The visit of Erkenwald on Sunday saw the opening of the Essex League. It was the first game of the newly promoted Hawks and proved to be a real test. The teams had met previously the year before in the Essex Cup where after Erkenwald opened strong and took a 30 point lead before the Hawks managed to battle back bringing the game back to within 10. There was to be no similar come back this time round however.
Hawks struggled early on matching the intensity and ball movement of the well organised and athletic Erkenwald side. Erks opened up an early 6 point lead from the get go. Scoring became an issue for Harlow in the early quarter with players missing open shots they would normally connect on. Norkelinaus opened the scoring for the Hawks and scores from Hawkins, Cohen and White see the first quarter close 12-25.
The 2nd and 3rd quarter were where the game blew open, Hawks combined for a total of 11 points throughout the two quarters. Erkenwald ramped up their intensity within these quarters capitalising on fast break scores due to their athleticism. Whilst they continued to win the battle on the boards. The first half finished 18-47. During this time the Hawks also struggled to bring the ball up the court as pressure from the Erks guards lead to plenty of turnovers for the Hawks. After 30 minutes of play the score stood at 23-78
The final quarter saw more of an even battle. The Hawks dug in to try and match the intensity and stop the Erks extending their lead. Scores from White, Allan, Haddow Norkelinaus and Niaz saw the Hawks finish off the quarter with a total of 17 points. Overall though the Hawks were out powered from the get go and the score finished 40-96.
Written By: Tom White
