In a change of style, my report on this occasion will be divided into 2 categories- fact and opinion. Mystics U14s jaunt into the land of Maid Marion and Friar Tuck (a good name for a fast food chain- opinion!), to play the powerful Nottingham Wildcats, was destined to be better than any reality t.v. show in terms of quality, drama and excitement.(Opinion but very nearly fact.) As the top 2 teams in the Northern Conference, we had already been involved in a really close affair which saw Nottingham edge home by 4 (43-47) largely due to their vastly superior size advantage.(More or less fact.) Psychic Sally had predicted that a similarly even encounter was in store today. (Pure fantasy but likely to be a fact!)

After an all-too-brief warm up following an U16 game on our court (fact), we began sluggishly and were immediately put on the back foot due to a possible world record.(Mostly guesswork.) The home side’s first 6 offences all brought gifts for them. They scored with the first and drew fouls with the next 5 in quick succession.(Fact.) This meant that in less time than it takes me to burn toast, the foul count was 0-5 against us.(Undeniable fact.) Even more damaging, one of our least vertically challenged and most influential players, Holly Bryan had been blown for 2 fouls within the first 90 seconds.(Devastating, game changing fact.)

The impact of this was compounded by the fact (fact!) that in the first meeting between the 2 sides, Nottingham had had (sorry for the stutter) 1 starter- soup of the day- missing. As (bad) luck would have it, she, too, is yet another tall, athletic individual who could jump through the roof. (Slight exaggeration.) We’d had both Charli Wroe and Olivia Forster missing then so if Charli stood on Olivia’s shoulders, we’d be able to have a comparable match-up in height.(Contrived fact.) Faced with such physical inequalities, our game plan involved trying to contain our worthy opponents during the initial skirmishes and eventually wear them down in the latter stages.(Wishful thinking but half the plan did come largely to fruition.)

In anticipation of such a demanding challenge ahead which was likely to be as tight as a size 8 foot in a size 5 shoe. (Joke), I knew that team unity and togetherness was vital so, prior to tip off, I explained to every girls that this was not an occasion in which I could ensure all 10 of them a similar amount of court time, as happens in most of our games. (Irrefutable fact.) I added that whether on court or on the bench, they could all make a positive contribution to the team effort. (A fact taken in by virtually all players.) In the event, I did, somehow manage to get all 10 on court in the first half.(Miracle.) Inevitably, some individuals/combinations were more efficient than others.(Opinion, probably subjective.) 

After a scrappy 8 minutes, with both defences in the ascendancy, there was very little in it at 8-10. (Mixture of opinion and fact.) This did deteriorate to 8-13 by the end of the first quarter as the home side benefitted by sinking 3 of the 6 free throws they were awarded in the final 2 minutes.(Fact.) The 5 point deficit was soon wiped out as, partly due to foul trouble, I hit on the combination of Courtney Kenyon-Betts, Lucy Bryan, Ellie Atherton, Lilja Toland and Lauren Addy which worked well for us at both ends of the court. They performed as harmoniously as any Welsh Male Voice Choir to bring us parity at 17-17. We were now looking the better side (biased opinion) until changes were forced upon us when both Lucy and Ellie joined Holly and Beth McLoughlin in foul trouble.(Reality.) The upheaval caused by this translated into a cruel 0-11 run up to half-time in the course of which Nottingham were donated no less than 8 more free throws than we were. (They were given 8. We received 0.) (Factual sour grapes.)

17-28 down to a buoyant team of talented athletes (although 4 of their 10 players saw no court time), on their home court with all the advantages this can bring (veiled suggestion), could have been deemed to be as daunting a task to many young teams as attempting to cross the Atlantic in a pedalo (nonsense!) but not for Mystics. The situation did get even worse at 19-34 but following a time-out during which I may have said something sensible (doubtful), the cavalry arrived in the form of 3s from Courtney and Lucy plus a breakaway 2 also from Lucy to give us renewed hope at 26-34. (More wishful thinking.) The only additions to the score for either side in the last 3 minutes of the third period came from free throws, 6 for them (3 made), 2 for us (1 made.) (Fact.) This took it to 27-37 as we entered the fourth quarter. Could we take heart from the fact that we had just won the third quarter? (Question.)

Lilja, who had an outstanding game, opened the scoring, only for the 10 point margin to be re-established via yet 2 more free throws for the hosts.(Fact.) Offensive rebounds and put backs by Nottingham’s impressive bigs established a more comfortable lead for them at 31-43 with 7 minutes left. There was now no reason to try to protect Holly from possibly fouling out too soon. With 4 fouls collected as swiftly as my window cleaner pretends to wash my windows, she had spent more time sitting on her backside than she had on court. Her re-introduction sparked a highly commendable comeback which only just failed to see us sneak home. Our 3 leading scorers for the season so far- Holly, Lucy and Charli- all converted to bring us within striking distance at 42-49 (long shot!) Then, 4 more free throws yielded 2 points for one team- guess which one-(fact) to restore the gap to 9 at 42-51 with time rapidly running out.

