Game Review by James Woite 

The Forestville Central ABL men's team may have lost a number of key players over the break, but with Riley Luettgerodt in town, the Eagles remain as dangerous as ever. Luettgerodt scored 34 points and grabbed 8 rebounds as Forestville recovered from a slow start to score a convincing 113-84 victory over South Adelaide at Wayville, establishing themselves in second position on the Central ABL ladder.

Forestville's win may have been a blowout on the scoreboard, however, the first two minutes showed signs of anything but. The Panthers, led by high-scoring guard Sammy Gazzo (32 points), quickly jumped out to a 10-0 lead with the Eagles looking flat after two weeks' break. Rather than call a time-out, Forestville Coach Andy Simons allowed his team to play through the adversity, with Brad Sullivan's three-pointer igniting a 14-0 run with the Eagles gaining a lead they would never relinquish. Sullivan had two of his four three-pointers during this stretch, finishing with a solid 16 points. By quarter-time, the Eagles had jumped out to a 9 point lead; an advantage which little reflected South's intensity and effort across all fronts.

Forestville dominated the second quarter behind the brilliance of Luettgerodt, with no South defender coming close to stopping him. The quarter also saw Eagles forward Doug MacDonald Taylor return to the line-up after a four game absence. By half-time, Forestville had jumped out to a 59-34 lead, with South's aggressive play getting them into foul trouble.

The Eagles continued to dominate the second half, much to the frustration of South Coach Jason Baylis, who was ejected with 7:53 remaining. With Forestville's lead in the mid-40s, the likes of Jordan Robertson and Charles Newland were given the opportunity to play some invaluable minutes. South made some inroads in the final few minutes, but Forestville nonetheless showed why they are once again premiership contenders, with another emphatic win.

With six wins from eight games, the Eagles face vicious rivals Norwood in their next encounter, looking to extract revenge on a team which has knocked them out of the last two final series. Last year in the preliminary final, the Eagles seemed destined for an upset victory after Brendan Campbell iced two free throws to give Forestville a three point lead with just seconds remaining. However, Flames guard Andrew Webber was fouled on a three-pointer and made all three free throws, sending the game into overtime, where Norwood got over the line, 96-92. In the 2008 grand final, Webber got off a half-court shot with 1.4 seconds remaining which banked in off the backboard, giving Norwood a one-point win. Obviously the Eagles have had some hard luck stories in recent times against Norwood, but this time they have scoring sensation Riley Luettgerodt in the lineup. This promises to be another gruelling and entertaining encounter which could once again come down to the final possession.