second half was a bust, with our team managing to score only 2 points. This led to the final score of 14–42. The following away game at Rolleston College was more positive, but another 6–23 loss. The boys were learning to work as a team, but lacked shooting accuracy and lost far too many opportunities to score. They then went on to another away game at Rangiora New Life School. It was an exciting game, more or less neck and neck throughout, so the teams were evenly matched. Nico Elworthy scored 16 points, and was a key player in our close 22–21 win. A 22–39 loss against Riccarton High School came next, and although it looked like a fairly large margin, the final score did not reflect the match. Riccarton consistently trailed by two points during the first half, but unfortunately College lost the lead in the second half. It was a positive game, however, with the boys stepping up in the absence of our top scorer, Nico Elworthy. Jonnie Bennetto scored over half our points, with Fergus Ryan, Freddy Backhouse and Harry Campbell adding some too. With some key players missing for the next game, the 17–79 loss to Rangiora High School was harsh, but the end of this year’s basketball journey was approaching. The boys were still enjoying the games and continued to work as a team and learn from their mistakes. The season ended with a game against Kaiapoi High School. With only five players available, it was potentially disastrous, but there were some commendable moments of teamwork. The boys did well at the start and the score was close for the first half. But with no subs, they soon got tired and lost momentum. The final score was a loss,18–31. This was without a doubt, a trying season for these fledgling basketball players, however, they should be commended for their hard work, resilience and perseverance. They played with positivity and hope and completed a successful season of
sportsmanship. Nico Elworthy was named most valuable player, and Elliott Grey was named most valuable team member. Elaine Tang TiC Intermediate White Basketball INTERMEDIATE GREY BASKETBALL Manager: Melissa Campbell Coaches: Canterbury Rams Team: Liam Barrett, Rudi Beavan, George Brakenridge, Jacob Douglas, Maurice Gillard, Elliot Grey, Nate Herewini, James Higginson, Suhyuk Jung, Sam Milner, Conor Nicholson The scoreboard did not tell all of the real story about how the Intermediate Grey team fared this season. Sure, we went down to a number of taller, more cohesive and more experienced teams. The real story, however, is one of learning to work as a team and having some fun playing basketball on a Friday night. We came together as a diverse group and our early challenges involved learning how to work together on and off the court. After that, we had to focus on doing the basics as well as we could and muster some self-belief. Over the course of the early weeks, the team learned how to position themselves on court more effectively and learned the tactics of defensive play, in particular marking a man and sharing the ball around – strategically. As the weeks progressed, and despite the scoreboard, the team showed more courage driving the ball down the court, attempting gutsy layups and gradually calling for each other and passing more accurately to one another. A highlight of the season was our 43–38 win against Christchurch Boys’ High School. The Gods were smiling on us during that epic rivalry. Some great plays from pivotal team members came together, and the team really got up for their battle against their greatest foes. They were constantly looking for each other on court and achieved great passing
accuracy, not to mention an excellent shooting percentage. Their defence was persistent and they got grittier once they knew the night was theirs. The real winner of the match was the teamwork. The team started out as a group of individuals with vastly different basketball experience, and over the course of the season morphed into a unit who developed greater trust in and respect for one another. Thank you to our Canterbury Rams coaches for their priceless support, and fist pumps to our natural leader, George Brakenridge, who was reliable and gave great advice to his teammates each week. We had a great run around each Friday night and we learned many things along the way. The motivational speeches and van yarns to and from the fixtures were memorable, and often hilarious – and that is the beauty of sport.
Melissa Campbell Manager, Intermediate Grey Basketball
INTERMEDIATE RED BASKETBALL Manager: Carey Prebble Coach: Tom Harrison Team: Rocco Barker, Josh
Beaglehole, Ed Cochran, Jack Coles, Rheon Salt, Oliver Shore, Jackson Thomas, Flynn Topham, Benji Ward, Harvey Willis College’s Intermediate Red team, fondly referred to as the “Foundation” team, was a social basketball team composed of boys who were already playing a winter sport. This team did not have any practice opportunities. What the team lacked in technique, however, they made up for in enthusiasm. Coached by Tom Harrison, the team had mixed results, winning four games and losing three. Our most valuable player was Oliver Shore, who was the top point scorer and proved effective on defence. Other players who deserve special mention are Benji Ward and Jackson Thomas. Both
183
Register 2020 Sport
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs