Before their first away game of the season, the Hawks were eyeing up their best chance of a competitive game thus far. Their opponents are also currently in the process of undergoing an apparent stage of rebuilding with several younger players joining the squad this summer, which boosted team moral significantly. So it was slightly disappointing when the Hawks got off to a shaky start, especially defensively, going 9-0 down at the very beginning of the game.
Unfortunately this trend continued and despite a serious defensive effort from players like Josh Haddow (with several blocks) and the team’s leading scorers at the half way stage, Jack Aylott (the eventual Hawks top scorer of the game) and Cameron McIntosh. The Hawks now had a mountain to climb with the score being 47-17, a demoralising 30 point deficit.
However, the under 18’s team showed character and motivation to put up an inspired performance in the second half. Several fast break points from Jack Aylott and jump shots from the team captain, Mubbasher Niaz, made for a fairly even third quarter with the home team only outscoring their visitors by 3 points. This theme of a hard fought and desperately close game continued early in the last quarter of the game with the mystifyingly quick Karim Tadros earning himself several mentions on the score sheet. The incredible mentality the Hawks displayed allowed them to lose the second half by a mere 13 points- ending with a final score of 85-42. This trait of refusing to give in will greatly benefit the team in future close games and this match has kept the sequence of every game being closer than its predecessor- showing the huge potential for further improvement.
Written by: Jakub Fridrich
