The Bristol Academy Flyers Division 1 team are starting their campaign as they have done for the last 3 years, with an exciting season opener against TEAM USA Select. This exhibition game showcases talent from the States with a lot of the USA Select team coming from Division 1 and Division 2 Colleges. Also for the first time the Bristol Academy Flyers will have both their import players for the game. Davis Bowne MVP of the National Cup Final 2009/10 and crowd favourite Douglass McLaughlin-Williams are both returning for the 2010/11 season which is great news for the club.

The game will be held at the home of Bristol Basketball, the WISE Campus, Filton College on Tuesday 14th September Tip Off at 7.30pm

Tickets will be on sale at the door, £4 Adults £2 Children/concessions.

Get ready for a great night of basketball!!!!!!

Bristol Academy Flyers Junior program will be holding trials for the Under 14's and Under 16's on Augst 10th and 12th. They will be held at Filton College WISE Campus from 6-8pm.

If you would like more details then please click on this link

We look forward to seeing you on these dates!

Filton College WISE campus, Sports Hall
6.30pm to 9pm
Cost: £2 per ticket
Presentations will be made in the following age groups:
Development Centre
Under 14
Under 16
Under 18
Flyers Women
Big Tall Order Bristol Academy Flyers Men
The Goals bar will be open before and after the presentations and a buffet will be served after the presentations.

The Bromley Family decided they wished to do something to support young players who share Matthew's love of basketball. To this aim 'The Matthew Bromley Foundation' for Basketball Development has been set up and will provide funding for young players from the two clubs to develop their basketball skills.

Infromation about the Foundation will be availble during the memorial game this Saturday. We hope to see you all there on Saturday for a great evening of Basketball.

Matthew John Bromley

11.11.82 – 17.05.06
Matt grew up in Trowbridge and began playing basketball as a teenager at school. In 1996 he led his Clarendon College team to the England Schools National Finals and then went on to join the Trowbridge Hawks in the West of England league. During 2005/06 Matt playing for Trowbridge was scoring 15 points a game and was voted the most valuable player of the game six times.
After leaving Clarendon, Matt attended Bath University to study the HND course in Sports Education & Coaching. In his two years at Bath University, Matt played a critical role in the university team success, helping the team to reach the BUSA Finals in 2004.
In 2005 Matt also joined the Filton Flyers to continue playing the game he loved at National league level. With the Flyers, Matt was extremely successful and helped them win the National league Division 3 Championship in April 2006.

Bristol Academy Flyers coach Andreas Kapoulas is an excited man as his team prepare for this weekend's Final Fours:

"To be in the playoffs Final Four for a second time in three years is a great achievement for our team. Winning the National Cup and reaching the top four is a recognition of the hard work the players, coaches and supporters have put not only this season, but over the five years that our club has been in existence.

"I also need to mention that all of this will not be possible without the support that Filton Colllege and Principal Kevin Hamblin have given us over the years. They have been a vital part of our success.

"I think it is always good to be involved in the last weekend of the season and this was our target when we started the season back in September. In terms of expectations, I think a place in the final will be something that we really want as any other team that has reached this stage. However we got to concentrate on one game at a time as we have been doing all season. For now the semi-final versus Derby is the only thing in our minds."

As Kapoulas says, Flyers won their first piece of top division silverware when they won the National Cup in January and will be aiming to complete a double at this weekend's climax to the season.

A thrilling 63-61 overtime victory against Manchester Magic at the EIS in Sheffield saw Kapoulas' team win the oldest piece of silverware in English basketball as American import Davis Bowne finished with a 12 point, 13 rebound double-double.

After annihilating Plymouth Marjon 90-61 in the second round, Flyers had to win three tough games against Division One opposition to reach the championship game. Wins against Taunton Tigers (81-79), holders Reading Rockers (84-80) and Derby Trailblazers (83-76) put them into a top division title game for the first time, and they completed the job with a revenge victory against the club who beat them in the 2008 playoff semi-final.

Flyers will come against the Trailblazers again on Saturday (Follow the Live Stats) in the first semi-final, and Kapoulas expects a tough game:

"Derby are a very experienced, balanced side with very good coaching staff," he said.

"One of the key players for me is their point guard, Matt Shaw. I joked with him the other day that the only way to deal with him is to lock him in the changing rooms during the game!

"Jokes aside, Matt is playing really well and we definitely need to find a way to contain him. However, I do not think you can concentrate only on one player when you play a team like Derby as they have a number of players that can hurt you during the game. Gayle, Allaway, Baker and Spencer are quality guards with great shooting ability while the front court of Attewell, Madourie and O'Shea is the best, in my opinion, in our division.

"From our point of view, we need to concentrate on good team defence and we will need to think of ways to disrupt their offensive rhythm. In such a game, defence and rebounding are always going to be the decisive elements."

Bristol went into the final weekend of the regular season with a chance of making it a league and Cup double, knowing that if they won at Trailblazers, and Magic defeated Leeds Carnegie, they would be champions. Magic completed their side of the bargain, but Flyers came up just short at Derby as the home side took the title with an 82-76 victory.

Such a finish had looked unlikely as Bristol split their opening ten games and they looked set for a mid-table finish. However, that National Cup final victory against the Magic kick-started their league season, and they reeled off 11 straight wins to go into the final weekend of the season with a shot at winning the most closely contested Division One championship in recent years.

The Flyers also had some success in the National Trophy, bouncing back after a narrow loss against Taunton Tigers to beat their neighbours 81-67, and with two wins against Coventry Crusaders, they won their pool. London Mets were the visitors in the last eight, and that proved to be the end of the line for Flyers as they went down 86-84, but having already tasted success this season, Bristol will look to upset the formbook when they face Derby on Saturday.

If they are successful they will face either Manchester Magic in a repeat of the Cup final or London Mets, and Kapoulas expects the home team to prevail when they meet immediately after Bristol's semi-final:

"With Kimbrough back, Manchester have regained their lost confidence and that has been evident in their recent results. I think the fact that Magic play at home plus the experience of Kimbrough, Watts and Gill will give them the extra edge.

"Having said that though, London Mets are a very unpredictable opponent as they do really well to use their physicallity and athleticism to stay close to teams for the duration of the game. I would definitely not write them off but they will need to have a very good game to have a chance to progress to the final."

Back to the Flyers team, they were led by Doug McLaughlin-Williams who finished with 18.5 points and 6.36 rebounds per game, while English youngster Greg Streete added 12.8 points and 6.2 boards per game.

