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Rockets take on Newcastle Eagles in the BBL Trophy on Wednesday at Rivermead at 7.30. Probably the biggest game in Rockets history - a David and Goliath contest. Newcastle are a hugely successful team and amongst other honours have won the Trophy for the last two years. This is a game not to be missed!
Historic game as Rockets take on BBL Champions
Reading Rockets will finally play arguably one of their toughest games in their history as they take on the British Basketball League Champions, the Newcastle Eagles in the BBL Trophy first round. The game was due to be played last month, however the Eagles were unable to travel down to the south because of the adverse weather. This is the second time in 12 years that the EBL Division 1 club have been invited to participate in such a prestigious competition, the first being in the 2006-2007 season where they were knocked out in the pool stages. The Eagles are current holders of the BBL Trophy having beaten the Guildford Heat last time out by 83 points to 71. They have also appeared in the last five consecutive finals and is therefore a competition the Tyne and Wear outfit will be looking to win once again.
This is the first time in either teams history that the two clubs have met in any competition and Rockets Chairman Gary Johnson is hoping that this showpiece game will not only bring the Rockets fans out in force, but will also be a great advertisement for basketball and indeed Reading itself. He said, When we were invited to take part in one of the top competitions in the country, it was difficult to turn down the opportunity. To draw Newcastle, who are arguably the best team in the country, is fantastic, and I sincerely hope that all our fans will enjoy what should prove to be a fantastic game and high quality basketball on show.’
Rockets will go into the game having played National Cup Finalists Bristol Academy Flyers and Manchester Magic in a double-header weekend as they continue with their gruelling schedule which is seeing them play 20 competitive games in the space of just 10 weeks but Rockets new Head Coach Matt Johnson believes his team have nothing to lose when they face the BBL Champions. He said, 'We are clearly underdogs going into this game and realistically we are not expected to win so we can go out there and play without any pressure which I believe will see us perform to the best of our ability so far this season. The pressure is definitely on Newcastle to come through what is a tricky first round draw so we will be very much looking forward to that match-up on Wednesday.'
The Newcastle Eagles travel down to the Rivermead currently lying 2nd in the BBL Championship, a competition they also won last year along with the BBL Trophy. The Eagles possess a wealth of talent and Rockets Team Analyst Ben Fisher knows the Eagles will be a tough team to shoot down. He said, ‘Newcastle has a great team, with some stand-out players, none other than Player/Coach Fabulous Flournoy who is a veteran of the game and a very successful player and coach. The likes of Darius Defoe, Lynard Stewart and Andrew Bridge who have all played internationally, will be one of the toughest match-ups that a Rockets team has ever faced – having said that, we can’t wait for the challenge!’
The game tips-off at 7.30pm on Wednesday at Rivermead – don’t miss out on the action!
