Midgley guns for the Eagles

Jan 15 2008 by Dan Warburton, The Journal

NEWCASTLE Eagles welcome back former star Richard Midgley and his Everton Tigers this evening just 48 hours after their BBL Cup final heartache against Milton Keynes.

Following a contest in which the Eagles consistently failed to drain points from beyond the arc, they may well have regretted losing the service of three-point specialist Midgley.

The guard’s finest trait proved to be the shortcoming of Flournoy and his roster on Sunday evening against the Lions. The Great Britain star could have been the difference between victory and their second showpiece final loss to ambitious underdogs in less than 12 months.

But Eagles skipper Andrew Bridge is determined to bounce back. The long-serving Tynesider is well aware of the threat posed by defector Midgley – but is adamant the clash is just in time to soothe the cup final heartache.

He said: “Richard Midgley is a good three-point shooter and that’s something we have to address over the next 24 hours.

“We have to make sure he doesn’t hurt us in that way. Everton have to integrate Richard into their system but by the end of the season, once they’ve done that, they’ll be in the play-offs and just another dangerous team we could have to face. It’s probably a good thing that we have Everton so soon.

“It didn’t feel like it straight after the final but it’s got to be a good thing that we can get back out there as soon as possible.”

And while any hopes of a repeat of 2006’s clean sweep campaign dissolved when the final buzzer sounded on Sunday, Bridge is adamant the season is far from over.

“People will probably be writing us off after the cup final defeat just like they did when we lost the Trophy last season.

“They said that was the end of Newcastle as we know it but it wasn’t the case then and it won’t be the case now.

“We’ve just got to get back to basics and get focused and make sure we do the right things for the rest of the season.” Bridge’s insatiable penchant for success has been well satisfied with the Eagles – he has clinched six trophies during his time on Tyneside.

But the 6ft 3in guard denies that his teammates crumbled under the pressure of expectation to gift the trophy to the Lions on Sunday. “It’s not a burden coming into every final as favourite,” added Bridge. “The fans and the press may think we’ve earned the right to win every big game but we don’t think like that. We lost the cup final because we couldn’t stop Milton Keynes shooting threes. I’m not going to sit here and single people out for missing their shots from the line. I missed one and if I’d hit it we would have been level down the stretch. Then it’s a totally different game.

“We just don’t concede 13 three-pointers in a game. But they hit their first couple, the confidence was high and the rest they just kept sinking. It became easy for them.

“It happened to us against Worcester and it happened again against Milton Keynes. It’s something we need to address or it’s going to become a serious problem for the rest of the season.”