Thunder set to be ‘short-handed’ yet again

WORTHING Thunder Basket-ball Club are set to be without three key players when they travel to Bradford Dragons in EBL Division 1 on Saturday.
Daniel HildrethDaniel Hildreth
Daniel Hildreth

Thunder won 76-71 at home to Bradford in the National Trophy in October but Worthing coach Daniel Hildreth said: “We beat them earlier in the season in a tightly-contested game but they have made a couple of additions since then.

“We’re without Bud Johnston, who is working, and possibly Tomas Seduikis, who might be back in Lithuania, while James Brame has flown back to America.

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“We go into the game short-handed but that’s been the case all season. I haven’t had a full squad for any game yet.”

Thunder went down 78-69 away to Reading Rockets on Saturday, when they had three players, who were on the bench at the time, ejected for stepping on to the court.

Johnston, Joe Carter and Julian Stanley all stepped on to the court to break up a tussle and they are all now likely to receive a one-game ban, along with Reading’s Lewis Champion as a result.

Hildreth said: “It was a bit of naïvety as they all knew what would happen. But Bud went on court to pull players away from each other, Joe didn’t get that far and Julian only took a couple of steps.

“It wasn’t a major incident but as soon as a player steps on court like that, it’s an automatic disqualification.”

Match report in this week’s paper.

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