Only the Warriors Premier Men played this past Wednesday and faced off against Coburg featuring players from their BIG V Division 2 squad in a game that went down to the wire with Bill Winder hitting the game winner with 8 seconds remaining (61-59).

Opening up with Craig Drew as the only primary point guard and with James Topp suiting up alongside the regular crew, the team were executing strongly at the offensive end but couldn't lock down at the other end to build a healthy lead.

In the second stanza the scoring dried up and with some deadly long range shooting from John Pilkington the Giants took a lead into the main break.

The third quarter saw some unique rotations tried and to great effect as Craig Drew was partnered with four bigs which breathed life into the Warriors and kick started a 14 point turnaround as the side took a six point lead into the final term.

In the last the Giants sat exclusively in a zone and our guys were able to remain composed with some crisp ball movement and patience still seeing the scoreboard consistently tick over. Just when the Warriors thought they had the game in hand with a four point lead and only one minute remaining Brian O'Meara capitalised on a three point play and after trading baskets Bill Winder had the last laugh with his signature baseline jumper sealing the deal (61-59). 

Coach's Comment:
The result was just reward for the time and dedication the guys have put in pre Christmas and even more encouraging is that they are already planning to do fitness work together which speaks volumes for how valuable the last eight weeks together have been.

The big thing we have focussed on to date is implementing the new game style and getting familiarity within the squad so that we can win games with everyone contributing and playing their role.

A lot of it comes back to discipline, hard work, and working together. It's about being a team and the collective buy in has been great.