Jetstream: Mini-break came at the right time

Dec 1 2011

Cheshire Jets' John Lavery

OUR mini-mid-season break couldn’t really have come at a better time for us.

With four of the team having spent virtually all of the available playing time on court for the past few games there were some aching muscles around at the end of the Newcastle game – not to mention the heartache of seeing what should have been a well-earned victory snatched away in the final seconds!

It is impossible to underestimate the physical and mental strain that our recent schedule has put the players under so a run of 10 days when we can reduce the intensity of the training and let the guys relax a bit without having to focus specifically on individual match-ups, game-plans and so on, means that they can recharge their batteries and be ready for the final pre-Christmas set of games.

The outcomes of the next three games will have a big say in the rest of our season, starting with the Mersey Tigers derby in Knowsley tomorrow followed by a quick return game against league newcomers Durham Wildcats, a team we feel we have a point to prove against after we lost narrowly to them in their gym a couple of weeks ago.

Finally there is next week’s visit of Milton Keynes Lions, a team that has been consistently inconsistent this season having beaten the Leicester Riders but lost a couple of games by surprisingly wide margins!

Three wins would set us up nicely for the Christmas and new year break and the guys are well aware of this and will be doing their best to achieve it!

Of course the outcomes will depend to some extent on our being able to put our best team on the floor – and as I write this it is not clear whether Matt Schneck will have recovered sufficiently from the ankle injury that he sustained against Newcastle Eagles to be able to play both or even one of the weekend’s games.

But whether or not he is able to play – there is one thing that I have learned from this group of players since the start of the season – they will give everything they have got on court to grind out a result.

They will leave it all out there and if, at the end of the day, do come up short, I can guarantee it will not be down to a lack of effort.