But still, it wasn’t enough to poach those Tigers, whose “experience and size wore [the Slingers] down”, as said by Slingers’ coach, Gordon McLeod.

The Singapore Slingers and Melbourne Tigers kicked off the start of the National Basketball League (NBL) 07/08 season at the Singapore National Stadium. The Sep 19 match proved to be a gruelling one for the Slingers, who just joined the NBL 1 season ago. Their opponents, the Tigers, have been playing in the big league for 23 years.

With big-sized baddies such as 213 cm-tall Chris Anstey and the new addition to the Tigers, Martin Muursepp, an Estonian who stands tall at 208 cm, the Slingers faced an intimidating vertical challenge. The Slingers is a freshly formed team with a mixture of new and experienced players. This, in addition to the fact that the team only had 2 weeks to train for the NBL season after clinching 3rd place in the Brunei Cup, proved to be a bit of a strain on their performance in the 1st match of the NBL 07/08 season.

Despite the fans’ incessant cheering and the players’ immense effort, which was carved onto their sweat-drenched faces, the Slingers lagged behind in the last quarter of the game and ended with a loss of 94-117.


1st Quarter Performance

With Rod Grizzard, Shane McDonald, Blagoj Janev, Mike Helms and Ben Knight in the main line up, the 1st quarter proved to be an encouraging one as newcomer Grizzard proved what he was worth, scoring several 3-pointers. With yet another experienced player, Janev, who scored only 1 point less than Grizzard, the Slingers pulled through the 1st quarter with a lead of 25-23.

However, it was evident that the Tigers thrashed the Slingers when it came to the rebounding, topping the quarter with a 70% total rebound. The 1st quarter ended in a close lead with the Slingers left out cold after the visitors put in several balls during offensive rebounds.

2nd Quarter Performance

Tigers’ centre, Martin Muursepp, also proved his worthiness as a new player by putting in 7 points, earning the title of the top scorer in the 2nd quarter of the game. Disappointingly, Grizzard failed to put in any points at all during this quarter and the Tigers led by 7 points, ending the 1st half of the game with a lead of 55-48.

Once again, the Slingers failed to pick up their rebounding skills, with a total rebound percentage of a mere 37.1%.


3rd Quarter Performance

Thankfully, Helms and Grizzard worked quickly, teaming up to put in a total of 17 points, drawing the Slingers closer to the Tigers with a score of 83-79, lagging behind by a meagre 4 points.

This quarter kept the Singaporean fans at the edge of their seats as hopes soared, with the vision of the Slingers bagging the win of the night. (Unfortunately, the faulty scoreboard also kept the fans at the edge of their seats as the scores kept jumping between numbers such as 54 to 24, keeping them worried as to what the real score was.)


4th Quarter Performance

While the 3rd quarter kept the audience at the edge of their seats, the 4th quarter was one that made them slide down their seats, in disappointment, that is. With a sudden burst of energy, the Tigers roared their way through the last quarter with quick comebacks, steadfast defense and a dunk by Anstey in the last minute of the game.

It was obvious that the Slingers ran out of energy and confidence as they made many misses. Even the crowd’s cheering died down when the Slingers stayed way behind the Tigers by 20 points with only 3 mins left, making it virtually impossible to pull the score up unless they defended every single rebound and succeeded in every attack.

The score for the game ended at 94-117, with the Tigers in the lead.


Support the Slingers!

They may not have won the game but they certainly put their best into the game, as seen by experienced players, Mike Helms, Rod Grizzard and Ben Knight who were the top 3 scorers of the night, chalking in 19, 16 and 15 points respectively, all of which were only 1 point behind the top scorers of the Tigers, Chris Anstey, Darryl Corletto and Stephen Hoare.

Even fresher players like the Slingers guard pitched in a good amount of effort. Shane McDonald, who was instrumental in sending the ball down the court, delivered several good passes and managed to net in some points given his 187 cm frame and rookie status.

Only into their 2nd season, the Slingers will be back in the next with a stronger, better performance. Just make sure you do your part and be down to support them!

The Singapore Slingers will be playing their next match against the Perth Wildcats at the Challenge Stadium, in the suburb of Mount Claremont, Western Australia.