BBL Championship: Eagles 85 Heat 64
The Newcastle Eagles began their BBL Championship campaign with Guildford Heat making the long journey North on Friday evening. With the wound of last year’s terrible start yet to heal, the Sport Central crowd were itching for a more comfortable start this time round.
I can think of a few words to describe the game but comfortable wasn’t one of them. Ugly yes. Fractious for sure. Undisciplined maybe but comfortable definitely not. The game was littered with turnovers. Guildford managed 30, gifting the Newcastle club 17 points. The Eagles were hardly guilt free, repaying the compliment on 23 occasions.
A chicken and egg scenario of inept refereeing and at times inexcusable indiscipline from both sides descended into near farce at times with 5 technical fouls called, star men fouling out, injuries and Fab Flournoy squaring up to Guildford’s best player on the night Mike Martin shortly before the Guildford captain fouled out much to the glee of the goading home support.
All of this drama almost makes us forget the scintillating basketball that the home side treated us to in the first period. Inspired by the ever improving Paul Gause, the Eagles romped away to 25-12 lead. A margin that, despite the lack of focus from both teams, continued to grow and ensured the outcome was never in doubt.
Mike Martin led the Heat with 14 points and he looked the only player on the visiting side capable of competing with the Eagles on the night. Joel Madourie played a much bigger role for the Eagles with ten minutes of gametime before a collision with team mate and coach Flournoy caused him to retire from the game. Post-game reports indicate the injury may not be as bad as it first looked. Fingers crossed as he will be vital to the Eagles with tough fixtures coming thick and fast. Andrew Bridge also suffered a second half injury with the Eagles captain leaving the game bleeding from a facial cut.
Despite the negatives, turnovers aside, the Eagles were defensively solid yet again, with big men Darius Defoe and Andrew Thomson restricting the visitors to a paltry 64 points. A double double again for Defoe with 13 points and 17 rebounds and a game leading 22 points for Thomson added to 7 rebounds make impressive reading. Against a better team the story may have been so different and that is exactly what awaits the Eagles.
With four games which they were never in any danger of losing now under their belt, the Eagles must travel to fellow contenders the Sheffield Sharks on Friday. It will be an early season battle of the pretenders to Mersey Tigers’ throne, with Sheffield and Newcastle earmarked by Fab Flournoy before the game as two of the three sides that could lift the title, Plymouth Raiders being the third.
The game needs little to spice it up as all the ingredients already are in the mix but the early week rumours of ex-Eagle and Mersey Tiger Drew Sullivan joining the Sheffield club could well have tipped the tie in the Sharks favour. Much to my relief and I imagine a few others too, GB captain Sullivan has landed in Leicester and will be suiting up for the Riders for the time being at least after signing a week by week contract. That’ll certainly take the Eagles Riders games up a step or two on the excitement ladder.
Sheffield Sharks make the return journey to Newcastle on October 28th for the next game at Sport Central and we’ll know by then exactly where both clubs are at.
