LAST-SECOND HALLOWEEN HEARTACHE FOR FIRSTS AT ARDEN!
October 31, 2022
TILE HILL TROJANS 1 CRASHED TO A HEARTBREAKING ONE-POINT 86-87 DEFEAT AT SOLIHULL 6TH FORM COLLEGE AFTER COMING FROM 16 POINTS DOWN TO LEVEL THE SCORES IN THE FINAL MINUTE IN A TOUGH, NO-HOLDS BARRED CONTEST WHICH SAW THE CHAMPIONS ARDEN GRIFFINS GO TOP AND LEAVE THE FORMER CHAMPIONS’ COACH “GUTTED”.
THAT WAS ALL TREVOR ROBINSON COULD UTTER AFTER HIS SIDE DELIVERED A GUTSY PERFOMANCE, ALBEIT FAR FROM ONE OF THEIR BEST, AND IT WAS A FOUL BY ROBINSON WHICH SENT LUKE HATFIELD TO THE LINE WITH JUST ONE SECOND ON THE CLOCK WHERE THE GRIFFINS’ TALISMAN LEFT THE VISITORS ON THE FLOOR BY SINKING THE SECOND OF HIS PAIR OF FREE-THROWS.
KNOWINGTHAT THE GAME CLOCK OWULD NOT START UNTIL THEBALL TOUCHED A PLAYER ON COURT, TOP SCORER ASH DICKSON HURLED THE BALL TOWARDS THE OTHER END BUT IT CAUGHT THE CRICKET NETS HANGING FROM THE ROOF EN-ROUTE AND THE TURNOVER WAS CALLED.
IT WAS A SHAME THAT THE FIXTURE HAD TO END IN THIS MANNER FOR BOTH TEAMS GAVE THEIR ALL, AND IT WAS A PARTICULARLY POIGNANT EVENING FOR GRIFFINS’ HOT-SHOT PAUL ROBERTS, WHO, ALONG WITH HIS TEAM-MATES DEDICATED THEIR VICTORY TO PAUL’S FATHER ALAN, WHO SADLY PASSED AWAY LAST WEEK.
GRIFFINS LOOKED COMFORTABLE FROM THE OFF AND SHOT INTO A 27-20 LEAD INTO THE FIRST BREAK. MATCHING EACH OTHER THROUGH THE NEXT TWO PERIODS SAW THE GAME ENTER THE FINAL TEN MINUTES WITH GRIFFINS UP BY SEVEN AT 83-76, BUT THEY WERE STOPPED INTHEIR TRACKS AS TILE HILL HIT NINE ON THE BOUNCE AND AS THE SECONDS TICKED AWAY THE SCORES WERE LOCKED AT 86-86 AND OVERTIME LOOKED TO BE WRITTEN IN AS THE NEXT CHAPTER IN THIS EPIC.
BUT THEN IT CHANGED AND IT WAS “COOL-HAND LUKE” WHO PUT THE VISITORS TO THE SWORD – BEFORE THE CRICKET NET INTERVENED!
ARDEN: ROBERTS 26, HATFIELD 18, WORKMAN 14, OPOKU 9, WOOD 6, SANGHORN 6, FORREST 5, MIZRA 2, RICHAMINAS 0.
TILE HILL: DICKSON 28, LARNER 21, ONIONS 18, OWEN 9, KOLAWOLE 6, MURRAY 3, JONES 0, ROBERTS 0, ROBINSON 0.