It resulted in a loss of electricity to all the stadium and a delay of a couple of hours and those games that should have been played declared a draw.
All teams had reasonable results, some not as good as expected, but first carnival too.
Under 12 Boys
The first game for the under12 boys was against Broken Hill gold. It started out as a tight contest but after quarter time blew out when the troublesome duo of Tom Fischer and Aaron Rogers upped the tempo with full court defence. Restricting broken hill and slowing down their scoring abilities allowing Whyalla to run out winners by 9 points.
The second game was ruled out due to the electrical fire. This was scheduled to be against Mildura.
Whyalla then played broken hill blue where it utilized its bench as the opposition were not up to the same standard and all players scoring points and getting good court time. Leading from the front was Adrian Hunter who continued to shine in every game top scoring again in every game and playing an excellent team game.
With the boys finishing top by percentage they then had to play the semi final at 8 am Sunday. Playing broken hill gold in what was expected to be a tight contest. The Stealers had other ideas and restricted them to 4 points total for the game. Winning 24 to 4. With this win it placed the boys in the grand final to play Mildura.
The grand final started slowly and both teams were getting good shot opportunities but failed to truly utilize them. Adrian Hunter again showing he knows how to play on the big stage and was getting some good points. He was also getting some fouls and by the 7 minute mark of the third quarter was fouled out and the team was down by 4 points. Appearing flattened by the loss of one of its leaders coach Pat Kemp called a valuable time out and encouraged her charges that all was not lost and that now was the time to show some fight and give their all. With that they did and again the likes of Tom Fischer, Josh Quinn, Jarrod Wallace Kody Rosalia all pulling deep and getting themselves right back in the game. Then with Aaron Rogers attacking the basket and getting to the foul line was able to get he game back to within 5. Josh Quinn completing a full court layup the team was in with a chance. Continuing to starve the Mildura boys of any points and mighty Tim Fischer nailing crucial foul shots the boys were only down by one, but the only jingle that was able to stop the boys from pulling of what would have been a great win was the clock and when it finally did the boys were still that one point down. A truly great effort by all and to debutant Daniel Vines who scored his first combined pints it was an excellent effort.
Under 12 Girls
Under 12 girls had a very promising start to the 2009/10 Combined season winning two out of four games played. All of the girls went into their first game very nervous with only three team members with past combined experience. All nerves were soon forgotten as the girls finished the game deserving winners, beating Mildura C by about 50 points. Second game was expected to be a lot tougher than the first, coming up against a much taller team being Mildra B. The girls soon found themselves behind chasing a margin of about 10points at one stage of the game. To the girls credit they didn't give up and by the last quarter had taken back the lead. With a very thrilling end to the game the Whyalla girls were eventual winners by 2points. The girls were not so lucky in their last two games, having to play against two very good teams, Mildura A and Broken Hill. The girls kept trying their hardest against the much more experienced teams but were beaten by the two eventual Grand Finalists. All six players being Nellie Cowan, Tia Bails, Madeline Foran, Shannon Herbert, Kelsey Mitchell and Myrrhn Milton-Hutchinson need to be commended for their huge effort and determination that they played with all carnival and for never giving up, especially in the last game when they had to play with four players on the court due to the loss of senior players Cowan and Mitchell being fouled off. Coach Ebony Curwood was extremely impressed with the way the girls listened to instructions and implemented skills that they have been practising at training over the last 8 weeks, and is looking forward to the guaranteed improvement that is to come from within the group. Well done girls.
Under 14 Boys
The first game for the boys was against Broken Hill blue. This was the first game for this team together and as expected they were slow to get out of the blocks allowing Broken Hill to get off to a good start. They failed to gain any real momentum and were eventually beaten by 22.
In the boys second game against Mildura A the boys were again up against strong opposition and with some of the Stealers failing to play good defence or stick to their players it made for a long 40 minutes. Going down t by 30 points.
Heading into the third game the boys had direct instructions on what was expected of them. Credit to the boys as they listened and begun to stop the Mildura B side from doing any score board damage while all the players were able to get into scoring positions and come out eventual winners by 17.
Game four was played on Sunday morning at 9 am and was against Broken Hill. While the boys could have taken the easy option going through the motions the chose not too and come out all guns blazing. Getting to the basket with ease and taking out a 15 point lead at half time. The boys were well drill and showed more structure in the offence and defensive end which showed they had listened and were showing obvious signs of improvement. Winning the game by 26 in the end and setting themselves up for a hotly contested final against the Broken Hill team who had beaten them the previous day.
With a controlled defence and all players fighting for the rebounds the scores remained close throughout the first half. While the boys fought the game out and with excellent effort they were not able to get over the line. The boys losing in the end by 12 and again showing that with continued training and an eagerness to learn the boys will again be around the mark at the next carnival. Credit must go to Lewis MacLauchlan and Josh Waugh who did stand out jobs and showed that if their team mates are willing to improve they may have chances to get some carnival wins. Sam Sawford and Miles McNamara stepping up to show they too have what it takes to play for the Stealers.
Under 14 Girls
The under 14 girls were unlucky in the draw as they had their first game cancelled due to the fire.
Second game was against Mildura C which the girls won easily. The cancelled game was then played at 8:50pm against Mildura A where the girls were beaten by 31 points.
Due to program changes the third game ended up being against Mildura C again where the girls come up winners by 30 points. This placed them in second position.
The semi final was against Mildura B where the girls got off to a slow start giving Mildura B a 10 point lead at the end of the first quarter. By half time the girls had pulled the lead back to 6 points and heading into the last it was as close as 3 points. When young Taylor Crocker was fouled out early in the fourth quarter the rest of the young chargers stepped up to the challenge and was able to get the scores level as the final siren went. Unfortunately they fouled Kimberly Hunter who had two foul shots. Missing the first and the game still tied at 25 all she was successful on the second and Whyalla Stealers won the game 26 to 25.
The grand final was against Mildura A where they showed they were too good and beat the Stealers easily. While the girls did not win the grand final it was good that they made it.
Under 16 Girls
The under 16 girls played Mildura A in their first game in what was a shortened game due to the electrical fire. The girls losing by 2 points.
The second game was against Mildura B where the girls were not quite up to their best and allowing Mildura to hit 5 three pointers out its 20 points. Winning by 10 points.
Heading into the third game against Broken Hill “Showtime” Quinn had instructed his players to run a more structured offence which proved the difference where the girls come out to win by over 20 points.
The fourth and final game for the team was against Mildura C where the girls continued to listen to the coach and running the offence proved fruitful running out winners by 21 points. Youngsters Jasmine Bridgman, Nikeisha McNamara & Bianca Clements all showed their worth by contributing well and showing their eagerness to learn from the likes of Rhianna Stringer and Mackenzie Burns who both showed good signs of leadership.
The girls could have made it to the finals but due to the poor programming there were no semi finals in the grade and only a grand final. Had there been semi finals the girls may well have made the grand final as they were all hitting their shots and playing very good defence in the last couple of games.
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