All seemed lost but this Mystics team never quits. Holly still had time to score 5 points to get us to within 2 baskets at 47-51 before time ran out. Well played both sides! Nottingham had again made effective use of their superiority in size but we had coped relatively well with this. (Opinion.) They had looked the better side in the first half, we did in the second.(Opinion backed up by the scores in each quarter.) We also coped with having to re-shuffle the pack to deal (see what I did there?) with 4 of our 5 starters accumulating 4+ fouls each relatively early in the piece, showing our strength in depth to good effect.

When I point out that both sides made 50% of their free throws (fact), it may also appear that we even coped here as well. However, if I add the fact that we made 6 out of our 12 (one eighth of our total points) but they were given a possible world record 35 of which they made 17 (one third of their total points), even a bottom set Maths pupil could ascertain that this was too much to cope with. Perhaps we should learn not to foul so much……(Opinion.)

There is no reason for us to see this narrow defeat as in any way negative. We finished far stronger than our opponents, winning the fourth quarter by 6, and can now look forward to our final 2 league games against Tameside and Derby, the outcomes of which will have a greater effect on our season than this minor hiccup. Well played girls. You are so tough mentally. You gave it everything and almost pulled it off.

Thanks to James and Sammy for all they do and to all of those parents who support our team so wholeheartedly and selflessly.

PS. The U16s are unable to play us this Sunday so unfortunately we have no game this weekend.

Jim Carnegie

Mystics short trip to play Tameside’s second string last Sunday turned out to be as comfortable as fur-lined slippers, as it was always likely to be against very young opponents. Tameside tried very hard and, unlike Charli’s mum’s washing machine, kept going but were unable to cope with our all-round fire-power which was as explosive as expensive Chinese fireworks.

In a game where we gave away more fouls (16) than points (15), our sternest test was trying to decipher which colour markings were basketball appropriate. The court floor was covered with so many lines that they could easily have been painted by Picasso during his psychedelic period after a heavy night out! The lines were even more confusing than in any Shakespeare play, especially as the usual choice of red or black had both been overlooked in favour of yellow which could be spotted if you squinted!

Despite the huge margin of victory, we began as if our 5 starters had been partying throughout Saturday night. I called an early time-out and reminded our zombie impersonators to forget the jelly and ice-cream and get down to business. Thereafter, for the most part, we were focused and incisive. Although the game was as one-sided as a straight line, both teams did gain something positive from it. As is our custom, at no time did we press Tameside which allowed them to have plenty of possession and prevented them from feeling completely overwhelmed. For us, Ellie Atherton and Courtney Kenyon-Betts, two of our defensive king-pins (or queen-pins?), shone offensively along with 4 of the 5 our players who are still eligible to play at this level. Charli Wroe, Olivia Forster, Lilja Toland and Kizzie Spence combined to score 54 of our 115 points which bodes very well for 2017-18. Herein, some credit must be afforded to 3 of our more prolific scorers, Holly and Lucy Bryan and Beth McLoughlin who were all happy to put the team first and take a back seat offensively. I was pleased to note a huge improvement in the defensive contribution made by Lauren Addy and Ellie Hatton, both of whom were excellent in this department today.

With a mere 3 conference games remaining, we are now sure to be seeded in the top 7, even if we slip up badly and lose all 3 tough opponents – Nottingham, Tameside and Derby. This gives us a home tie in the last 16. Who we face obviously depends on whether we lose 3,2,1 or none of those games. Lose 2 or 3 and we will be seeded 7 and be at home to the 10th seed which could well be Tameside. Lose 1 and we’ll be seed #4 and at home to seed 13, probably Derby. Win all 3 and we’ll be seed #1 and at home to seed 16, probably Hatfield. Get through the last 16 round and last 8 opponents may be Sheffield at home for #1 seeds, Haringey at home for #4 seeds or Richmond away for #7 seeds. All this is based on educated guesses on my part but won’t be far off.

Thanks to Sammy and James for their superb assistance and to our loyal band of supporters.

Jim Carnegie

The Mystics have filled up the WBBL Stat Stars list for the month of January. To add to her already impressive month, Dominique Allen leads the league in field goal percentage, shooting 67% for the field, she also comes in second place in rebounds with an average of 11 per game, small wonder then that she is the WBBL player of the month!