Saturday April 10th

Under 16’s Play-off round 2

Season ends on high despite defeat

Flyers Under 16 travelled to Milton Keynes, this weekend, to take on one of the best teams in the country in the play off 2nd round and can be extremely proud of their performance despite a 103-67 defeat.

The match started at a high tempo with some strong play from the starting 5, Joe Packwood, Josh Rogers, Luke Kay, Jack Griffin and Luke Kay which gave the Flyers an early lead.
The Lions played to their strengths with Harry Turner scoring heavily under the basket to give MK a 28-17 lead at the end of the 1st quarter.

The 2nd quarter followed a similar pattern with the Flyers playing with high intensity, especially Chris McMenamin and Reuben Ward, but the Lions used their height advantage well and went into the half time break leading 48-32.

The 3rd quarter started well for the Flyers with Luke Kay scoring heavily and Jack Staynings showing great intensity, forcing the Lions to change to a Zone defence.

In the final quarter Coach Reed used all the squad with Scott Reed bagging a great jump shot and Jake Foster using the basketball intelligently.

After the game, Coaches Reed and Coles thanked the players for their efforts this season, which saw the team crowned South West Conference champions and get to the 2nd round of the play-offs making this the most successful season in the Under 16’s history.

Flyers Under 16’s continued their winning ways today with a 71-61 victory over local rivals Bristol Storm to set up a second round fixture against Premier League Milton Keynes Lions on April 10th.

The opening exchanges were nip and tuck as both sides tried to find their rhythm and some strong offensive play by Josh Rogers and good defence by Luke Kay and Jack Griffin gave Flyers a narrow 18-17 lead at the buzzer.

Over the next 2 quarters the Flyers managed to open up a double figure lead thanks to some good shooting from Joe Packwood and Rogers and strong defence from Kay Griffin and Chris McMenamin, but Storm were always in the game thanks to heavy scoring from Anton Pritchard.

Flyers went into the final quarter with a 14 point lead and consolidated this position with regular baskets and some good defence to run out 10 point winners.

The Big Tall Order Bristol Academy Flyers made a great push for the division 1 league title this past weekend with two important victories over Taunton and Coventry. The Flyers recorded their 11th straight league victory since winning the National Cup back in January and now need to win at Derby on Saturday in the last league game of the season and trust that Leeds Carnegie lose at Manchester Magic to take their first ever National League Division One Crown.
On Saturday, Filton College’s Flyers after an impressive second half performance beat local rivals Taunton Tigers 81 to 70. Trailing by 5 at halftime, Bristol started the second half with a 25-14 third period and secured a valuable win led by US forward Doug McLaughlin Williams and English guard, Jack Stannard with 19 and 16 points respectively.
On Sunday the Bristol side carried on their successful weekend with an 88-60 home win over Coventry Crusaders. A 28-16 first period put Andreas Kapoulas' team in control and the Flyers never looked back wrapping things up with a 17-11 fourth period. Davis Bowne and Tyronne Treasure each scored 17 points for Flyers, with Doug McLaughlin-Williams adding 16.
Flyers Coach Andreas Kapoulas talked about the amazing turnaround that has seen the Flyers remain undefeated for whole of February and March and having an opportunity to win the Division 1 title:
‘Looking back in January after losing to Derby at home, we would not even imagine that we will be talking about winning the league right now. The National Cup win gave us a much needed boost of confidence and really made us realise that we can compete with everyone in this league. February and March have been great for us as we went from a 5 wins-5 losses mid-table record to a 16 wins and 5 losses top of the table position.’
Looking at the upcoming league deciding weekend, the Greek Coach wants his player to focus in the one last agme remaining:
‘We cannot worry about things that are out of our control. A win over Derby will give us a top 2 finish which will be a great finish. The result between Manchester and Leeds will determine our final position but from my point of view we need to focus at the task in hand. The Derby game is going to be extremely difficult as they are a very well balanced offensive team. For us to have a chance against them, we need to play together for the whole duration of the game and pay particular emphasis on defense and rebounding.’
We know one thing for sure it is going to be a really exciting finish to the season and a great way to go into the playoffs battle!’

Sunday 21st March 2010

Bristol Academy Flyers Under 16’s clinched the South West Conference title in dramatic fashion after defeating Wiltshire Wolves 68-63.
This alone couldn’t secure the title but local rivals Bristol Storm beating title contenders Plymouth Marjon Cannons meant that the Flyers finished top of the pile.

The start of the game saw Wiltshire Wolves play a type of defence which for the Flyers they have seen all too often this season. They continued to play their game in the first and second quarters with some good individual play from Luke Kay and Jack Griffin working hard on the boards both on offense on defense. The problem came in the second half.

In the third quarter Wiltshire started to get a lead that at one point looked like the title would be decided by Flyers own doing. By the end of this quarter the Bristol side were down by 14 points and staring at defeat. Coach Jason Reed brought them in and refocused them on the task at hand and it seemed to work. Inspired by Captain Joe Packwood and final year player Josh Rogers they went an incredible 20 – 0 run, 13 of the points coming from Packwood including some big 3’s.

After this the victory became a reality and the Flyers took the victory. This was only half the title though with the team waiting nervously on the result taking place between Bristol Storm and Plymouth Cannons. 2 hours after the game had finished a message confirming Storm’s win came through and this signalled the start of the celebrations for the Flyers.

Coach Jason Reed was relieved but also focused on the next game “ it was good to win today but nerve wracking to think our fate was held by someone else’s result. Now ironically we face Storm next week in the first round of the playoffs which is going to be a tough encounter.

Head of Junior of development Guy Coles was full of praise for the coaching staff and the players. “Jason has done a fantastic job this year in coaching the players to the title. He only joined the coaching staff this season and he has fitted in well. You can tell the players respect him and these are the types of results you get when you have that level of respect. Alongside him Paul Packwood the Assistant Coach and Team manager has done a superb job in controlling the off the court affairs of the team. It is great to have two people with such a professional attitude as it translates to the kids. What is great is that they have involved all the players as much as possible and they have maintained the philosophy of the club. They deserve all this success and lets hope they can continue it into the playoffs”.

