[01 NOV 09] CRUSADER NEWS

 Bristol Match Reaction

By Adam Manning 

Coventry Crusaders boss Scott Neely wants to see more composure from his side after the 73-86 home loss to Bristol, while Flyers head coach Andreas Kapoulas revealed he was thankful to play Coventry so early on in the season.

Neely believes his side have taken a “step sideways” as opposed to backwards as his side search of that first win.

He said after the game: “I think we’ve been improving every week and in aspects of this match we improved and we showed that when we get down we can come back, and come back quickly, but we also showed that we still have a lot to learn as far as our execution and making good decisions at the times that we need to”.

“There’s times when we were playing good defence and we get the steel that we need and then we go back and turn the ball over, and then they come back and get an easy score. So instead of us scoring down and getting two points, they go down and get two points. It’s those types of things and we had a couple of those in the match. There’s times when we’re trying to grab the match. Individuals are, if we haven’t had some scores and it’s “well maybe now I should step up and try and grab it” instead of executing some of the play that we’re calling and recognition. So to me it’s not a step backwards, it’s just kind of a step sideways.

“I think seeing consistency from Ryann Samuel going to the offensive glass every time, he’s always going in there fighting and those are great things. I still see things from Stephen Danso that he’s bringing consistently. For a lot of guys I can think of different things that people are bringing to the team, but it’s just putting it all together for solid minutes where what we’re having is we’re paying well, and then when we have a few trips when we’re not scoring, and that’s when we have that let down and everybody’s thinking who’s going to do it instead of let’s just stick with the mentality of coming together and keep communicating well and keep moving forward”.

Coventry’s defence had the pleasure of containing 6’8 American forward Doug McLaughlin-Williams, who asserted his physique to enhance opportunities for his clinical touch to finish the game’s top scorer with 27.

“Doug’s a good player” agreed Neely.  “He was one of the top scorers and rebounders last year with Sheffield so he’s well experienced. He’s very confident and he produces, so from our standpoint we did a better job on him last week, he was also missing some but we were keying in on him a little bit better. Tonight he got it going and he’s a tough player and once he does hit a couple of shots and he’s really feeling good and that confidence just keeps flowing. So I thought we could have done a better job denying him more, so just trying to take the ball out of his hands.

Neely again played down the winless start to the season for Crusaders, and believes the team’s performances should be paid more attention as the weeks pass by.

“Personally I think there’s more made about wins, losses, trophy stuff and we all see it as preparation”.

“I was talking to the guys before the match about what success to me is, and I know I’ve communicated before it’s really that each individual is giving everything they have physically, mentally, emotionally out there onto the court. So that they can look themselves in the mirror afterwards and say I gave everything. Now if we’re doing that as a team and also staying on the same page then I think the wins will come, so instead of approaching it just “did you get the win” and playing rubbish basketball, then to me that’s not building. If we’re truly progressing for mid February to the end of the season play offs, then you’ve got to look at it as a full picture”.

Dan Taylor was one absentee on the night, but nevertheless giving his support from the sidelines, due to a shoulder injury which isn’t considered too serious.

“He banged his shoulder on Thursday in training, so he’s got a deep shoulder bruise. I think he’ll be back next week but it’s going to take some time to work it out. He’s going to see one of the physio but hopefully we’ll have him back because he’s been playing well” said Neely.

Meanwhile , Bristol head coach Andreas Kapoulas was happy to take two points away from the Sports Centre and keep the winning mentality as he looks to cement his fairly new side in the top four of the league.

Bristol are certainly flying high having now recorded five wins out of their first six wins so far this season. Flyers came into the game off the back of a 81-67 home National Trophy victory over Taunton Tigers to finish top of Pool Three.

The Greek coach also revealed that it’s only a matter of time before Crusaders turn their home court into a fortress as the side strives for Neely’s ethos of good basketball and winning games.

“Well obviously it was our first league game of the season, and getting an away victory in Coventry is really important for us. They’re a well coached team and they’ve performed really well over the National Trophy so to come and get a valuable win and a good difference as well is really important for our team really”.

“It’s a young team that Scott has and they’re still learning how to play, but eventually you will see the improvement. We’re happy to have them so early in the season because I think they will get better and better and teams will struggle here”.

Kapoulas also felt that his side held the advantage going into the game due to their previous meetings already this season, most notably their game down at Bristol last week.

“The game in Bristol last week was difficult for them because they played really well for the first 38 minutes and then we turned the game around and won that and so we knew we had the psychological edge in a way. We tried to put on a lot of pressure to start with and didn’t pay off early in the game necessarily but as the game went on you could tell they were becoming more tired and we started executing better towards the end”.

Flyers’ McLaughlin-Williams and young captain Greg Streete were at the heart of many of Bristol’s moves in the game, sparking innovation with fast cross court passes and direct offensive play.

“From our point of view Doug McLaughlin Williams had a really good game, and he’s fitting really well into the team. I don’t want to really say one individual but I think it was a great team effort in terms of defence. I think Doug was more intense on the offensive side of things but I think it was a great team effort really so I cannot necessarily say one person”.

“It’s Greg Streete’s first year as the team captain and he’s taken a lot of responsibility and he’s one of our younger players at the same time. He’s only 21 but he’s a guy that’s come through the system and he’s been with the set up from a really young age, so it’s really great to see him growing first of all and he’s kind of a second coach if you want to call him that”. 

With news that Kapoulas had decided to release around half of his squad at last season’s end would have come as a shock to many when taking into account the club’s top five league finishes since their promotion in 2007/8, yet the side shows no signs of slipping up despite big changes.

“It was kind of a renewal. Our intention is always to go with home grown talent and giving a chance to younger players, but I felt the team that I had had its full circle.  Last season we only had a six or seven man rotation, so I felt that we needed a bit of change. We’ve brought a bit of experience in terms of the Cardiff players that were picked up. Our Americans are probably two of the best that we’ve ever had, and I just wanted to go with a different outfit and felt it was time for a change”.

Crusaders now face consecutive away league games, beginning away to Derby Trailblazers on Saturday 7^th November at 7:30pm and then against Taunton Tigers the following Saturday at 5.00pm. The next home match is on Saturday 21^st November against league and undisputed National Trophy champions Reading Rockets, tip off the usual time of 7:30pm.

                               

  Main Menu | News | Bristol Match Reaction   01 NOV 2009