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Post by Deleted on Apr 28, 2020 9:04:00 GMT
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Post by Solly on Apr 28, 2020 10:48:42 GMT
Back to the travails of Wolves' 2006-07 season. The latest repro details one of the (quite a few) low points of that debut BBL year. Playing NBL side Coventry in the National Trophy ought to have been a good chance for a W... To highlight - 1. Dip was still suiting up t31076 2. Solomon Sheard must have been one of the worst foul-shooters Worcester ever saw  3. I really liked visiting Coventry Sports Centre. It was dated and often sparsely populated but was a comforting venue. ----------------------- There really is no way of sugar-coating what happened last Sunday over at Coventry. Whilst our overtime defeat the week before against Sheffield meant that neither team had anything to play for in terms of progressing from our National Trophy group, it seemed that Coventry had the greater determination to win this contest. Having already seen the Crusaders several times this season, I knew that their point guard, Sam Oatman, was likely to be the main threat. This was indeed to be the case, with Oatman hitting a whopping 42 points and supported by Marcus Twierdzinski with 26 points. Both of these players scored more points than any single Wolves player. The first quarter was fairly even, ending at 23-27, but we only added a meagre 10 points in the second quarter, whilst Covo upped their score to 52. The 19 point half-time deficit stayed fairly constant throughout most of the second half, ending in the very disappointing 78-93 final score. On to the individual breakdown – Tom Perkes – 24pts. Kept battling, but ploughed a lone furrow. Wolves MVP. Solomon Sheard - 14pts. Dunked on the half-time buzzer. Pointless last quarter. Foul shooting still a concern, just 2-7 today. Matt Collins – 10pts. Only 2 points before the final quarter, against one of his former teams. Andy Harper. 15pts. Quiet game by his usual standards. Ben Potts – 5pts. Started in place of the injured Valdas, but little offensive threat today. Darren Francis – 4pts. More fouls than points. Michael Gayle – 6pts. No points in the second half. Sergio Rodriguez – Nil pts. 1 foul. Limited minutes. Steve Archer – Nil pts. Got around 5 minutes today. James Noel/Rob Clarke – DNP – Injured. Ex-Bullets – Dip Donaldson – the Big Dipper still contributes. Craftily conserved his energy to still be able to play around 25 minutes (2pts/1 assist/1 block/5 rebounds). Coached well, ensuring all his troops got reasonable minutes, even the youngsters at the end of the bench. Venue Verdict – a maze of walkways and stairs to reach the court, but the Crusaders put on a nice show. Offer of a free post-match buffet, to be consumed with the players. Right then, as we approach 2007, festive wishes to everyone connected in any way to the Wolves. Things can only get better. And here's Solly's advice for anyone who is tasked with putting up the Christmas lights - before packing away your Christmas decorations, smash one of the lights. Next year you will then have no difficulty in discovering which bulb doesn't work... |
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Post by Solly on Apr 30, 2020 10:21:23 GMT
Today's repro is an unusual one in that it was written by my driver  , a very close call for Wolves at the now defunct London United. ---------------------- OK guys, my driver had to take a lot of stick from me last week, as he weaved around the dense London traffic. In recognition of his patience, I have let him take this week’s 600 words – For the second night in a row, a competitive performance from the Wolves, but again we fell just short. The game basically boiled down to the last 25 seconds. The score was tied at 71-71 with 24.7 seconds left. London had possession and Chris Haslam was fouled with 15.2 left. Haslam made both foul shots to take the score to 73-71. We then regained possession, and Valdas hit a 3 to take us up 74-73 with 5 seconds left. Game over you would have thought. Unfortunately, none of our players had spotted Haslam lolloping down court to our basket until it was too late. A long pass led to a Haslam lay up and a score of 75-74 in London’s favour. A quick Wolves time out was called, but with only 1.5 seconds left there was little we could do. Harper tried a shot but it didn’t drop. Game now definitely over. Tom Perkes: 29pts Seems to be back