The Championship winning Under 16 squad is:-
Joe Packwood
Josh Rogers
Jack Griffin
Jack Staynings
Haden White
Luke Kay
George Thorne
Reuben Ward
George Downe
Scott Reed
Chris McMenamin
Jack Crichton
Jake Foster

Flyers Under 18 Premier secure 7th win in a row

Bristol Academy Flyers Under 18’s Premier defeated Solent Kestrels 86-82 to win their seventh game in a row. It was the 3rd time that the teams had met this season and the Flyers have been victorious in two out of the 3 meetings.
The game was away and for Bristol it was always going to be a tough journey as they travelled without two of their starting five, leaving with only 7 players for the trip. Solent on the other hand was at full strength and still had a possibility of finishing second in Premier South if results went their way.
In the first quarter the Flyers started strongly and went inside to post player Enrique Garcia a lot for their points which gave them a slender 4 point lead early on. Kestrels responded with some good team play to cut the lead to only 1 at the end of the first quarter 16-15 to the Bristol team.
The second quarter was dominated by Garcia again for Bristol but he was aided by Japanese born point guard Almasi Hanada for the Flyers. They combined for 16 of the 20 points scored in the quarter. The Kestrels weren’t watching this happen though as the second quarter belonged to them. They started to click a lot more on offense and got the ball into the high post which was a weak area in Bristol’s defense. Through solid team play they outscored the Bristol side by 10 in the quarter and went into the break up by 9 , 45-36.
In previous games this year this would have been the end for the Flyers who have struggled all year at fighting back a deficit. This time was different though as they came out into the 3rd with as much fight as they started the game. Great defence from Courtney John-Lewis and Kevin Regan meant the Solent guards were always under intense pressure. Combined with this was some real hustle play from Joe Taylor and by the end of the quarter the Bristol side held a slender 2 point lead.

The 4th quarter was a tense affair but in the 6th minute the Flyers pulled away to a 7 point lead. This looked like it was going to be enough but with 2 technical fouls, one to the coach of the Flyers and a couple of shots too early in the offense there was still a chance for the Kestrels. Luckily Flyers defense held it together and they managed to pull off the win.
Coach Guy Coles was highly complementary of the teams effort on the day “to only have 7 players and for them to play with the intensity they did for 40 minutes was impressive. Although the season has gone quite as we would have liked our finish shows that we can compete with anybody in the league”.
Top scorers for the Flyers were Garcia 48 points, Hanada 12 points.

Flyers Under 18’s Conference finish season in style.

Bath Titans Under 18 Conference came to play Bristol Academy Flyers II in the last regular season game for the Bristol side. The Flyers ran out 100-32 victors in a rather one sided affair. This was due to Bath not being at full strength but to give credit to them they never gave up fighting.
The first half was where the Flyers really put on the pressure to put the game out of reach for the Titans with some solid full court defense. Lead by team captain A J Uithaler the team didn’t allow the Bath side to get into any kind of offense and they controlled the boards effectively when Bath did shoot.
On the offensive end some sharp shooting from point guard Gerald Bunao and good attacking dribble moves by Utihaler meant that at half time the Flyers had a comfortable lead 47-15.
It was much of the same in the second half with the Flyers managing to run the ball a little more successfully and this lead to a substantial lead by the end 100-32.
After this win the Flyers finish 4th in the South West Conference just missing out on a Playoff berth. Coach Guy Coles was still proud of the achievements of the team “ It was a solid win today and I think it shows the improvements the kids have made. Unfortunately the two biggest games of the season didn’t go our way and because of that we finish outside the playoff spots. The players should be proud though as most of them haven’t played together until the start of this season. “

The Bristol Academy Flyers Under 18's could not emulate the senior men by winning the junior National cup this Sunday, falling short the final hurdle. They lost 64-50 to a strong Sheffield Sharks team.

The game started well for the Bristol side with them scoring the first  basket of the game with an Enrique Garcia lay up but their positive start was short lived. After this first basket Sheffield went on an 11-0 run to snuff out the Flyer's early optimism. The sharks continued their strong attack and by the end of the first quarter they lead 21-7.

A shellshocked Flyers came out in the second quarter with more determination than the first but it wasn't changing anything for the Bristol team. They got good shots on offence but they weren’t getting any second chances. On the other hand the Sharks were dominating on the boards on both ends of the floor and this meant they maintained a lead going into half time. Up 11,34 to 23.

The 3rd quarter came and it was one that Flyers needed to win if they were going to lift the trophy. Mike Farage made some big plays for Bristol but these were always matched by some cheap points in transition or second chance points for the Sheffield outfit.  At the end of this quarter the score was 54 to 35 with final pretty much out of reach for the Flyers.

However, when they stepped onto the floor for the last ten minutes they started to show the heart that had got them to the final stage of the competition. Rob Loftman started to ignite at the offensive end and the defense gelled as well. The Flyers started to show self belief and clawed their way back to within 8 points but unfortunately this was as close as they got. The Sharks ran out victors 64 - 50.

Although obviously disappointed the coach of the Bristol side remained positive " If you would have asked me before the season if i would be happy to reach to a final i would say definitely. Once we got here though being in a final wasn't enough. Unfortunately we did represent ourselves have we have in previous rounds and this was to our detriment as it cost us the game. I am proud of the team, I just wish they were all holding a different medal".

Top scorers for Flyers were R Loftman 16 and E Garcia 16.

Bristol Academy Flyers kept up their push for home court advantage in the playoffs with a victory over the weekend. The National Cup holders made the trip to Sheffield Arrows for a repeat of last season's playoff quarter-final and gained revenge for that loss with an 83-53 victory.

Sheffield only briefly led at 8-6 as the visitors rushed into a 21-13 first period lead and that grew to 42-27 at half-time. The teams shared 34 points in a tight third quarter, but Andrea Kapoulas' team wrapped things up with a 24-9 final stanza.

US import Doug McLaughlin-Williams led all scorers with 23 points, 14 rebounds and four steals for Flyers, with Captain Greg Streete adding 22 and Davis Bowne finishing with a 13 point, 11 rebound double-double.

Flyers Coach Andreas Kapoulas was pleased with his team’s attitude towards the game: ‘Sheffield have not had a good season this year but they are always a dangerous side especially at their home court. I thought we were very professional in the way we approached the game. We did not underestimate the opposition. We played well at both ends of the court and managed to give some valuable playing time to some of our younger players.’

Speaking about the Flyers winning form since the National Cup final victory, the Greek Coach added: ‘It’s not a secret that we are playing well at the moment. However it’s important to maintain our form going into the last month of the league season. There is always a danger for complacency so we need to make sure we avoid this by working hard and constantly improving our team play.’

The Flyers U14s finished their season on a high with an impressive win over the Gloucester Jets. The victory gave Flyers a mid table finish on the U14s league table with 6 wins and 10 losses. A really positive season for the young team that has learned a lot over the course of the year.

The weekend before, the Flyers U14’s travelled to Plymouth for their away fixtures v Plymouth and Swindon.

