Rivalry reignited as Warriors take on Saints

As the Country Basketball League season heads into its midpoint, the Wangaratta Warriors are still chasing that elusive first win, and some inside knowledge of their next opponent may hold the key. In round five of the nine-round season, the Warriors are slated to take on old enemies Myrtleford Saints at the Myrtleford Indoor Stadium from 1pm this Sunday. It’s the first time in three years Wangaratta and Myrtleford have met on the court in CBL basketball, and as with any Wang-Myrt sporting encounter, there’s a lot of passion in it. Despite the season nominally heading into the back end of competition, the Warriors are severely underdone as a team, having only played two matches so far. This means a marathon through the back end of the season with three of the next five rounds featuring double headers. It will be a true test of team cohesion and fitness heading into a potential finals series. Coach Adam Maher said the team was working on adding some polish to their game. “We’ve got some stuff to work on now, finishing at the rim is a big one, mid-range two-pointers we’ve got to get better at, three pointers we’ve got to be aware of what we can and can’t do.” The Saints are shaping up as a legitimate title contender, sitting second on the ladder with a 4-1 record. They have the capability to pile on the scoreboard pressure, with coach Marcus La Spina and Lachlan Russell sitting third and fourth in the league for total points scored. However, Maher has the inside track on a number of key Saints. “Ironically, the guys that they’ve got up there who are doing well are actually Wangaratta boys, which is good for us because we know how they play, we know what they can do,” he said. “I’m very aware of what Marcus can do, he’d been at Wangaratta for a long time, played all of his juniors with us, and I’ve been around him when Sam [Maher] was at Bandits. “I think we should be able to shut him down – if you let him go, he’ll certainly go rampant. “Lachy Russell is the other one, I think he’s playing some great basketball at the moment, he’s obviously stepped up and worked out where he is, but again he’s not an unstoppable player. “Coming off what we’ve got, we’ve got a very good chance of coming away with the win this weekend, and we’ll be another game deep into moulding the side. “We’re certainly excited to get on the court.” The Warriors take on the Saints from 1pm this Sunday at the Myrtleford Indoor Sports Stadium.

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