Press Release 5

Burton too much for Junior Men

Junior Men’s Midland Conference

Northants “Thunder”55 -71Mansfield “Giants”

“Giants” captain Ian Burton netted 36 points for his team as they beat the Northants Junior Men in this Regional Conference game. Of more significance was the fact that 23 of those points same in the first quarter which the visitors took 25-19 despite the fact that “Thunder” held a distinct height advantage. Philip Humphreys in particular was causing problems for Mansfield’s zone defence but the passing of the county boys was poor resulting in a number of turn-overs.

In the second quarter Mansfield put “Thunder” pressure with a zone press defence and the Northants guards were guilty of over dribbling again resulting in numerous turn-overs and easy scores for the opposition. By the end of the second period Mansfield had jumped out to a 47-29 lead.

At the start of the third period the two teams exchanged baskets then “Thunder” went on a 12 -2 run which got them back into the game as Dan McNab provided his team with a much needed perimeter threat. “Thunder” ended the period well with seven point sprint and at 61-53 they had every chance of winning the game.

This hope soon disappeared as “Giants” tightened their defence. Once again “Thunder” was guilty of bad decision making and appalling passing. Mansfield capitalised on this weakness and outscored “Thunder” 10-2 in the final quarter holding the home team scoreless for an embarrassing six minutes, to run out 71-55 winners.

For “Thunder” the hard working Humphreys scored 23 points, Nick Kitchen netted 10 but no other “Thunder” player was able to get into double figures.

“Rob’s men go down again”

Cadet Men’s Premier Division North

Sheffield “Sharks”80 – 61 Northants “Thunder”

After their mauling at the hands of Manchester the week before the Northants Cadet Men faced another stern challenge when they travelled to Sheffield “Sharks” last weekend. The team ended the game on the wrong end of an 80-61 score line but Coach Rob Eddon remained very positive despite the defeat. Eddon felt that his team had learnt a great deal from the Manchester contest and are in a position to make significant steps forward.

The game was a close run affair during the first two periods with “Sharks” just holding the edge at 35-33 at half time. Throughout the first two quarters “Thunder” had looked impressive on the break thanks to the defensive rebounding of Callum Woodhouse and Joseph Da Graca but only Daniel Obasa was able to contain the penetration from the Sheffield gueards.

At the start of the third period Sheffield was able to raise the intensity of their defence and this forced a number of “Thunder” turn-overs. “Sharks” went on a 9-zero charge and by the end of the period had opened up a 13 points lead. The county boys looked more impressive on offence during the final quarter with Jonny Allemby and Ben Sampson rebounding well but they were still having problems containing the Sheffield guards and the home side were able to extend their lead to 19 points by end of the game.

Merson Paul top scored for “Thunder” with 18 points while James Rutter enjoyed his best game of the season so far.

“Excellent start for Under 15 Boys"

Under 15 Boys Midlands Conference

Northants “Thunder”113 – 24Derbyshire “Arrows”

The Northants Under 15 Boys got their season underway with a convincing win over an inexperienced but enthusiastic Derbyshire “Arrows” team. Coach Dewsnap’s team turned in a ruthless display of aggressive team defence which was too much for the “Arrows” outfit. Such was the dominance of the county boys that their opponents failed to get to double figures in all four quarters and in fact failed to score at all in the third period.

In the 80 plus points mauling Garnet Walters was particularly impressive with 24 points six rebounds and 4 blocked shots. No less than five other “Thunder” players, Cameron Emerson, Jordan Marshal, Oliver Matthews, Alsitair McClare, and Matt Yates also scored in double figures.

There was disappointment for both teams with the news that Derby “Trailblazers” the third team in scheduled for this triangular tournament were unable to raise a team.

Cadette Women open with a win

Under 16 Girls Midland Conference

Exeter “Eagles”50 – 57 Northants “Lightning”

By some geographical freak Exeter have been placed in the Midland Conference so the Northants girls faced a long road trip for their first game of the season. The nightmare journey back was made a lot easier to bear thanks to a seven points win over the “Eagles”. In fact the win might have been by a much greater margin but “Lightning” lost two key players with five fouls early in the final quarter giving “Eagles” just the boost they need to push for a win. In that final period “Lightning” was outscored 20-12 but was able to hang on for a deserved victory.

“Lightning” travelled to the West Country with no less than eight players missing for various reasons. After the long journey the team were a little flat at the start of the game and “Eagles” jumped out to an 11-4 lead. Coach Brian Johnson was able to steady the ship with a time out and by the end of the first quarter the lead had been cut to 15 -11.

The second period was completely dominated by the Northants girls as they prevented their opponents from scoring a single field goal as they took the quarter 19-3 to take a 31-18 half time lead. That lead was extended to 15 by the end of the third period at 45-30 but then came the loss of Kayla Maynard and Lucy Thomas with five fouls but the rest of the team dug to clinch the win.

For “Lightning” Lana Doran scored a massive 27 points well supported by Holly Brown with 12 while Faye Clarke was an impressive ball handler.