to his best. Scoring machine. MVP tonight. Valdas Urbonavicious: 12pts. Hit some big shots when needed. Andy Harper: 9pts. Seemed as though London had earmarked Andy as the main threat, and as a result did a fairly effective job of containing him. Coughed up the ball on a couple of occasions when put under pressure. Solomon Sheard: 9pts. 1-6 from line. Got stuck in. One dunk and one rejection. Pity he couldn’t have been a bit more productive from the foul line! Matt Collins: 4pts. Shots weren’t falling tonight, but contributed well in other areas. Sergio Rodriguez: 4pts. Rugged performance, but played relatively limited minutes. Ben Potts: 4pts. Not as prolific as he sometimes can be – although wasn’t on court that much. Michael Gayle: 3pts. A buzzer-beating 3 at the end of the third quarter was the undoubted highlight. Effective back up at the point. Darren Francis: 0pts. Hardly saw action. Ex-Bullets: Chris Haslam: 9pts. Not the player he once was at the Bullets. However, there when it counted at the end to score the game-winning basket. Venue verdict: 6/10. General admission £8, programme £1. To be honest, I’m not a fan of London venues (locationwise) as you know you’re likely to be battling through heavy traffic at some stage – whether it’s Crystal Palace, Docklands or now Hackney. Some poor navigation from Solly didn’t help either! Fortunately, the Wolves team bus was also delayed, meaning we didn’t miss as much of the game as we thought we would. Result! Anyway, back to the venue verdict - a newish, if compact venue with good sightlines close to the action. Being searched with a metal detector at the entrance was a first though. I pulled out my camera and mobile when the detector bleeped and was waved through, and thus the 9mm semi-automatic Beretta I had in my pocket remained undetected!! Merchandise average, but decent food-counter right next to the court. Parking a bit hit and miss – parked round the corner from the venue in an area that didn’t look entirely safe (we were late though). |
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Post by Solly on May 1, 2020 10:08:40 GMT
Today I am repro-ing what was either just the second or third win for Worcester in the 2006-07 season.
In all the excitement of reporting a win (Jan 07), I somehow omitted to mention the final score. Maybe someone can help out by telling me and everyone else the score?
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What a magnificent win last week!
Having run London oh-so-close late last year down in Hackney, I had thought that we had the chance of the W, but, if I am honest, following the 59-93 blowout up at Newcastle, did not really think we could do it.
Thank goodness the Wolves players believed differently.
Early in the game it looked like we were going to be served up more of the same old, same old, as we turned the ball over far too often. But, by the end of the first half we had transformed a 18-29 deficit into a 48-41 lead.
OK that close win over Chester in our second home game of the season was indeed thrilling, but how nice it was on this occasion to luxuriate in a healthy lead throughout most of the second half.
London did not help their cause by picking up several unsportsmanlike and technical fouls, but, even without that help, our Worcester boys still had enough fire to boss the game.
On to the individual breakdown –
Matt Collins – 14pts. Conbasketball kited the flow. At one point appeared to yelp in pain from a wrist injury, but would not stay down. One of his best games of the season.
Andy Harper – 19pts. Mr Reliable.
Tom Perkes – 19pts. Bounced back with impressive scoring, and impressive rebounding.
Sergio Rodriguez – 20pts. 12 rebounds. Brilliantly exciting play from this warrior. Stood up straight in the paint, beat his chest and bellowed out that he was the Man!
Solomon Sheard – 10pts. 6 rebounds. 2 blocked shots. Fired up, and more confident tonight. Useful scoring, and more than useful rebounding.
Michael Gayle – 2pts. Quicksilver. Capable when called upon.
Ben Potts – 8pts. Relatively limited minutes, but contributed well.
Steve Archer – Joined his proud team mates on the court for the last few seconds of the proceedings.
Ex-Bullets – Chris Haslam – 12pts. MVP for London, but means little without an accompanying W.
Right, we are now unbeaten in 2007. We have started this year in the way that we should, with aggression, with spirit, with fight. Worcester Wolves – Winners in 2007!
