By Marcus Uhe
The Pakenham Warriors put on a show for a packed Cardinia Life Stadium in an exhibition game showcase against basketballers from Red Roo Sports on Saturday afternoon.
The Warriors Under 16’s, Under 18’s, Under 21’s and Youth League sides each played a Red Roo side, a team comprised of players with South Sudanese heritage based in Keysborough, with Red Roo taking the win-loss ledger 3-1.
Pakenham opened the showcase with a come-from-behind win in the Under 16’s matchup, recovering from a significant deficit to sneak home with a 67-65 victory.
The next two contests were also thrillers in what was becoming a recurring theme.
The Warriors missed a game winner in the Under 18’s game, going down 70-71, and Red Roo was able to hold its nerve in the Under 21’s game, as Pakenham missed two chances to tie the game down the stretch in a 54-57 loss.
The Youth League game, however, was a different story, with Red Roo running away with a 30-point win, 88-58.
Warriors Youth League coach Braden Venning was full of praise for Red Roo, and said his players had no answer for star players Justin Asi and former Warrior, Arop Matiok, who was a handful in the paint for the Pakenham forwards at both ends of the floor.
“They ran away with it, they hit some big triples late and it turned into a dunk fest,” Venning said.
“We definitely got what we wanted out of the day, we were looking to get a heap of minutes into everyone.
“I think both teams got a lot out of it, it’s just a shame that our game was a bit of a blowout.
“Red Roo were full of Youth Championship and NBL1 guys.”
For Venning, he was impressed with the performance of a number of his Youth League players.
“Jake Meagher is a forward from the Under 18’s, it’s his first year of Youth League but he was physical for a young guy and ran hard,” Venning said.
“Jackson Grey is another forward who anchored the defence and led the team really well, and Jarred Small was really aggressive in the backcourt and attacked the rim.”
He said both organisations are keen to make the event a regular occasion going forward.
“It was a fantastic opportunity for both clubs and we’re looking to make it an annual thing.”
The Youth League season gets underway in March.
