Oliver Lees
The Macedon Ranges Rockies’ debut season in the Country Basketball League north-west competition has come to an end, after they fell to the Echuca Pirates in the semi final.
On Saturday February 5, the Rockies hit the road for their first finals appearance off the back of a run of three consecutive wins in the regular season.
But the late season surge wasn’t enough to lift the Rockies over the Pirates, who won the match 87-70.
Rockies coach Michael Allen said the final score wasn’t reflective of the closeness of the contest, as the team’s were deadlocked 39-39 at half time, and the Pirates led by just one point going into the final term.
In the end, Echuca was buoyed by a streak of hot three-point shooting that put the result beyond question.
Reflecting on the match, Allen said he was disappointed to miss out on a chance to play in the grand final, but was equally as impressed to see his side hang in for so much of the contest.
“We were a bit shattered to be honest, we thought we had a big chance to win,” he said.
“I think we were up by nearly 10 points at one stage in the second quarter.
“We just stuck to our structures [in the first half], and it worked well for us. We were on point in terms of our game plan, but the second half got a little bit away from us a bit.”
Despite the disappointment, Allen ultimately felt the year had been a resounding success.
He commended the efforts of his entire squad and particularly the leadership of Matt Quinn and captain Tom Scott, who were instrumental in establishing the Rockies franchise within the competition.
“We’re extremely proud of how we’ve gone in year number one, and possibly exceeded a lot of expectations,” he said.
“We even had a fair few supporters travel up to Echuca. It blew us away and we were so excited by it. They did actually give us some momentum with their support.”
“We’re proud of that. It shows we’re playing a style of game they enjoy watching, which is really exciting.”