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Post by Deleted on May 1, 2020 11:09:34 GMT
92-77. It was your 3rd of 4 wins that year
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Post by Solly on May 2, 2020 10:50:54 GMT
Today's will be the penultimate repro of Wolves' sorry debut BBL season (I think fellow BBL newcomers London United had at least double our four wins).
To highlight -
1. For some reason, despite his ability to dominate, Shawn Jamison was sat down until half-time.
2. Vince was annoying as ever on the commentary - "Criss-Cross" being his latest catchphrase at the time.
3. James Noel was by now looking a decent player. Think he went on to Plymouth the following season.
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So often this season with our team, it has all been about the third quarter, and so it was once more down at Milton Keynes Lions, a couple of weeks back.
For the very first time in the top division of British Basketball, Wolves actually led at half-time in a road game, 49-46.
Hesitantly, I allowed myself to think thoughts of that oh-so-desired road win – I have pledged my driver that I will stump up for a Big Mac Extra Value Meal, (and maybe even an apple pie), when we hit that first BBL road W.
So far Ronald McDonald has not laid claim to any of the Solly family silver.
Tom Perkes opened proceedings with a 3-pointer after just 13 seconds of the game, and we maintained a surety to our play, ending the first quarter only 23-31 down, and then pushing forward to a 3 point advantage by the break, with our own Harper & Collins combining nicely.
However, as the second half began, I remarked to my driver ‘What’s that coming over the hill, is it a monster, is it a monster?
It was our favourite grumpy big man Shawn Jamison, looking decidedly moody, having sat on the bench the whole of the first half.
This man may be moody, but he kicks ass, as he proceeded to dominate the paint, racking up 8 points and 10 rebounds, imperiously swatting aside his opponents. By the time this particular lion had satisfied his hunger, we had largely crumbled.
Down 62-69 at the end of the third quarter, in the last period there was a fightback of sorts, with a preponderance of points and rebounds from Solomon Sheard and James Noel, but Lions were always able to keep us at arms length, leading to a final score of 86-92.
On to the individual breakdown –
Andy Harper: 16pts. Industrious.
Matt Collins: 10ts. Did what he could.
Tom Perkes: 7pts. Battled on the boards, but struggled to score.
Solomon Sheard: 15pts. 3-10 from the line. Solid all round display except for, you’ve guessed it, those foul shots……..
James Noel: 24pts. Double figure rebounds. King James! MVP again!
Sergio Rodriguez: 2pts. Struggled.
Michael Gayle: 9pts. Enthusiastic.
Darren Francis: Nil pts. Limited minutes.
Ben Potts: 3pts. Limited minutes.
Ex-Bullets
Shawn Jamison – still the man.
Kevin Griffin – 4pts – quiet night.
VinceWatch – MK owner and commentator gave his usual over-the-top display, including no less than 7 exclamations of ‘Criss-Cross!’
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Post by Deleted on May 2, 2020 17:22:41 GMT
Here you go Solly, a present, the second worst day in Wolves' history. Found while researching Leopards history 10-12-06 Coventry Crusaders 93 (27,52,73) (Oatman 42, Twierdzinski 26, Neely 13) Worcester Wolves 78 (23,33,54) (Perkes 26, Harper 14, Collins 9) Coventry Crusaders were the side to break their duck in the BBL Trophy as the EBL Division One team outplayed BBL newcomers Worcester Wolves at Coventry Sports Centre. The home dominated the opening three quarters as they stretched their lead from an end of first period score of 27-23 to 52-33 by half time. There was no respite after the break either as the Crusaders’ Sam Oatman continued to excel on his way to 42- points. By the time the teams lined up for the start of the fourth quarter the hosts were leading 73-54 and despite Wolves taking the final stanza there was no way back for Josh Cooprider’s side. And speaking of Leopards history, a few bits from the crazy days of Bob Donewald. |
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Post by Solly on May 4, 2020 9:43:03 GMT
hersey427 - ta for that
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Post by Solly on May 4, 2020 9:49:21 GMT
My final repro from Wolves BBL debut season of 2006/07.
Notable points -
1. A grand total of 4 league wins (none on the road) - vs Leicester, Sheffield & London United. Not sure about the identity of the fourth victim, and there may also have been one victory in the BBL Trophy group?
