Middlesbrough Lions produced a
stunning first home game in
front of a
good crowd of over 100 at the
Eston Sports Academy as they
begin their development within
the ranks of National Basketball
competition. The visitors today
were the established and well
drilled National outfit; Durham
Wildcats, led by the Durham
basketball supremo Dave Elderkin.
It was a last minute change in
the scheduled National Founders
Cup game due to be played
against Westleigh Warriorz, who
cancelled late Tuesday evening
leaving the club with a frantic
period of trying to locate a
replacement team. Fortunately,
the Wildcats were most
accommodating in turning out a
mix of their National League
teams to provide a stern test
for the Lions.
With the spectators seated and
the VIP guests including Gary
Havelock and Rob Nichols settled
into the exclusive VIP lounge
the lights went out for the
introduction of the Lions
players through the tunnel of
cheerleaders and a rapturous
welcome from the home crowd. In
what was the first game, the
fans would not be disappointed
if the initial entertainment was
a signal of things to follow for
the Middlesbrough club.
The game began well for the home
side with Damian Warriner
stealing the lose pass and
securing the first points with a
lay up. Wildcats were quick to
respond though as Ian Hewitt hit
a 3 pointer. In the second
minute Daniel Cooper and captain
Michael Wassell combined to add
another 4pts and the Lions were
beginning to look good with nice
passing and good transition, the
transition being a problem in
pre season games. Lions good
start took a slight blow when
Hewitt again knocked down a 3
pointer to level the scores 6-6
but Lions didn't falter and
instead gathered momentum as
they produced another 6-0 run
with a Chris Lyle fast break and
brace of baskets from the
impressive Warriner. As the
first quarter drew to a close,
Ben Robinson for Lions and
Webster for Wildcats added a
basket apiece to take the score
to 17-12 in favour of the Lions.
During the team talks,
Elderkin's message brought the
desired effect as his Wildcats
romped away on a 7-0 run to give
the visitors their first lead of
the game. Marsh came alive for
the Wildcats hitting the first
6pts with an additional free
throw from Saad. Cooper halted
the run with a 3 pointer in the
sixth minute but Hewitt was
again on hand to hit two
consecutive 3 pointers and
extend the lead to 5pts. A
battling period from Wassell
galvanised the Lions in the
eighth minute although he would
miss both free throw attempts
after being fouled on the shot.
The big man would make amends
though soon after with a
powerful drive. This second
quarter would prove a costly one
for the home team with the
defence at times sloppy indeed
and Wildcats capitalising on any
mistakes the Lions made. In the
ninth minute Plosser would round
off a good spell for the
visitors as he produced an And 1
play and then hit a 3 pointer to
finish the half 6pts in front
26-32.
The third quarter was a much
better display for the Lions
with the energetic Warriner a
constant thorn in the side of
Wildcats as he hustled for every
lose ball and produced steals on
many occasions. The passion on
display from Warriner lifted the
Lions as he made two fast breaks
followed by a good drive from
Cooper resulting in free throws
after being fouled. Cooper would
make both and follow up with a 3
pointer to bring Lions within
1pt of Wildcats 35-36, an
exciting game with the fans on
the edge of their seat. Wildcats
depth was proving a real problem
for the home team as Haar
stepped up with a sailing 3
pointer to instigate a 13-3 run,
Lee Woolams with the only
response from Lions, albeit a
great play between him and Ben
Robinson.
At the start of the final
quarter Lions were 11 down,
38-49 and an immediate response
was vital if they were to claw
back a victory. Woolams made the
first shot with a good low post
shot. The link play between
Woolams and Robinson was looking
fantastic and although Robinson
missed too many clear chances,
the build up was exactly what
the Lions coaching staff were
encouraging. With five minutes
remaining Lions again stepped up
a gear with Damian Warriner
again at the centre of
proceedings at both ends of the
court. By the ninth minute
Robinson brought the Lions to
within 4pts, but a clumsy foul
by Woolams at the other end
allowed provided Harris with an
And 1 pay with which he
converted the free throw to take
a 5pt victory 54-59.
There were many positives to be
taken from both sides in this
game and Lions coach Sid
Nicholls was most impressed with
the overall performance of the
Lions. "To play an established
National League side with good
players in every department was
going to be a difficult task for
any new team and I couldn't have
asked for much more from the
players. I am actually very
pleased, despite the loss which
is not something you will hear
me say very often." added Coach
Nicholls.
It is not very often, a player
from the losing side will be
awarded the MVP (most valuable
player) but in this game, there
was one player who
demanded
attention for his work ethic,
passion and ability. Lions
Damian Warriner was awarded the
MVP with 17pts & 9 steals, 1
steal shy of a double-double.
Ian Hewitt was the main
contender for the Wildcats with
16pts & 3 assists although his 6
turnovers let him down. The star
man, interviewed after the game
said "Its nice to be recognised,
but it hurts that we didn't get
the win, we came close, but
hopefully the fans were happy
with what they saw and will come
back and cheer us on to victory
on 16th November."
In summary of the game, Lions
stats would provide better
reading in most categories but
it was a case of missed baskets
and poor free throw shooting (6
of 13) that would cost the home
team the game. Still there was
an air of optimism as Lions
coach James Thomson said "If we
can produce a performance such
as that against the teams in our
competition we will do ourselves
and the area proud."
Durham Coach, Dave Elderkin was
also impressed with the club
adding "Lions look to have a
good group of players and we
enjoyed our visit today. We were
happy to help with the
unfortunate cancellation and we
look forward to forging a good
relationship in the future."