The young Flyers came out strong against the lead leader Plymouth. Half way through the first quarter there was just one basket in it, and if our opportunities had dropped Bristol would have had the lead at the end of the quarter. JT ran the point and controlled the tempo causing Plymouth to change their D, switching J Adams to mark the much smaller JT.

Plymouth then pulled away and kept the pressure on winning 66-22.

High scorers James Bradbury 6, Alex Bloomer 6, and Joe Murry 4.

In the next game v Swindon the flyers took all the good points form the Plymouth game and took the game strong to Swindon.  Bristol took and 8 – 4 lead early and never looked back. With 7 out of nine players putting points on the score sheet this was a real team effort. The game had some great inside and outside scoring with Dan Rigby scoring 2 three pointer in the third to seal the game giving the Bristol team a 40 26 lead. The final score was 57 –45

High scorers James Bradbury 8, Dan Rigby 16 and Alex Bloomer 18.

This past Saturday, the  Flyers U14’s travelled to Exeter for their last fixtures of the season.

The first game v Exeter started very close, similar to our previous encounter. With some good scoring from the team captain Dan, the flyer’s had the lead 13 –10 at the end of the first. Disaster struck the Bristol team in the second with Alex Bloomer hurting his hand and unable to contribute any further to both games. With Alex out Dan and James kept working hard with JT at Point. But the Exeter team at home proved a little too much for the Bristol Boys. Exeter won 48 – 31.

High scorers James Bradbury 12, Dan Rigby 12 and Alex Bloomer 5, JT 2.

The next game v Gloster had all the hallmarks of the last game v the Jets. The younger Flyers played a good solid game running the offence and defending well. Young Marcus added 2 points, Mike Barber 10 pts, and Louis Morris 2 pts. Along with the experienced U14 national players and JT the Flyers pushed for the 100pts, but unfortunately fell a little short, wining 84 –40.

High scorers James Bradbury 28, Dan Rigby 25 and Joe Turner 13.

Flyers win National Cup Final

Manchester Magic 61 (14, 29, 46, 57)

Bristol Academy Flyers 63 (16, 29, 45, 57)

Most Valuable Player – Davis Bowne, Bristol Academy Flyers

The Big Tall Order Bristol Academy Flyers are the 2010 National Cup Finals champions after an exciting game of basketball versus the Manchester Magic on Sunday afternoon at the English Institute of Sport-Sheffield.

With an ending that rivals any basketball game from this season, the Bristol Academy Flyers won their first major trophy after defeating the Manchester Magic 63-61 in overtime.

It took a period of overtime, but Filton College’s Bristol Academy Flyers managed to upset the Manchester Magic for the first time in their eight encounters  in front of a loud, faithful following who travelled from England's south west. A balanced offensive display saw four Bristol players record double digits on the scoreboard, but it was big man Davis Bowne who was selected as the game MVP. The first year Flyer had a 12 point, 13 rebound double-double in Bristol's first major trophy win in National League Division One.

In a highly defensive battle that saw a lot of shots taken and few drop, the Flyers and Magic gave the Sheffield crowd something to shout about as time ticked away in the fourth quarter.

With the score locked at 55, Stefan Gill's floater gave the Magic a two point lead with just over a minute remaining. A series of misses at both ends followed until, with two seconds left, Bristol's Doug McLaughlin-Williams pulled up for a three but was fouled by the Magic's Yann Fasbender. The result was three free throws for McLaughlin-Williams, with all pressure on the Bristol forward.

The travelling Bristol faithful were left with their hearts in their throats as the American missed his first, but he regained composure to sink the last two leaving the game tied at 57.

Coach Jeff Jones called timeout with just enough time to run an inbounds play from the halfway mark. An almost perfectly executed lob pass was sent to Gill, but he rimmed out forcing the extra period.

Youngster Josh Houghton made up for a couple of missed threes in the final minute of the fourth as he drove with the left hand to open the overtime scoring. Bowne replied nearly two minutes later to level, but Gill's 28th point at the minute and a half mark gave the Magic a 61-59 lead.

Bristol's Anthony Berry was sent to the line by Lee Goldsbrough, where he converted one of two, but the Flyers regained possesion and Berry's hook in the paint gave them the 62-61 lead. Houghton missed from long range at the other end leaving the Magic forced to foul Jack Stannard, whose one of the two free throws was enough to secure the victory. 

Flyers Coach Andreas Kapoulas commented on the significance of the result:

‘Winning the National Cup is a major milestone in our club’s history. It is such a great achievement and a huge recognition for our players, supporters, coaches and Bristol basketball in general. I am so proud of our players commitment, work ethic and determination. They really deserve this recognition.’

The Greek coach went on to add:

‘I would like to thank our sponsors Big Tall Order, DTM LTD, Yaskin Sports and Initially Yours for the support they have given us. Most importantly, though, I would like to thank Filton College and the Principal Kevin Hamblin who have been vital to our success and the rise to the top of English Basketball.’

Flyers forward and National Cup Final MVP

‘The win was a product of our hard work and demonstrated the depth and toughness our team possesses.  I am so happy to be part of this group. The Cup means a lot to the Flyers and Bristol Basketball. We now hope to continue our success in the league campaign.’

The Flyers league campaign suffered a severe blow on Saturday as the Bristol side lost at home to a strong Derby outfit, 80 to 101. Derby with this win go top of the table while Flyers hopes for a top 4 finish become extremely difficult.

Top scorers for Flyers were Rob Loftman and Arek Makowski with 22 and 16 points while Joel Madourie and Simon Allaway led all scorers for Derby with 20 and 19 points.

Flyers Coach Andreas Kapoulas was not pleased with his team performance and warned his players for the difficult road ahead:

‘Derby had a great offensive game. Allaway shot the ball really well while the inside players caused us a lot of match-up problems. We were really poor defensively and failed to achieve the goals that we discussed before the start of the game.’

‘We have a really tough schedule ahead. From now on every game is really important in our effort to secure a playoff spot. We need to improve and simply enough there are no more excuses.’

Derby took the early lead with two threes by Shaw and Allaway and never looked back to secure a 20 to 25 first period lead. Derby fuelled with a 9-2 run at the start of the second period, led by as many 13 points before Bristol’s Mike Gregory with 2 quick threes brought the different down to 2. Derby though responded with confidence and with 9 unanswered points went to the changing rooms up by 11, 40-51.

