Fab’s focussed on job in hand

Oct 16 2007 by Dan Warburton, The Journal

NEWCASTLE play-caller Fabulous Flournoy may be in the middle of possibly his most exciting start to a BBL campaign, but the New Yorker is refusing to compare his roster with the one that scooped a domestic clean sweep two seasons ago.

The Eagles welcome new franchise Everton Tigers to Tyneside this evening after sealing back-to-back wins over the Leicester Riders and Plymouth Raiders at the weekend – victories which will undoubtedly fuel Flournoy’s appetite for BBL silverware.

But the British veteran is determined to shield his current blend of experienced professionals and exciting youngsters from falling beneath the shadow of the all-conquering Eagles outfit that lifted every major domestic trophy 18 months ago.

“I would never compare any of my teams. It’s not fair on this team, and it wouldn’t be fair on the team I had two years ago,” said the Eagles’ player-coach, whose side will be looking for a sixth consecutive victory tonight. “Each team has a different mentality and a different identity. And this season I’ll just be hoping to do what I hope to do every year – win every game we play. That will put us in a good position in this league.”

Should they clinch their fourth win in a week tonight, Fab’s men will be elevated to joint top in the BBL – a position the North-East club are very familiar with, having clinched seven major trophies under Flournoy’s guidance.

Nevertheless, the New Yorker believes they are not firing on all cylinders yet, sending a warning to other BBL contenders there is still yet to come. “At the moment I think that we are operating at level six of what we are capable,” he said. “We need to be a top four team and we can’t get side-tracked.

“We will keep going until we reach something like our best. We have a lot more left in the tank. We are playing better and we are going to go through good spells like this – we just need to make sure everyone finds their form.” Leading the Eagles’ charge for glory is Great Britain star Richard Midgley. The point guard took his collective weekend points haul to 50 with a game-high of 22 against Plymouth, and his reputation as the BBL’s best asset is quickly gathering pace.

“He’s finding his feet offensively,” continued Flournoy. “He can really play. When he first arrived, he was just getting used to the league, but now he is doing great.

“We have come up with some pretty good wins in the last four games and he has played well. But it was a great team effort. We played together and there were so many strong performances. Everyone has contributed.

“Playing a lot of games in the space of a week could have an adverse effect. We have been playing without a break for a while, but after the wins we have had we just need to keep doing the same things we have been doing.

“If I was their (Everton Tiger’s) coach I would be trying to jump on top of us and try and knock us out of our rhythm because eventually fatigue will catch up with us.” In contrast to Flournoy’s good fortune, Henry Mooney’s Everton side are finding life tough in the top-flight. The Merseyside franchise have yet to register a point after losing two out of two against Plymouth and London. But despite injury concerns surrounding Everton’s Calvin Davis, Flournoy is wary of a promising squad boasting the likes of GB star Chris Haslam.

“They have some good guards,” added Flournoy. “I know they have Chris (Haslam), who has spent a lot of time with the GB squad. They have got a decent team and are an unknown factor in this league, so it’s hard to prepare for something like that.”

This season I’ll just be hoping to do what I hope to do every year – to win every game we play