2. If there are any other Wolves fans out there maybe they can confirm or deny that not a single player returned for the following year's roster?
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There’s a line in Frank Sinatra’s song ‘My Way’ that goes something like ‘success, I’ve had a few, then again too few to mention………’ well, in terms of Ws we indeed have had very few successes, but you really do have to look beyond the numbers to see that our Worcester Wolves have had accomplishments this season.
For this to be an objective review of the season, I am going to have to mention a few of the hard times, most notably the several wallopings we suffered, hitting lows in the 44-93 rout at Leicester Riders and the embarrassing 78-93 reversal at EBL side Coventry Crusaders.
Having mentioned the lows, it can be said that the measure of your resilience is how you handle these, and if you can bring positives out of the negatives. I think we saw this in how some of our bench players took the chance of increased minutes to show that they have game, and how, in a strange way, the many defeats made the few wins taste all the sweeter, none more satisfying than the 70-65 defeat of Sheffield Sharks, in January.
Anyway, in the tradition of all my game reports this season, on to the individual breakdown –
Andy Harper: Deadly three point threat. Has the mesmerising ability to catch and immediately shoot. Standout game – early victory vs Chester, 28pts including 6 x 3s.
Matt Collins: Fiery competitor. Got pushed down, but got up again. Standout game -
victory vs London, 14pts & 8 assists.
Tom Perkes: Stood back a little early season, but then took it upon himself to take control in scoring and in downright guts. Standout game – at Chester, 27pts
Solomon Sheard: Looked tentative in his first few games, but now a cornerstone of the team. Flashy dunks and tenacious rebounding, (but still has to do something about that foul shooting!). Standout game – victory vs Leicester, 18pts & 17 rebounds.
James Noel: If we are honest, looked awful early doors, but we now know how much his injury must have hampered him. Fan favourite King James forms the Twin Towers rebounding partnership alongside Solomon. Might not have the razzle dazzle of his partner, but definitely has a blue collar work ethic. Standout game – at Lions, 24pts & 13 rebounds.
Sergio Rodriguez: Hot and cold. When he was hot he was the man, but when he was cold it showed. Standout game – vs London, 20pts & 12 rebounds, a warrior!
Valdas Urbonavicious – Impressed until injury. Standout game – vs Plymouth, 18pts.
Michael Gayle: Speedy, enthusiastic. Responded well to increased minutes, upping his assists and his scoring. Standout game – at Chester, 21pts.
Darren Francis: Lively when called upon. Standout game – at Leicester, 11pts.
Ben Potts: Outside threat. Standout game – at Sheffield, MVP with 20pts.
Steve Archer: Limited minutes, but spirited.
Rob Clarke: Cult figure, limited appearances. Standout game – at Glasgow, 8pts in 8 minutes.
Most impressive ex-Bullet –
Jeff Bonds – class aplenty.
Honourable mention - Big Billy Singleton – savvy performer able to cannily preserve his (limited) energy.
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Post by Deleted on May 4, 2020 12:43:24 GMT
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Post by Deleted on May 5, 2020 20:13:31 GMT
I hope Solly hasn't been eaten by a bear or - much worse - forced to do gardening or decorating, and will return tomorrow. In the meantime I bring you EBL's version of the Malice at the Palace. If you don't remember the original version - a quite spectacular brawl between Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers - read about it here (now with correct link!) and here. The second piece is definitely worth reading. |
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Post by connors on May 6, 2020 8:44:06 GMT
I think I’ve read those before but well worth reading again!
Those Pistons and Pacers team were the last remnants of 90s basketball all gathered between two tetchy squads!
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Post by Solly on May 6, 2020 18:22:00 GMT
I have indeed been busied by Mrs Solly the last couple of days. Yesterday we tackled the big shop at Tesco. Have to applaud the way they have it set up there albeit that we likely made the experience more reasonable than it could have been by our early morning arrival.
Amongst the staples, (lots of pies and steam puddings), I also earnt kudos by authorising the purchase of several frivolities such as a womens weekly-type magazine, strawberries and even a bunch of tulips.