Flyers situation did not improve in the second half as Derby extended their lead to 23 by the end of third period, 54-77. The Bristol side despite having one of the worst evenings the WISE campus venue has ever seen, tried to get back in the game.  A winning 26 to 24 last period performance was not enough for the Flyers who suffered one of the most devastating losses of the season.

Flyers now have to put everything behind as they face the Manchester Magic on Sunday 31^st January for the National Cup Final in a winner takes it all game.

The Bristol Academy Flyers Under 18 Premier defeated Solent Kestrels in the quarter final of the Sureshot Cup this Sunday 91-55. They will now face the Reading Rockets at home on 7^th February.

Although the Bristol side have not had the success they had hoped for in the league this year they have always done well in cup competitions, two years ago they reached the quarter final of the same competition.  Solent are a notoriously difficult side to beat who always bring a well coached, well drilled team to any encounter.

In the first quarter of this game it was evident that the Flyer’s were keen to play well and the level of intensity was shown from both sides with quite a low scoring quarter 14-15 in favour of the Kestrels. In the second quarter Flyers looked to attack the defence of the Kestrels a little more and this resulted in some trips to the free throw line. Just before his substitution Andy Hambleton made a scything drive to the basket that saw him go to the charity stripe.  Although they did not convert on as many as they would have liked it still gave them a slight lead. On top of this right at the end of the quarter Courtney John-Lewis hit a big shot to give the Flyers a ten point lead going into the break 43-33.

The second half saw Bristol extend their lead through some great play throughout the team. Japanese bullet Almasi Hanada sliced the Kestrels defence apart with some strong penetrating moves and this helped to free the rest of the team as well. Rob Loftman Flyer’s other point guard showed once again while he is highly rated with some great play at both ends of the floor. Alongside this backcourt duo there was a really strong front court presence from Mike Farage, Ire Omoyeni , Joel Osborneand Enrique Garcia. During the whole game they maintained defensive intensity and help to take the Solent team out of their offense with their aggressive approach. The final score of the contest 91-55 was a real reflection of the effort that the Flyers put into this game.

Coach Guy Coles was proud of his team’s performance saying “ All season I have been telling them that they can compete with anybody and today they showed it.  We now have a semi final at home against Reading Rockets which is not going to be easy , Reading have one of the best junior development programs in the country and are always amongst the best teams around. If we play like we did against Solent I think we can definitely compete and who knows what can happen in this one off encounter".

The Flyers second Under 13s development tournament took place on Sunday. The event was really successful giving the opportunity to almost 60 children from Bristol, Stroud and Gloucester to test their skills in competitive basketball games.

The Gloucester team finished top of the table after going undefeated with 4 wins. Flyers entered two teams in tournament coached by the Flyers US imports Davis Bowne and Doug McLaughlin-Williams. Both teams performed well and had a number of exciting games. Probably the highlight of the tournament was Marcus Kings’ golden basket in overtime that helped Flyers 1 beat Stroud 2 and secure a 2^nd place finish.

Head of Basketball Andreas Kapoulas commented onthe tournament:

‘It was great to see all the children having fun playing basketball. It has been a great day and we would like to thank Stroud and Gloucester for participating and making this possible.’

Head of junior development Guy Coles added:

‘This was a great tournament and it is our intention to run 3 more tournaments by the end of the season. March, April and one more in June/July before the school summer holidays.’

Final League Table
	Games	Wins	Loss	Points
Gloucester	4	4	0	8
Flyers 1	4	3	1	7
Stroud 1	4	2	2	6
Flyers 2	4	1	3	5
Stroud 2	4	1	3	5

Team Rosters for the Flyers teams and tournaments results are below:

Flyers 1	Flyers 2
Courtney Mannings	Chloe Hinett
Louis Morris	Jared Evans
Marcus King	Ben Holman
Nathan King	Mike Barber
Dom Pearcy	Aiden Khan
Tom Bently	Christian Cery
Casey Smith	Ben Morris
Nick Doe	Davies Wonnacott
George Pykov

Time	Game	Home	Score	Away	Score	Location
10:00	1	Flyers 1	36	Flyers 2	22	Court 1
10:00	2	Gloucester	32	Stroud 2	31	Court 2
10:45	3	Flyers 2	34	Stroud 1	40	Court 1
10:45	4	Flyers 1	26	Gloucester	30	Court 2
11:45	5	Stroud 1	18	Stroud 2	36	Court 1
11:45	6	Flyers 2	16	Gloucester	46	Court 2
12:45	7	Gloucester	40	Stroud 1	22	Court 1
12:45	8	Stroud 2	36	Flyers 1	38	Court 2
13:45	9	Stroud 1	32	Flyers 1	33	Court 1
13:45	10	Stroud 2	19	Flyers 2	38	Court 2

The game started in an untidy fashion with turnovers for both teams and the score was still 0-0 after 2 mins. Storm were first on the board with a free throw before Joe Packwood opened the Flyers account with two 3 pointers. The 1st quarter ended with the flyers just up.

Some good defence by Luke Kay, Jack Griffin and Josh Rogers in the second and 3rd quarters and some consistent scoring from all the players enabled the flyers to open up a 22 point lead. This enabled Coach Reed to give all the squad court time and the flyers held on in the 4th, despite some exceptional scoring from Storm's Anton Pritchard to record an impressive double over the City Academy based team.

Scorers for the Flyers were:

Joe Packwood 15, Josh Rogers 14, Luke Kay 10.

On Saturday, the Bristol Academy Flyers recorded an important 75 to 74 win at home versus old rivals, Taunton Tigers to revive Bristol’s hopes of a top 3 league finish. The next day the Flyers were unable to take advantage of their home draw as they exited the National Trophy with a narrow 84 to 86 quarter-final loss to London Met.

Flyers Coach Andreas Kapoulas had mixed feelings about the weekend:

‘Saturday’s victory against Taunton was valuable for us. First of all in terms of confidence, it was good to start the New Year with a win against the team that gave Manchester their first loss of the season but also in terms of league positioning as now the game versus Derby next week can bring us closer to the top of the table. Definitely a good way to bounce back from the three straight losses back in December.’

The Greek Coach went on to talk about Sunday’s National Trophy quarter-final defeat to London Met:

‘A disappointing loss especially as we led by 7 points with 2 minutes to go. It was a chance to be in another semi-final this year however we need to take things into perspective. A place in the National Cup final and success in the league campaign are far more important for us. In a way now we can concentrate to the challenges ahead with no other competition distructions.’

