WHILE not the ideal start to the Big V basketball season, the Pakenham Warriors proved their capabilities in spite of calamity in their five-point loss to Coburg.
Starting point guard and gun recruit Jay Ferriere injured his quadriceps at training on Thursday, forcing Jimmy Magrath to be brought back early from a foot injury to compensate.
Next up at the one-spot young Warriors to step up were Craig Drew and Tim Bydder – taking on the ball-handling responsibility in Ferriere’s absence to great success.
Trailing by 11 halfway through the second quarter, the Warriors fought back via captain James Topp (21 points, 10 rebounds), who bore the majority of the scoring responsibilities while Bydder (12 points) and Sean Armstrong (9 points, 6 rebounds) also hit the scoreboard.
Coburg shot away through their long bombs – with 9/29 from three-point territory and when Bill Winder (14 points) fouled out in the fourth quarter, Pakenham couldn’t reel back the margin to take the 77-82 loss.
Battling injury and utilising the full depth of his bench was something Rogers did not predict coming into this week but was pleased with every Warrior’s performance under the added pressures.
“Jay Ferriere going down with a quad injury on Thursday night wasn’t ideal – we brought Jimmy Magrath back in a week earlier from what we would’ve liked ideally,” Rogers said.
“All in all I was proud of the guys – on the road, first game, things weren’t going according to script and we continued to hang in there and give us a legit shot at winning. While it’s not ideal to lose the game, we’re content with where we are at for the minute.”
Topp was the prime Warrior in most categories – also snaring four steals and laying off four assists in a full-court performance that Rogers believes highlights the captain’s star player status.
“Just how the game panned out – he’s such a versatile player – he’s able to do a lot of things and that’s why he features heavily in the stats – week in, week out that’s what he was capable of,” Rogers said.
“He was drawing two defenders and getting some other guys some easy looks and kept the scoreboard ticking over and defensively he gets his steals from being strong and athletic.
“Thought his fourth quarter was the best we’ve seen of him in a Pakenham uniform – it won’t be a one-off thing, him posting those sorts of numbers.
“While his numbers could belie a quiet game, Rogers made it clear Jay Richardson’s (4 points, 6 rebounds) defensive impact, negating Giants’ star Jordan Harding (10 points, 12 rebounds), was incredibly valuable and something Richardson will continue to take on throughout the season.
“Jay took the best offensive big on other teams – he took Jordan Harding who had 10 and 12 – and is always up for that challenge,” Rogers said.
The challenge this week is to knock off Mornington, for the Warriors’ first 2013 home game at Cardinia Life on Sunday at 2pm.
