[23 NOV 09] CRUSADER NEWS

 Rockets Post Match Reaction

By James Bourne 

COVENTRY CRUSADERS head coach Scott Neely had mixed feelings after the 54-78 defeat to current League champions Reading Rockets.

Neely was disappointed by the first half performance, but conceded that the Rockets’ height advantage made it difficult for the Crusaders.

Neely said: “They’re a big team, they were more aggressive than we were, especially in the first half, so I challenged our guys to step it up and be more physical.

“But it’s tough when your opponent’s five-six inches taller than you, they’re going to be climbing over your back, so we’ve got to meet them early outside the three-second area to block them out.

However, Neely was pleased by the debut of new recruit Ben Timms. The 17-year-old centre came on for his first appearance in the second quarter.

“Ben coming in and getting 12 minutes was good. We want to see young guys coming in, but unfortunately due to the position he was in, the game was pretty much decided by that point,” said Neely.

“He came in and showed that he wasn’t out of place and was working hard, so that’s fantastic from a youth development standpoint.”

Neely also stressed the importance of consistency, and believed that the team can turn the corner if they’re more consistent throughout the 40 minutes.

Neely said: “It’s not just from a scoring standpoint, but from concentration, and getting back on track when things aren’t going well.

“We’ve shown spurts of being tough and taking it to these teams, but we need to bring that consistency out. Sometimes that comes with experience.

“I’m seeing areas of improvement, but it’s not consistent enough.”

Rockets coach Sasa Punosevac was pleased with picking up his first League win of the season, but iterated that his team was still a work in progress.

Punosevac said after the game: “I think our scouting was perfect for the game, we prepared very well.

“This game was bad timing for us, because we don’t have a full team yet. We had a few injured players, and we played two games last weekend, so we were a little bit tired.”

However, the Rockets coach had praise for the Crusaders captain, Jon Olinger, and revealed that the scouts had targeted him specifically before the match, saying “They are a small team, and we knew that. We focused on Olinger. I think we stopped him very well, and that he can play better in the future.”

                               

  Main Menu | News | Rockets Post Match Reaction   23 NOV 2009