Saturday’s game saw the Flyers take an early 20-17 1^st period lead. Tigers fought back in the second period and with a basket by Captain Paul Yabsley went to the changing rooms at halftime with a 2 point lead, 34-36. Taunton maintained their momentum in the third period to increase their lead to 7 by the end of the period. Two Taunton threes to start the 4^th quarter put Flyers down by 8 with 7 minutes left in the game. However a long two by Makowski and a deep three by US import McLaughlin-Williams would give Flyers the required energy to come back in the game. 4 straight free throws by McLaughlin-Williams gave Bristol the lead with 3 minutes left in the game. Taunton with a basket by US import Page will go up 1. With 12 seconds left, Flyers 17 year old guard Rob Loftman drove strong to the basket to get fouled. The shot went in however the refs waived the basket off and handed the Bristol player with two free throws. Loftman made both shots to give a 75 to 74 win to the Flyers as Taunton failed to score in the last 12 seconds of the game.

Top scorers for the Flyers were McLaughlin-Williams with 20 and Loftman with 17 while for Taunton Yabsley led all with 19.

On Sunday McLaughlin-Williams 14 point first half performance gave the Flyers a 40 to 34 lead at halftime. Bristol started the third period well extending their lead by 8 however baskets by London’s Obanye and Noha saw the teams go in the fourth periof tied at 57. With 2 minutes left Flyers build a 7 point lead which did not prove to big enough as 7 points by Danchie gave London a 2 point lead with 10 seconds left in the game. Bristol failed to win the game in the closing seconds despite getting two great looks. The final score of 84 to 86 saw the visitors London Met celebrating a great away victory and a place in the national trophy semi-final.

Top scorer for the Flyers were McLaughlin-Williams and Makowski with 21 and 14 while Noha led all for London with 21.

Flyers U16's were convincing winners in thier first game of 2010 to keep up thier impressive league form. Torbay were brushed aside 77-38 with some impressive performances from the 2nd year Under 16's and some good cameo's from the rest of the squad as well.

Coach Reed started with a strong five and it paid dividends as the Flyers opened up a 19 point lead at the end of the first quarter. This was down to some good perimeter shooting from Jack Griffin and the mercurial Joe Packwood. Coach was able to rotate the team throughout the second quarter and they extended their lead even more.

The second half was  a formality and you could see from the sidelines that the team weren't playing with the same intensity as they had started the game. Having said this there were still some good individual performances from the likes of Josh Rogers on the offensive boards and some intense defense played by George Thorne.

The Flyers next game is against Bristol Storm this Sunday where they are looking to keep their winning streak going. 

Flyers U14 travelled to Cirencester for the latest league match’s v Gloster Jets and Dorset Storm. A strong start from the flyers saw the Bristol team up 12 –0 four minutes into the game. With good support from all the bench, including Mike Berber with 2 pts and 8 rebounds. The result was formality with the Flyers winning 85 – 29.

High scorers James Bradbury 25, Dan Rigby 20 and Alex Bloomer 18.

The second game of the day saw the much bigger Dorset team take on our young Flyers. With another great effort from all the team the Flyers stayed almost basket for basket with the storm for the first quarter, only behind 13 to 9. The Storm kept on the pressure and the second quarter saw the lead grow to 10. With some strong shooting from range from Dan Rigby and strong drive to the basket from Alex Bloomer the lead was closed down to 7 during the 3^rd quarter. Unfortunately the size and strength of the Storm team prevailed and the final score was 63 – 43 to the Storm.

High scorers Dan Rigby 12, Alex Boomer 11.

Bristol Academy Flyers                 83           (15, 40, 58)                          }              EBL Men’s National Cup

Derby Trailblazers                           76           (15, 38, 57)                          }              Semi-Final

The Bristol Academy Flyers achieved national recognition by advancing to the National Cup Final for the first ever time in the club’s history with an impressive 83 to 76 semi-final performance against Derby Trailblazers.

Flyers were led by Captain Greg Streete with 23 points while US import Doug McLaughlin-Williams added 20 points.

The game started with the Flyers taking an early 13 to 5 lead which Derby slowly chipped away to find the two teams level at 15 by the end of the first period. Two back to back three’s at the start of the second period gave Derby the upper hand who led by as many as 10 points halfway through the period. The Bristol side however did not give up and with a 14 - run in the last minutes of the second period, regained the lead to go up at halftime 40 to 38.

Bristol began the third quarter with another 5-0 burst before  Simon Allaway netted back to back threes for Derby. Bristol though went on enother11-1 run, culminating in a three from Mike Gregory and spectacular slam from McLaughlin-Williams.

The Trailblazers fought back with 2 threes from Gayle and a jumper from Woodhouse to set up a potentially enticing final quarter with the Flyers ahead at 58-57.

The final ten minutes was Flyers basketball as Derby looked low on confidence and short of ideas. Bristol opened up a 74-62 lead midway through the quarter and despite attempts from Derby’s captain Shaw, to bring his team back, the Flyers never looked back securing an 83 to 76 victory.

The qualification to the Cup final is one of the biggest moments in the Flyers history and Coach Andreas Kapoulas was nothing more than complimentary to his players:

‘Congratulations have to go to the players for their hard work and concentration. Derby gave us a strong game but I think we responded to the challenge really well. It was defining moment for our team.’

Flyers had to bounce back on Sunday’s semi-final after a devastating league loss the day before in Leeds were the home team recorded a 91 to 70 win over the Flyers.  The Greek Coach referred to the game on Sunday’s post game remarks:

‘The loss on Saturday was upsetting. However as I said to the team, everyone goes through a tough time and we had to grind through it. The way our team responded on Sunday shows the character and determination that our players possess.’

Flyers will now have face in the Cup Final, league leaders Manchester Magic who secured a 77 to 69 away in London in their semi-final match up.

Coach Kapoulas commented about the upcoming Cup Final on the 31^st January at English Institute of Sport in Sheffield:

‘It is going to be a great game. Manchester are a really good basketball club and competing against them in the Cup final is such a great achievement for Bristol basketball. Both teams will want to bring back home the silverware and it will come down to this one remaining game We are really looking forward to it.’

Bristol Academy Flyers recorded their 7^th successive win against the only other undefeated team in the South West Conference, the Plymouth Marjon Cannons

The first quarter saw a sluggish start for the Bristol team as Cannons scored on what it seemed like every time they went down the floor leading early on 8-0. It was captain of the Flyers Joe Packwood that kept them in the game with two 3 pointers and by the end of the first the Flyers were only trailing by three 15-12.

The 2^nd quarter was still tight but it was a better defensive effort from the Bristol side. Some good intensity from Jack Griffin and Jack Staynings especially, saw Marjon’s cut and by the end of the half Flyers had the lead by three.

