a technical foul or had an altercation with each other or the officials and the club take grace in both victory and defeat. The Vikings, even when up by 30pts found time to gripe with their team mates, coaching staff and officials and at one point this looked to boil over with Coach Wright throwing a heavy barrage the way of referee Mark Rhodes in an unfortunate episode in which the fiery coach was luck not to receive a technical foul.

Some might argue that the young Lions need to instil a bit of fire into themselves but there is a thin line that should not be crossed and the ever improving Middlesbrough side are on the right tracks.
 

Game Stats   Lions Vikings Coach: James Thomson Asst Coach: Captain: Philip Findlay Vice Captain: Dan Brown Coach: Jim Wright Asst Coach: Brian Fisher Captain: James Boyes   Referees Mark Rhodes & Steve Lynas   Top Scorers 17 10 3 2 2 2 2 2 Brown Beadle Slasor Budd Chapman Chirnside Findlay O'Connor 27 15 14 8 4 3 2 Boyes Shepherd Fisher Brown Dodsworth Beresford Campbell Rebounds 31 44 13 6 4 4 Beadle Brown Chirnside Parkin 14 12 5 5 5 Brown Boyes Campbell Fisher Shepherd Assists 7 3 3   Brown 2 Campbell Steals 9 21 7 2 Brown Findlay 8 5 4 2 Fisher Dodsworth Shepherd Boyes

Game Stats continued   Blocks 2 6 1 1 Beadle O'Connor 5 1 Brown Boyes Turn Overs 25 14 5 5 4 3 3 3 Beadle Findlay Slasor Brown Chirnside Parkin 4 4 3 2 Campbell Dodsworth Shepherd Brown       James Boyes was in top form during this game, hitting 27pts and collecting 12 rebounds

Game MVP: James Boyes, York Vikings

 

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