Joining Dominique on the Stat Stars list is Georgia Jones who led the league in assists, averaging 8.3 per game, while Rheanne Bailey has been hot from the charity stripe, shooting 88.2% from the free throw line, second best in the league. 

WBBL Stat Stars for January:
Mystics’ Dominique Allen 67% FG% 1st, 11 Rebounds Per Game 2ndhttps://t.co/h94DmstjP1 pic.twitter.com/3w2JMkNI7b — Manchester Mystics (@Mcr_Mystics) February 2, 2017

WBBL Stat Stars for January:
Mystics’ Georgia Jones 8.3 Assists Per Game 1sthttps://t.co/h94DmstjP1 pic.twitter.com/1bivKGW40J — Manchester Mystics (@Mcr_Mystics) February 2, 2017

WBBL Stat Stars for January:
Mystics’ Rheanne Bailey 88.2% FT% 2ndhttps://t.co/h94DmstjP1 pic.twitter.com/cf19Z9BqUD — Manchester Mystics (@Mcr_Mystics) February 2, 2017

Congratulations to Manchester Mystics and Great Britain centre Dominique Allen who has received another individual accolade after being named Molten WBBL Player of the Month for January in recognition of her terrific performances for the Mystics.

It’s been a fantastic month for Allen and the award follows on from her being named MVP at the inaugural WBBL Cup Final at the Barclaycard Arena, when she propelled Mystics to their first piece of WBBL silverware.

While that was the highlight of what has been a great start to the new calendar year, Allen also produced the goods either side of that memorable day in Birmingham.

CONGRATULATIONS! @dom_allen12 of @gbbasketball @Mcr_Mystics is an award winner! https://t.co/YuPT2sMTC0#theWBBL pic.twitter.com/H2DHADvh15

— WBBL (@WBBLofficial) February 1, 2017

She averaged a fine double-double during the period after harvesting 15.5 points and 11 rebounds per game, also topping the shooting charts by converting a stellar 67% from the floor across her four outings.

Allen fought off stiff competition from previous monthly winners Steph Gandy of Westfield Health Sheffield Hatters and Ashley Harris of Nottingham Wildcats to take the gong.

In other news, Mystics’ Amy Browne makes the WBBL All-Star 5 for week 13 while Dominique Allen comes off the bench, congratulations to both.

Congrats to our starters – see who made the bench…..

https://t.co/RtaBcAtOHK #theWBBL pic.twitter.com/3gLE1DC3tq

— WBBL (@WBBLofficial) February 1, 2017

Mystics u14s game at Sheffield last October was a real humdinger which is also the name of a song by JJ Barnes, northern soul, check it out on youtube! We trailed for virtually the whole game but finished stronger than Hercules to sneak home by five, 48-43. Despite learning a great deal – wine gums £1 a bag at Asda- from this first encounter which I intended to use to our advantage (If I could remember what it was!), we all expected a similarly close fought- I use the word advisedly- contest on this occasion. 

I was fully aware (for once) that it would be necessary to get the match-ups right. (I even considered contacting E-harmony!) We would also have to find ways to subdue the threat of Sheffield’s 2 main scorers as well as dealing with their considerable height advantage. (High heels were not an option!)

Given the depth of our squad, I was confident we would give a good account of ourselves. Little did I know- a phrase often directed at me by my dear wife!- that I was about to witness as comprehensive a TEAM performance from a Mystics U14 side as I have seen for many years. I emphasise the word ‘team’ because we managed to overwhelm one of our main competitors while giving all 10 players meaningful court time, with each player making a positive contribution.

This has been a pleasing aspect of our season so far and means that we are less likely to tire in the second half than our opponents tend to (although I do occasionally doze off!) Today’s first half resembled a warm autumnal day (reasonably close!). The second half reminded me of someone extinguishing candles. It was a blow out!

As with any story, a good beginning was a must. Our 5 starters, Courtney Kenyon-Betts, Holly and Lucy Bryan, Beth McLoughlin and Charli Wroe, as opposed to 3 prawn cocktails and 2 soups, gave us exactly that. They came out of the blocks like greyhounds on speed! Beth, Lucy and Charli combined to pile up the points (22 in all) while Courtney and Holly were as miserly as Scrooge in restricting a team to only 11 in 10 minutes. (Half their normal tally.)

We had lost none of our efficiency or togetherness with the appearance of Ellie Atherton and Olivia Forster in the latter stages of the first quarter. The two of them always give all they’ve got and fitted in as well as my feet do into my favourite slippers. (Admittedly, not being rich, I do only have one pair!) Their introduction meant that I had now used 7 players and all 7 had been magnificent. ( Guess the film title!)

