Preliminary Final Preview: Woodville v Sturt

By James Woite

 

In the men's competition, the Sabres will become the second Elimination Final winner to make it to the Grand Final in as many years if they can overcome the Warriors at St Clair in the Preliminary Final.

The Sabres have won two consecutive thrillers and are now in the final three despite finishing the regular season in fifth position. The Sabres have won nine of their past 11 games.

The Warriors are 1-1 so far in this postseason. They are attempting to avoid being the third consecutive club to finish second at the end of the regular season, but fail to make it to the Grand Final.

Mitchell Creek, who scored 36 points in the Warriors’ Qualifying Final win over West did not play in his team’s 64-68 Second Semi Final loss to Norwood. The Warriors rallied back from a 14 point fourth quarter deficit to tie the scores with a little over a minute remaining, but could not hit the front. Darren Ng was the Warriors’ top scorer, finishing with 15 points as well as 9 rebounds.

The Sabres likewise trailed by a sizeable margin in their First Semi Final matchup with West. The Sabres, who had lost to their opponents on seven consecutive occasions, were down 65-73 with 3.10 left. Yet they drew level with only six seconds remaining before seizing control in the extra session and ultimately holding on for an 85-82 triumph. Clinton Reed picked up 23 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists.

The Warriors and Sabres split their regular season series 1-1. On ANZAC Day, Ian Nixson had 23 points and 7 rebounds, as the Warriors thrashed the Sabres 88-45 at St Clair. The Sabres, who were without Jan Warbout, Hamish Burns and John Marriott, got 10 points and 8 rebounds from Tim Klaosen. The Warriors shot almost twice as well from the field as the Sabres and more than four times better from beyond the arc. They also had 17 additional rebounds.

Three months had passed when the Sabres produced, with the help of overtime, a 50 point turnaround. With Warbout, Burns and Marriott in uniform, the Sabres defeated the Warriors 95-88. Burns gathered 32 points and 7 rebounds. Creek had 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Warriors, with Nixson playing fewer than 13 minutes. Shooting percentages were almost identical in this match, while the Sabres held a rebounding advantage of seven.

A decade ago, these clubs also met in the Preliminary Final. The Warriors were victorious before winning the Grand Final the following week.




Comments

Comment Guidelines: The SportsTG Network is made up of players, families and passionate sports followers like you who have a strong opinion about sport. That's great - we want you to have your say and share your thoughts with the world. However, we have a few rules that you must follow to keep it fun for all. Please don't be rude, abusive, swear or vilify others. Apart from some pretty serious sport sanctions, we also can ban you and report you if things get out of hand. So play fair and have fun, and thanks for your contribution.

Download the GameDay App!

Stay up-to-date with your favourite teams and keep an eye on your rivals by accessing the latest match results, fixtures and stats via GameDay App.

GameDay Splash Screen
App Store Google Play