Fab Flournoy warns of Sharks on the attack
Jan 1 2011 by Mark Douglas, The Journal
FAB Flournoy has warned his Newcastle Eagles to be wary of the big-scoring Sheffield Sharks as they look to get 2011 off to a flier.
The Eagles have played only twice since November but begin a packed January programme with a tricky trip to South Yorkshire tomorrow (4pm tip-off).
Tucked in the chasing pack behind league leaders the Mersey Tigers, Atiba Lyons’ side are capable of pulling off some fine results but have struggled for consistency – much like the Eagles. It is their ability to rack up big scores that alarms Flournoy the most, though.
“The Sharks are like us in many ways. They are a Jekyll and Hyde basketball team at the moment,” the Eagles player-coach said.
“They have talent in their ranks and players who are capable of big scores but it is that consistency that they are yet to find, which is like us in quite a big way.
“They have been up and down all season really and I know that their last game before Christmas was a loss against Guildford which they’ll have been thinking about all over these free weeks. That means they’ll be motivated and desperate to beat us.
“And we have to respect the players that they’ve got – Olu Babalola is a guy we know all about and he’s not alone on that roster. We know that they are going to put points on the board but it’s going to be about how we play defence.
“We need to try and establish our defence nice and early otherwise they are going to post a very big score. We have played them three times already this season and every time one of their guys has been close to or tipped over the 40-point mark. That is what we’re up against.”
The Eagles need to put wins on the board quickly if they are to challenge for their fourth straight BBL title and Flournoy will be looking for the traditional strong start to the New Year from his team.
“This is the time of year when we have generally emerged as one of the strong teams and I want that to happen again this year,” he said.
“The time for excuses has passed for this team. We have talked about not having players on the practice court and about missing players but that is no longer an issue for me.
“Everyone is back at the moment and, even if we pick up more injuries, we have been short on players through the season so far so we should be used to it.
“We have to work to put ourselves in good shape for 2011.”
