Injury problems threaten Flournoy’s plans

Sep 28 2007 The Journal

FABULOUS Flournoy could be without explosive new boys Charles Smith and Richard Midgley as his remodelled Eagles outfit look to kick-start their season tonight.

The double-injury blow comes only seven days after the crushing loss to fellow BBL heavyweights Guildford Heat.

Flournoy will wait to see if his GB International-star Midgley comes through a late training session before deciding on his availability for the Eagles’ clash with BBL debutants London Capital.

The New Yorker said: “Richard is having treatment and he’s had a medical, but I’ll have to wait to see how he does in training to see if he’s ready for the basketball game.

“He’s heading to London this weekend for treatment, but only because it’s a convenient gap in the fixtures and he can get a bit of physio.”

Meanwhile, it is unsure whether Eagles’ favourite Charles Smith will be fit and ready for tonight’s contest after he twisted his back in training earlier this week.

Playcaller Flournoy added: “Charles has messed up his back a little when he landed in training, so we’re going to be a little cautious.

“But before the game I’ll say the same things I say every week. The game plan is going to be the same. If we go out and play the same way we played last week, we will win the basketball game.”

Midgley had a torrid time in his debut clash with Guildford last week – the Newcastle newcomer shot only two points in more than 15 minutes.

And Flournoy said: “I had him in the game last week so that he could experience the BBL, and he needs time. He spent the summer with the GB squad and that has hampered his start to the season – but that’s only because he wasn’t here at the beginning.

“We have to look at the bigger picture – he played for the international squad and I have no problems with that.”

Meanwhile, Flournoy will make no roster changes when welcoming an unknown London Capitals outfit travelling to Tyneside having also lost their opening BBL Championship game.

Flournoy maintained: “There will be no changes tomorrow. I didn’t think that we played too bad last week. We should have won the game but we let them back in and then we ran out of time before we could turn it around. We had a poor shooting night. They didn’t do anything to beat us – we beat ourselves.”

DAN WARBURTON