Any bout between Lions and Warriors conjures up images of gladiatorial battles and the men’s and women’s matchups between Centrals and Woodville both have the potential to produce spectacles worthy of such imagery.

While they cannot yet be classed as “traditional rivals”, movement between the two clubs’ men’s programs creates some added interest. Centrals coach Scott Whitmore played with the Warriors up until a grand final appearance in 2004, and assistant coach Jarred Graves was also on this team. Woodville now starts Robert Cameron in the backcourt, who spent the last three years with Centrals, and former Lion Mark Egel also now sports a Warrior jersey.

But of more interest in this game is the involvement of someone who has played for neither club. Former SA junior representative Daniel Cioffi will suit for the Lions and add scoring and defence to Centrals’ backcourt.

6’3” Cioffi played for West Adelaide in the Central ABL from 1998-2004 before heading to Italy to play professionally. In his last season in the CABL he scored 37 against Centrals, and the Lions would be happier to now be playing with him than against him.

For Woodville, all eyes will be on athletic power forward Josh Knight. Knight averages 23.3 points (fourth in the league), 14.3 rebounds (second) and 1.8 blocks (second) per game. The potential matchup between Knight and Oliver Prince, fresh from 35 and 40 point games against North and Southern respectively, should provide some exciting highlights.

Teams in the women’s game will be no less desperate with both teams in the hunt for a win. Centrals have had a tough run in the last couple of months, but on the positive side, coach Winston Folland has been able to provide good minutes to many players, with 11 players averaging over 10 minutes court time each game. 17 year old Charlotte Taylor, who has been playing in this league since 2006, leads the team in scoring while 16 year old Tahnee Mansfield, who started her junior career at Centrals before switching to North Adelaide, is another junior showing promise for the future.

Although they have not been winning, Woodville’s women have put forward some otherwise impressive results this season. Getting within 8 points of West and 9 of Sturt in successive games, the Warriors mid-season form hinted at potential future upsets and while these have yet to eventuate, it would not surprise anyone if they did.

15 year old Ingrid Richards joined the team after the completion of her commitments at the Under 18 National Championships and exploded with a 21 point performance in her second game. Fellow state representative Katherine Perkas is a starter at Central ABL level and has already produced 18 and 19 point efforts against Forestville and Eastern.

With both games featuring teams in adjacent positions on the ladder, the discerning basketball fan should get out to Starplex to see some of the league’s most exciting players, as well as possibly a window to the future.