And then today I obtained for her a second-hand bike. Am I a generous husband or what...
Anyway, on to todays retro post - out opening match of the 2010/11 season.
Points to highlight -
1. After many years of, at very best, middling performances I now thought that this could finally be a breakout year. Once more it would turn out to be another, at best, middling season...
2. One of the players I mentioned was named Luke Sanders. Without doing research I have to admit to no recollection of this guy - did he only make one appearance, did he do anything at another club?
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How great it is to be back in the land of basketball, and, in particular, Worcester Wolves basketball.
Yes I was able to watch the Los Angeles Lakers gain another NBA title, and then be thrilled by the further progression of Team GB in making it to next year’s European Championships in Lithuania. I even came along to the sports centre in the summer to see a youthful England side against Scotland.
But of course that was all just passing the time whilst awaiting my true fix.
So here we are, and where are we? Well one sure thing in comparison to previous seasons is that we have a core of solid returnees to the team in Rod, Danny and Special K.
Our early season records in the BBL have up to now been woeful, a significant contributing factor being a lack of cohesion.
Allied to that, we have often had question marks about the true ability of our new recruits. College stats can look good, but can mislead if the standard of play is unclear.
With agents obviously hyping up their clients, you are often taking a punt, rather than the ideal option of a well-informed recruitment decision.
Another first is that as we are actually playing our opening game of the season at home, as opposed to a trip to (usually) Milton Keynes or Chester.
I have no early report to make other than our friendly last Saturday against an undersized US Select team, where we coasted to a 109-53 victory.
The individual breakdown -
Danny Gilbert - 21pts, 4 x 3ptrs. Mr Smooth is back.
Kastytis Normantas - 17pts, 3 x 3ptrs. Mr Hustle is back.
Luke Sanders - 5pts. Promising young guard. Given decent court time and showed a good level of maturity.
David Watts - 27pts, 4 x 3ptrs. Has the height, and has the shooting range.
Callum Jones - 7pts. Tidy performance.
Alex Zimnickas - 12pts. Provides some bulk in the paint.
Martynas Versinskas - 12pts. Another presence in the paint.
Povilas Tamulynas - 8pts. Contributed when called upon.
Rod Middleton – DNP – sniffles
Justin Dobbins – DNP – awaiting a permit
Whilst it was a useful leg-stretcher for the guys, Cheshire Jets today should be a much different proposition, a team reported to have recruited well, albeit that they could take time to gel.
It was agonising to miss out on the playoffs last year after such a good run to end the season (and finishing on the same record as Milton Keynes and Worthing), so these next few games in the Trophy will give us the chance to blow away any cobwebs, and consolidate further. I’m buzzed.
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Post by Solly on May 6, 2020 18:24:16 GMT
hersey427 - Malice at the Palace! I certainly recall this, particularly when the fatlad got walloped on court and all that rained down on players as they finally exited the court. Outrageous.
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Post by Rovers Gashead on May 6, 2020 18:26:26 GMT
I hope Solly hasn't been eaten by a bear or - much worse - forced to do gardening or decorating, and will return tomorrow. In the meantime I bring you EBL's version of the Malice at the Palace. If you don't remember the original version - a quite spectacular brawl between Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers - read about it here (now with correct link!) and here. The second piece is definitely worth reading. Hersey- read your blog and you mentioned Mark Britball. Am I mistaken or didn’t you have some issues with him - mentioned on here a while ago? |
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Post by ko25 on May 6, 2020 18:36:32 GMT
hersey427 - Malice at the Palace! I certainly recall this, particularly when the fatlad got walloped on court and all that rained down on players as they finally exited the court. Outrageous. Which one was the fat lad?  t0345 |
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Post by Solly on May 7, 2020 15:17:04 GMT
ko25 - there was certainly more than one fatlad who got punched. The portly gentleman I was referring to is in the attached wearing a Pistons vest and was sledgehammered by Jermaine O'Neal.
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Post by Solly on May 7, 2020 15:53:33 GMT
Today's repro was for the programme for Wolves opening home game of the 10/11 season, detailing a disappointing loss at Chester.