At this stage, against tough opponents, an 11 point lead is almost as healthy as 5 a day but could we re-produce an equally scintillating display in the second period? If we could, Sheffield would doubtless find it as difficult to turn things round as it would be to try to pick up ice cubes with chop sticks whilst wearing boxing gloves.

We couldn’t. Sheffield upped their defensive intensity and despite Holly now scoring almost as regularly as a brain-dead US President contrives to alienate fair-minded people, we could only add 2 to our lead at 36-23 by half-time. Before the tip, we would have been as happy as Larry, whoever he is, with a scoreboard showing us just one away from two well-known lemonade drinks- 13 up! However, what followed was more, much more, than any optimist could have hoped for. The work-rate and mental toughness displayed by all 10 Mystics, including the yet to be mentioned trio, Ellie Hatton, Lidja Toland  and Lauren Addy was so impressive that it would have exceeded even Charles Dickens lofty expectations.

To win a quarter 23-5 against one of the best sides in the league is nearly as special as the Special One, old big head, thinks he is. We were now, incredibly, sitting on a massive 31 point lead at 59-28. Consequently, with no earthquakes forecast, I made more subs in the fourth quarter than were made for the Royal Navy during World War Two! In no way did this hinder the quality of our basketball. (I’m referring to our play, not the ball itself which is of dubious quality!) We bossed the final 10 minutes to the tune of 22-10 to finish with a dream-like 45 point margin of victory. (Fully 40 more than the last time we met Sheffield.) The 83-38 scoreline is not only a numerical palindrome, it also is even more astounding than it appears when one considers that, before this game, Sheffield averaged 77 points against all other opponents so far this season, conceding only 35 points per game.

Figures can, of course, be misleading- that’s why I find painting by numbers so confusing! – but the 8s and 3s here are a true reflection of our superiority on the day. With more demanding fixtures on the horizon, we must take heart from this but mustn’t get carried away by it. There remains all to play for.

Thanks to my trusted assistants Sammy and James for your truly valued help and to all our brilliant supporters.

Jim Carnegie

Having arrived at Gateway College early last Sunday, it was more a case of Closed Gateway apart from a few blokes whacking a dead budgie over a net. (Playing badminton.) When everyone had arrived, I was relieved to find that the Leicester Warriors side did not include Genghis Khan, Geronimo or Attila the Hun but disappointed that the pre-match music was no better than last year! (Get some Northern Soul on!)

With it being, in the words of one of our more eloquent parents, ‘quite a treck,’ I was keen to try give all 10 Mystics a fair amount of court time by using the not necessarily to be recommended five on, five off strategy I often employ against less experienced opponents. Leicester fall into this category so I balanced out the fives and the way Holly and Lucy Bryan (that’s their surname, not their brother), Charli Wroe, Beth McLoughlin and Ellie Atherton began reminded me of wearing new shoes which rub. It was blistering! It was like being a spectator at the Greyhound Derby watching Ellie, Charli and Lucy sprinting down court as if they were being chased by someone they didn’t want to talk to. Their efforts were rewarded by some precision passing from Beth and Holly who both have the vision and range to create chance after chance. We were 10-0 up in less time than it takes for a Frenchman to cook a steak and when our subs (players, not boats) came on, there was no respite for the hosts who nevertheless kept their heads up and gave everything for their ever-encouraging coach. Olivia Forster, Lilja Toland and Kizzie Spence were now the greyhounds and they were being fed by Lauren Addy and Ellie Hatton who delivers the ball like a skud missile launcher.

Our uncomplicated approach saw us take the first quarter 31-6 but things were nowhere near as easy in the second period. The Warriors came out fighting and shot well from medium range as we became somewhat complacent on offense and lazy on defence in the absence of our defensive mastermind, Courtney Kenyon-Betts. We turned round 50-17 to the good with all 10 players having played roughly the same amount of time. (Although some played more roughly than others!)

Leicester made us work hard for what we got in the third but were unfortunate to find Charli in irrepressible form, scoring 12 of our 25 points in the period. The two fives sent out in the fourth both clicked like an expensive Swiss watch as we ran in an incredible 39 points in 10 minutes without even the sniff of a press to finish 114-31. No less than 6 Mystics registered double points, with a seventh scoring 8. (That sounds almost as confusing as football commentator Glenn Hoddle’s comment: ‘ They’re like sitting ducks, standing there.’)

The post-match hospitality was of the usual high standard although one or two of our girls shared the basketball more than they did the pizza! Our victory ensures a place in the last sixteen but each win in our remaining 5 fixtures, with Sheffield next up, will give us a more advantageous draw. Congratulations girls but there is still all to play for.

Many thanks to Sammy for all his help and to all taxi-driving parents for you support.

Jim Carnegie