NEWCASTLE Eagles owner Paul Blake is hoping the club can make up for the disappointment of last season, but thinks erasing bad memories will be an even bigger motivation for Andy Thompson.
Along with Eagles legend Andrew Sullivan, the forward was instrumental to the first big disappointment of Newcastle’s trophyless 2010. They bowed out of the BBL Cup semi-final to a Mersey Tigers side featuring the two Great Britain internationals.
It would be a false dawn for the pair, who then produced a dismal final performance to lose 66-93 to Sheffield Sharks.
Since then Thompson has joined Newcastle and Sullivan has moved to Leicester Riders. The sides meet in the second leg of a BBL Cup semi-final tied at 90-90 after the initial meeting in the east Midlands.
“It’s still a bit of a heartache that we didn’t make the final last year,” admitted Blake. “That was partly down to Andrew Sullivan and Andy Thompson, who were both playing for Mersey Tigers in that game. I don’t want to see that happen again.
“I’m placing my faith in the guys still not being happy about winning anything last season.
“I think Thompson will be particularly keen to put last season behind him because he lost a cup final with the Tigers last year and they were terrible on the day.”
Last season’s Cup semi-final reverse was all the more painful because Newcastle had been in a reasonable position after the first game, taking a seven-point lead to Liverpool. But they were hammered 114-85 on the night by a side who also knocked them out of the Trophy at the last-four stage.
Blake is taking heart from the fact this tie will restart with scores level. “At least we have got the second leg at home,” he reasoned.
“It’s now no longer a two-legged affair, it’s just a one-off game with a clean sheet. We’ve got a bit of a tradition of going up in the first game and finding a way to lose.
“It may not be a bad thing we go into Friday’s game with the scores level, even though we gave up a 20-point lead in Leicester.”
Blake credits GB captain Sullivan – who recently extended his Riders contract until the end of the season – with starting an astonishing period of success on Tyneside.
“It’s always a pleasure to welcome Andrew Sullivan back. He’s on the opposition side and he will want nothing more than to stick one on us, simple as that, and he’s said as much. He’s very passionate about whoever he plays for.
“His contribution to us was massive, winning seven or eight trophies here at least.
“He was just a key part in us starting to become a successful team. He scored the winning basket that won us our first play-off final and it all rolled from there.”
The Cup is the one BBL competition Newcastle have not dominated in recent years. Their last victory was in the 2005-06 season and they have only reached one other final, two years later. It sits uncomfortably alongside four championships, four play-offs and three BBL Trophies since 2004-05.
“I know our guys will want to make the final because it’s traditionally not a competition we do well in,” said the owner.
“We’ve done a good job so far this season even in the close games of finding a way to win.”
With pre-sales indicating a crowd of around 8,000-10,000 for the televised final in Birmingham, there is plenty of incentive for the players on both sides. Tip-off for the game is at 7.30pm.
