Alex Gray from Woodend, Sam Haslett from Lancefield and Sonny Maxwell from Gisborne took home gold at the under 18 Foot Locker National Junior Basketball Championships over 10 days in Brisbane.
The boys represented Victoria Country and battled it out against the other states and territories over the gruelling campaign.
After losing the initial round to New South Wales Metro, the team regrouped to win their next eight matches. This mighty team with their ‘never say die’ attitude continued to win, even when being down. The momentum consistently building knocking over Queensland South and title favourites Western Australia Metro in an exciting last five-minute run in both games. In the grand final, again against New South Wales Metro, Vic Country made a blistering start but then found themselves down at half-time, however, this gritty and determined group triumphed with an exciting last quarter bringing home Vic Country’s first gold medal in 35 years.
Head coach Brenton O’Brien, with coaches Dylan Cole, Zac Tripp and Fernando Rios-Rodriguez and team manager Ben White, built a training lead up against quality NBL1, Big V and under 23 teams, which ultimately gave them the confidence for their success.
The three boys trained for three months twice a week all over Victoria with the extended squad of emergencies, which included two other local teammates Christian Beecroft and Finn McGinty, and are so proud to have achieved the ultimate with their best mates.
This victory caps of the end of their Junior Vic Country journey after five years of being in the Basketball Victoria high-performance pathway.