Often it is the third quarter where games can be won or lost and this was no different in this game. Coach Reed must have said the right things to the Flyers in the half time break because they came out impressively in the third with some great stops on the defensive end. On the offensive end of the floor it was this quarter where 6ft 6 Josh Rogers woke up and realised it was his time to shine. He scored  8 points in the third and this killed the game off. In the final quarter other players were used and they helped to solidify the win for the Flyers, running out 71-52 victors.

Coach Reed after the game was quick not to be too confident after a good win. “ the players when they decided to turn up played well but it is disappointing that they need a wake up call sometimes. This was the biggest game of their season to date and it was a shame they didn’t play like they did in the first half how they did in the second. Having said that it was good to see them able to close out the game in the manner they did and this sets us up well for the new year”.

Leading scorers for the Flyers were:

Jack Griffin 12, Josh Roger 18 , Luke Kay 14, Joe Packwood 14.

Cannons misfire as  U18 Conference Flyers record second win in as many weeks

Bristol Academy Flyers saw off Plymouth Marjon Cannons with a 78-59 win at Plymouth this Saturday. It was their second win in as many weeks following a convincing victory over local rivals Cardiff Celts.

This time their opponents were Plymouth, a club with a strong development structure so it was always going to be a tough encounter but the Flyers looked ready. In the warm up alone, the intensity was such that it seemed they would burn out before the game had started.

Even though the Flyers did seem incredibly fired up for the contest the opening quarter was a competitive affair with the no one team establishing a run to open up the game. For the Flyers a big bucket by Josh Milton separated the two teams at the end of the quarter with the Flyers taking a 15-12 lead at the end of the first.

In the middle of the second quarter was when the Flyers managed to create a little bit of distance between themselves and the Cannons. Some good individual defense by A J Uithaler created some good opportunities for him to score in transition and opened up a 8 point window for the Flyers. This though was snuffed out by Cannons captain Oldershaw who scored their last 6 points and closed the gap for the Plymouth side. The score at the end of the half being 32-28 to the Cannons.

The third quarter was where the game was blown apart and this was largely down to some pin point three pointery from Flyers sharp shooter Joe Packwood. He hit three 3’s in the third including a four point play and this was the difference at the end of the quarter with the Flyers establishing a 12 point lead, 57-45.

The final period saw Flyers take a bit more control and although there was some valiant play from the Cannons it wasn’t enough to get back in the game. Slowly throughout the quarter the Flyers edged away resulting in a convincing 78-59 win. Coach Coles was happy for the players “ the guys really wanted it today and sometimes if the will to win is there the rest will fall into place. Today they ran some composed offense and played some good defense but overall it was team spirit that got them the win. This win puts them in second going into the Christmas break and I believe it is the springboard for them to be really competitive in the New Year.”

Top Scorers for the Flyers were Uithaler  17, Packwood 14, J Withey 8.

U18 Bristol Academy Flyers Premier topple Brixton Topcats

The Bristol Academy Flyers Premier Under 18’s defeated a tough Brixton Topcats team 86-69 on Sunday. It was a home fixture and the Flyers generally play better at the WISE Campus and this proved the case on this fixture.

The first quarter was a high scoring affair for both teams with a lot of transition baskets resulting in a game of mini runs for both sides. For the Flyers it was a case of long range shooting from a variety of players including Ire Omoyeni, Mike Farage and Kevin Regan. This gave the home side a lead of 6 going into the second quarter, leading 24-18.

In the second quarter the Brixton team suffered a little bit in terms of scoring and this had a massive affect on the scoreline. Flyers still maintained good scoring throughout this quarter with 6ft 8 Enrique Garcia adding some much needed size for the Flyers teams and getting some put backs to help the team gain the advantage 42-27 at halftime.

The second half was a tight affair with both teams having good runs to make it entertaining game for the crowd that was watching. W Francis for the Topcats really lit the game up in the second half scoring the majority of their points to keep them in the game. This meant at one point it became a four point game.

Even in the last quarter the Flyer’s team couldn’t pull away until the final few minutes and the sea of change occurred with a NBA range three pointer from Courtney John-Lewis. After this shot the intensity of defense, both individually and with the team increased and the topcats were held to 6 points in the last 4 minutes. For the Bristol side ALmasi Hanada was instrumental in finishing the game off strongly for the Flyers scoring 9 of the last 11 points for the home team, making the final score 86-69 to the Bristol Academy Flyers. Coach Coles was pleased with the performance “ It was a good win and good to see relatively balanced scoring. One thing we have been lacking this season is offense and today proved we can play if we play together. Let’s hope we get a win next week to end the year on a high”.

Top Scorers for the Flyers: A Hanada 22, I Omoyeni 15 , E Garcia 17 points.

Filton College Basketball Academy best in the South West

Filton College Basketball Academy saw off all other competition in the South West Colleges tournament for the 6^th year in a row.

The event was hosted at the WISE campus with 10 teams entering from around the South West ranging from Truro College to Exeter. The teams were split into two groups with the top teams from each progressing to the semi final stages.

For Filton College there was a lot at stake, not only were they champions for the last 4 years they were also hosting the event. Their first game saw them pitted against Yeovil College. In the shortened ten minute fixture Filton managed to score an impressive 38 points to Yeovil’s 5. This included some great individual defense from Robert Loftman and Ire Omoyeni sometimes not even letting Yeovil approach the half way line.

The second group game was against St Brendan’s, another Bristol based team, so there was local rivalry as well as pride at stake. Some sharp shooting from Josh Milton from beyond the arc and Joel Osborne from the short corner saw off the tenacious side from the other side of Bristol, 38-21. The last two group games were much of the same for the Filton side with a 48-12 win against Somerset College of Arts and Technology and a 31 -3 win versus Weymouth College. This two comprehensive wins meant that Filton would top the group and head off to the semi final with a better basket difference than any of the other teams.

In the semi final FIlton faced a Truro College side that has continued to get better year on year. This game was different from any of the group stage matches and it was a shock to the system for the Filton players. In the 7^th minute of the ten minute game the score was 14-9 to Filton then Truro went on 4-0 run and it became a one point game. In the end in the final minute it came down to a massive play from Men’s team player Rob loftman or drove hard to the basket got fouled, making the basket. He missed the free throw but the raw athleticism of Filton’s other Men’s team player Ire Omoyeni saw him out jump the other team and tip in the ball. This sealed the victory for Filton College taking to the final to face old arch rivals Richard Huish to see who would be crowned champion.

