Worthing Thunder title bid gathers pace as Essex Rebels are beaten

After an unusually slow first quarter which ended with Thunder trailing at the break, they took over the game cruising eventually to victory.

The first period saw Thunder begin cautiously with the lead switching several times and despite trailing by a single point (14-15) the confidence was always there that Thunder could go up a gear.

Thunder did just that in quarter two as their potent attacking force came to the fore. Ronald Blain led from the front – scoring, defending and entertaining the big crowd to his skills.

With David Moya running most of Thunder’s plays, Essex were in danger of being blown away. To their credit they dug in on defence and at the halfway stage they were still in the game, trailing the Thunder by 10 points at 40-30.

The third period belonged to Thunder as they took control.

Orlan Jackman showed what a class act he is as he scored at will and added steel to the defence.

The difference OJ makes to the defence is outstanding and with Kemel Archer, Hafeez Abdul and Veron Eze providing back-up, Thunder have an immense back court.

Added to that any team with Ronald, David, Ishmael and the evergreen Tom Ward in are going to be a real force.

The lead at the final break stretched to 20 points (63-43) making it almost game over once again.

Thunder piled in another 28 points in the final 10 minutes with a mix of tough ball and showbiz entertainment. Ronald led the way with an array of dunks and plays, teaming up with Hafeez showing what they could do in tandem.

As the bench was introduced the emerging Thunder talent of Ty Nsangu came to the fore as the 6ft 4in youngster dunked and blocked.

With a final score of 91-67 it was job done - and on to next weekend’s games against Thames Valley Cavaliers (league) and Brighton Bears (National Cup). Saturday's away game tips at 7pm, Sunday's at home at 6.30pm.