I think my reference to cheesy chips came about because I had just sampled them for the very first time when visiting Batley Bulldogs when they hosted Widnes Vikings.
A peculiar dish for me, but then Northern people are often quite peculiar.
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Last Sunday afternoon saw another early season jaunt up to Chester. Not that far in terms of miles, but a nightmare in terms of all the winding country roads needing to be negotiated.
I do hope that there are not that many winding roads ahead for our Wolves this coming season, never mind any nightmares, because there were certainly times on Sunday when we seemed ready to be put to bed.
After all the excitement of the night before when we so nearly downed the big-spending Mersey (Everton) Tigers, it was quite a letdown to fall 78-84 to a side that Mersey had pummelled by over 20 points the previous week.
Early doors we just couldn’t find a rhythm, constantly being beaten to the ball by a Jets team making few errors.
By half-time we were already behind at 39-51, and pulling on our jimjams.
But when the going gets tough, who you gonna call – Special K, that’s who.
A third quarter of hustle & steals dragged us back to just 62-65 and it was game back on.
However, a few more turnovers, and a lot of missed free throws, meant we just missed out by the end.
On to the individual breakdown -
Danny Gilbert - 23pts, 4 x 3ptr. Determined.
Rod Middleton – 16 pts, 3 x 3ptr, 10 rebounds. 3 steals. Reliable. Tonight’s MVP.
Kastytis Normantas - 18pts, 3 x 3ptr, 1-5 from the line. 4 steals. The sparkle is back.
Alex Zimnickas - 9pts. A presence in the paint.
Justin Dobbins – 10 pts. Unable to fully ignite tonight.
David Watts - 2pts. Shots wouldn’t fall. A game to forget.
Martynas Versinskas – Nil pts, 0-2 from the line. Frustrated.
Callum Jones – Nil pts. Not many minutes tonight.
Pavolis Tamulynas – Nil pts. Only on court for a couple of minutes.
It will be difficult now for us to progress any further in the Trophy, but never mind as our League campaign begins today.
Could we have had tougher opening night opposition than the mighty Newcastle Eagles?
You might not have thought so, but hold on, they got spanked last Sunday by Mersey, 80-58, so maybe Eagles are not all that and a bag of cheesy chips, as in previous years? We’ll see…
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Post by Deleted on May 7, 2020 17:09:41 GMT
I can confirm that both cheesy chips and northerners are peculiar.
Today's offering from me brings Sheffield whining (shock), Tony Holley breaking my heart and various other crap from the late 90s. |
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Post by ko25 on May 8, 2020 9:25:11 GMT
ko25 - there was certainly more than one fatlad who got punched. The portly gentleman I was referring to is in the attached wearing a Pistons vest and was sledgehammered by Jermaine O'Neal.
I thought you meant one of the players was a fatlad! |
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Post by Solly on May 8, 2020 15:03:57 GMT
Today's repro is another rare contribution from my driver 
Though I consider him a competent deputy I feel he obviously suffers by comparison to someone as adroit as myself. For instance I feel his "pre-individual breakdown" segment carries too much detail.
Notable aspects -
1. This match may well have been our first-ever BBL victory over Eagles (had I been the author of the article I would have included a reference to that point).
2. Rugby League has always been a favourite sport for me so I was not going to turn down the chance of freemans tickets to the Grand Final at Old Trafford. However I must say that, in hindsight, on this particular occasion, I would have preferred to have been at the basko.
First off, RL has mostly never drawn big crowds, such that you can generally sit in an area where you are not bothered by the presence of other spectators (social-distancing has not been as big a stretch for me as for some). But this Grand Final was a virtual sellout (70,000-ish) meaning Mrs S. and I were placed in allocated seating.
And then people started standing up to watch the match, despite the alternative of a comfy seat. Outrageous.
Allied to that, several of the nearby louts carried flagons of beer, increasing their loutish behaviour and flagrant use of foul language and associated foul gesticulations.