In the final game Filton showed their true colours with a defensive display to match anything seen at the WISE Campus this year.  In the ten minute game they held Richard Huish to four points, controlling the boards and working the ball on the offensive end.  Some great team defense and individual defense from players such as Kevin Regan and Almasi Hanada meant that the game was Filton’s by the 6^th minute. AS the final whistle went cheers went up to signal a 5^th successive victory in this competition for Filton.

Coach Andreas Kapoulas was pleased with the result “ the players did what was asked of them and in the final I was impressed with their defensive intensity. To go from group stage games that are relatively easy to a lot tougher competition is sometimes difficult but the players managed to work hardest when it mattered most”.

This win means that for the 5^th time in as many years Filton College will go to the British Colleges tournament in Loughborough next year, a great achievement for the team, coaching staff and College.

‘We did not make ourselves justice. Our defensive effort was really poor and we lacked energy. I think we were complacent and Leopards took advantage of that. Hopefully this will make the players realise that every game is important and we got to always play with a sense of urgency. ’

Leopards showed their intentions early going into the first break 29-24 up. Tony Berry opened the second period scoring for Bristol, but baskets by London’s Ronnie Baker kept the Big Cats ahead, as they led 36-35 at the midway stage of the quarter. A trey from American forward McLaughlin-Williams gave Bristol the lead, but De Ferrari and Greenan gave Leopards a six-point lead going into the final minute of the half. However a tap-in on the buzzer from Tony Berry cut Leopards lead to 45-42 going into the locker room.

Ten unanswered Flyers points at the start of the third period put them 57-54 up giving the home team hope for a comeback but baskets by De Ferrari sent the Leopards into the final break with a narrow 2-point lead, 68-66. Flyers were unable to catch up with the London side despite efforts in the fourth period by Streete and McLaughlin-Williams  giving Leopards the first away league win of the season.

Flyers will now try to get back to winning ways next Saturday when they travel to Leeds to face the team that is currently second in the league with a record of 4 wins and 1 loss. The day after, the Flyers will return home for the National Cup Semi-final versus Derby Trailblazers.

Although not at their best, the Flyers U16's were still too strong for Stroud Sharks, running out 70-42 winners to make it six league wins in a row.

Coach Reed started with his strongest 5 and the Flyers opened up an early lead which was never relinquished. The Flyers made too many errors in the game but some strong scoring from Jack Griffin and Joe Packwood put the game out of Stroud's reach. Coach Reed was once again able to give the whole squad valuable court time and experience. He commented on the game just played but already has his eyes on next week's encounter. "Obviously I am pleased with the win today but next week is the big game. Plymouth Marjon Cannons away may be fixture that helps to decide the league. We need to be focused in practice this week and we need to make sure we prepare the right way for the game next Saturday."

The Bristol Academy Flyers reached the semi-finals of the National Cup for the first time ever in their Club history as holders Reading were knocked out 84 to 80. This a great achievement for the Club that now will host Derby Trailablazers on Sunday 13^th December in a game that will determine a place in the National Cup Final.

Douglas McLaughlin-Williams proved to be the difference between the teams, finishing with 22 points, nine assists and three steals. He was one of the four Flyers in double figures, with Greg Streete adding 17, Rob Loftman 16 and Davis Bowne 14.

Bristol led 21-18 at the end of the first period and Flyers carried on protecting the lead till a buzzer beating three by  Reading’s Parker levelled the teams on 39 points at the interval.

The third period went the Rockets way as they build a 9 point lead by the end of the quarter. However, Bristol with an impressive fourth period defensive performance and a few treys from Rob Loftman and McLaughlin-Williams as well some important mid-range baskets by Davis Bowne soon restored order to get to an impressive 84 to 80 victory.

The day before the Flyers continued their winning ways  as the Bristol side beat London Met on the buzzer with a three point shot by Jack Stannard to claim a very important away victory that puts them third on the league table with 4 wins and 1 loss. London  Mets took a 24-15 first quarter lead over Bristol and extended it to 42-32 at half-time and 62-49 at the final break. However, led by 21 points apiece from Greg Streete and Doug McLaughlin-Williams, the Flyers stormed back to take the victory with a 33-18 fourth period.

The Flyers Coach Andreas Kapoulas praised his players after the very successful weekend:

‘We talked a lot this past week about toughness and execution. The team responded really well to both games. Even though things did not always go well, the guys sticked together and kept on playing.’

‘I was really pleased with our fourth period performances in both games. Both oppositions played really well against us however we remained concentrated and stepped up at the right moment.’

When asked about the Cup semi-final, the Greek Coach added:

‘It’s a great achievement for our Club and Bristol basketball to reach the National Cup semi and now we have a great opportunity to get to the final as the draw has given us a home game versus Derby on the 13^th December. We look forward to the game but we still need to remain concentrated to the two league games ahead. This will our focus will be on the home game versus London Leopards.’

Bristol Academy Flyers Under 14’s clip Eagles wings

Bristol Academy Flyers Under 14 team claimed their first win of the season with a 52-46 victory over Exeter Eagles. With Adrian Turner taking over coaching duties from Liam Anderson Browne it was all change in the coaching hot seat.

The 1^st quarter started well for the home side with South West players Dan Rigby and Alex Bloomer showing why have been chosen to represent their region with some great individual efforts. Both teams showed they have a little way to go with their fundamental skills as there were a lot of open shots going begging but the Bristol, side were the slightly more consistent team. They finished the end of the first quarter 17-9 up.

Coach Turner made use of his bench well in the second quarter bringing in younger players such as Marcus King and Louis Morris who showed great enthusiasm, justifying their inclusion in the U14’s National League team.  Their up-tempo defence combined with some good team play kept the Bristol side in the lead at half time, 30-23.

The 3^rd quarter was where the Flyers took control with some great offensive play by James Bradbury, who also represents the South West Area Performance Centre. The icing on the cake in the third quarter was Taylor Samuels’s deep baseline 2 which led to a massive crowd eruption from the sideline. This didn’t help the Exeter’s coach’s cause, especially considering Samuels is his nephew! This shot amongst others helped the Flyers have a 46-29 lead going into the final quarter.

Exeter Eagles chipped away at the Flyers lead and it became a tense final few minutes but the Flyers pulled through with some great rebounding from Joe Murray towards the end of the game. Coach Turner was proud of all his players especially considering the relatively short amount of time he has been with them as Head Coach “ It was a great team performance today. We knew we would have to play together if we were going to have success. Let’s hope this is the building block that kick-starts our season”.