To top off what would be my one and only visit to an RL Grand Final, at the half-time interval one of the rabble actually apple-tarted! As the malodourous situation worsened I grabbed Mrs S by the hand and we departed, never to return.
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Worcester 99 Newcastle 96 (after overtime)
A change in reporter this week as Solly in his wisdom decided to jump ship support-wise to go and watch the Rugby League Grand Final at Old Trafford, courtesy of tickets won in a competition. Allegedly it’s the first home game he’s missed since Wolves stepped up to the BBL. Needless to say, he’s regretting that decision now!
What turned out to be an absolute classic started with a Zimickas trey early doors and by the end of the quarter Wolves enjoyed a healthy 11pt lead thanks to some long rang shooting by Dave ‘Tin Tin’ Watts and good work inside the paint from Justin Dobbins.
Midway through the second quarter Wolves had opened up a 15pt lead, partly thanks to continued excellent work from ‘Tin Tin’ and some outstanding team foul shooting (14/15 from the line in the first half). However, Eagles did manage to stage a mini-revival at the end of the quarter pulling the deficit back to just 7pts at half time.
The third quarter was more even, both teams trading baskets, and the quarter ended with Wolves maintaining a seemingly healthy 9pt advantage.
A minute into the final quarter, and Wolves were up 13pts at 79-66. Newcastle called a time-out and then began to up the tempo. Former League MVP Trey Moore in particular had the bit between his teeth, and with less than 2 minutes remaining Newcastle had unbelievably eased in front at 88-89 as Wolves seemed to buckle under the pressure.
It was around this time that the official BBL statcast threw a wobbly and froze, leading to some Newcastle fans following the game online believing they had won by a point!! Needless to say they hadn’t, but it took a cool last gasp shot from Rod to force the game into overtime.
Trey Moore finally fouled out in the extra period, leading to a collective sigh of relief from the Wolves faithful. Wolves had just enough in the tank to keep their noses in front to record a memorable victory over last year’s League Champions.
On to the individual breakdown -
Danny Gilbert - 26pts. 9/10 from line. A quality display.
David Watts – 22pts (inc seven 3s). Dropped more long range bombs than a WW2 Lancaster! Even Guy (Dambusters) Gibson would be impressed!
Justin Dobbins – 21pts . 7/10 from line. 15 rebounds. My MVP – a double-double tonight – a real force to be reckoned with in the paint.
Rod Middleton – 12pts. 2/5 from line. 7 assists. Great leadership and a cool head to hit the shot to send the game into overtime.
Kastytis Normantas – 7pts. Hit a couple of crucial shots when needed.
Martynas Versinskas – 6pts. Quietish offensively, but played his part.
Alex Zimickas – 5pts. Did his bit.
Callum Jones – 0pts. Limited minutes.
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Post by Deleted on May 8, 2020 19:22:31 GMT
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Post by Solly on May 10, 2020 10:29:39 GMT
Below is my look-ahead to the 10/11 season.
1. I ridiculously thought Wolves could somehow approach a top-four position.
2. Anyone know what went on to happen to some of the players mentioned e.g. Taner Adu or Ryan Patton?
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After last week’s tight win against Chester, and most of the other BBL sides now having had a game or two, here are my (very) early thoughts on how everyone could shape up -
Chester Jets – played against us with great determination. Player-to-Watch – classy point guard, Kevin Bell. Placing – Lower to mid-table.
Essex Pirates – no longer all-European, but still look likely to be out-experienced. Player-to-Watch – no obvious standouts. Placing – Basement.
Glasgow Rocks – set up to grind out the Ws again. Player-to-Watch – the fantastically-named import, Brice Fantazia. Placing – Mid.
Guildford Heat – yet to play, but vaunted as hot stuff. Player-to-Watch – another England player on the rise, Tayo Ogedengbe. Placing – Lower to mid.
Leicester Riders – coach Paternostro builds another team of grafters. Player-to-Watch – US point guard, JR Blount. Placing – Mid.
Mersey Tigers – still splashing the cash, and with high expectations to match. Player-to-Watch – GB veteran Andrew Sullivan. Placing – High.
Milton Keynes Lions – the ZZ Top of the BBL, but supposed to be introducing more youth this year. Player-to-Watch – 7ft banger, Travis Nelson. Placing – Lower to mid.
Newcastle Eagles – more reliability and consistency no doubt. Player-to-Watch – Joe Chapman, (took on the mighty Dwayne Wade in the summer!). Placing – High.
Plymouth Raiders – brand new coach, mostly brand new team, likely to take time to gel. Player-to-Watch – England guard, Taner Adu. Placing – Cellar Dwellers.
Sheffield Sharks – big turnover in personnel, but, nevertheless, usually do the basics well. Player-to-Watch – mercurial guard, Ryan Patton. Placing – Mid.
Worthing Thunder – Shaun Durant makes it two ex-Wolves on the South Coast. Overachievers last season. Player-to-Watch – the other former Wolf, Evaldas Zabas. Placing – Down in the dark with Plymouth and Essex.
As for us, I’m looking at top four………..
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Post by Deleted on May 10, 2020 11:24:48 GMT
Taner won the National Trophy with Leopards in 12/13. Now works for BE
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Post by Solly on May 11, 2020 11:05:24 GMT
From that same season, its now a bit of a diversion where I related a visit to Coventry Crusaders.
1. This was possibly Crusaders final season. I had regularly watched them for around 20 years.
2. Coventry was often a stop-off for Midlands players as they descended the playing ladder.
3. Early doors they drew bigger crowds than many current BBL sides.
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What a thriller last Saturday night, climbing several self-imposed mountains to finally edge level with Sheffield, only to fall to a free throw taken after time had expired.
At least we did the business in the first round of the BBL Cup at Worthing, a game I unfortunately could not make, and therefore cannot provide a report from.
Anyway, a game I did manage to make, a couple of weeks back, was over at Coventry Crusaders when they took on Nottingham Hoods in the first round of the EBL Cup, the knockout competition for those sides in the leagues below ours.
You might wonder why I am particularly writing about Coventry. Well, back in my first season writing game reports for the Wolves programme, I used to add in a few lines about any ex-Birmingham Bullets I encountered.
In this game at Coventry, four of the starting five were actually ex-Wolves, a sure sign of our ever-increasing presence in the British game.
At the two guard positions we had the evergreen Michael Gayle, and the effervescent Roy Owen.
At forward we had the gangling Siman Stewart, whilst at centre we saw the ambling Robert Clarke.
I had barely got over this surprise, when I was taken aback further at seeing Rob Clarke, a player I would not normally associate with finesse, deftly slide across the court to slot in the first six points of the game.
Formed in 1992 as the Barclays Bank Flyers, Coventry soon tasted success, winning Division One in 1993, and finishing runners up (to the now defunct Crystal Palace) in the following two seasons.
Those were halcyon days at the Coventry Sports Centre, a venue often packed full with over a thousand fans, a massive achievement for only the second tier of the game.
However, nothing lasts forever and it later would become clear that spectator support had peaked, and over the next decade it indeed gradually dwindled.
Despite occasional talk of moving to a new venue, or even moving up to the BBL, there have unfortunately never been the core resources in place to take those steps.
In the last few seasons there have been one or two blips of hope, none more so than our own 78-93 humbling over there in December 2006, in the National Trophy.
On to the present and, in my view, a decent evening’s entertainment for when Wolves are not taking to the court.
The individual breakdown of the former Wolves pack, in Coventry’s 91-58 victory -
Rob Clarke – early doors he shot, he scored, but tired a little thereafter, almost appearing ill at ease at being a focus of the team – 10pts, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks.
Siman Stewart – worked the boards well, a threat at this level – 13 pts, 10 rebounds, 3 assists.
Roy Owen – enthusiastic – 8pts, 2 steals, 4 assists.
Michael Gayle – livewire, continues to run as fast sideways across the court as towards the basket, put up a lot of shots, missed a lot of shots – 5pts, 1 steal.
Other ex-Wolves who have also played for both clubs in times passed include Rick Solvason, Colin Rhooms, Ben Potts, and there must be others I’ve missed…
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