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Bristol complete D3 double
Pete Jacques
Bristol Bombers became the first club to complete the Division Three League and Championship “double”, as they eased past Barking and Dagenham 89-67 on neutral ground at Chesterfield Leisure Centre.
Sixth placed Barking and Dagenham had already disposed of Thames Valley (3rd) and Worcester Wolves (2nd) on the way to the Final, but Bristol were determined that they would not produce a third upset, as they came out of the starting blocks fast to open up an early 12-2 advantage. By the sixth minute of the first quarter, the pattern of the game was already set, with Abe Ahmed dominating the inside game, player/coach Dave Roper orchestrating play, and guard Danny James having already hit three “3”s, as the Bombers led 21-7.
The normally prolific Dave Churches was finding no room to score for Barking, but Shab Niaz, John Powell and George Russo led the fightback as the East London team edged back to 31-20 at the first break.
Not to be denied, Bristol opened the second quarter steadily, pulling away to 39-27 at the end of three minutes, and then two more “3”s from James, and two from the line by Kevin Fearon, gave them an 8-0 run, and a commanding 20 point lead.At the end of the half, Bristol were in the comfort zone, at 54-33, with Danny James having contributed 23 points, including no less than seven 3-pointers.
Six minutes into the third quarter the game was in danger of turning into a rout, as Bristol led 70-37, and at the end of the third they were still well in control, at 72-47.
Dave Roper and Abe Ahmed enjoyed the luxury of watching the final quarter as they rested on the bench, as Bristol cruised to victory, though to Barking’s credit they never let their heads drop, pulling back at one stage to 78-62, before finally succumbing by 22 points.
Danny James led all scorers, with 25, supported for Bristol by Abe Ahmed’s 18 and Gareth Till’s 17. Dave Churches led Barking and Dagenham, with 21 (18 in the second half), followed by John Powell (17) and George Russo (11).
In previous Seasons the Division Three winners had all lost to the runners-up in the Championship Final. Bristol thus bucked the losing trend set by Birmingham (to Manchester), Hull (to North London) and Doncaster (to Mansfield). However, Bombers’ assistant coach Vince Marriott was more interested in the prospect of going on to emulate the continued success of those who had preceded them.
“All credit to Barking for reaching the Final” he declared, “but we had no intention of taking them lightly after they’d beaten the second and third placed teams on their way here.
“We’ve played strong defence all Season, and we did so again today, which allowed us to score a lot of points off the fast break.
“We’ve enjoyed this Season, and proved ourselves at this level. We’ve now got a new home court, and a good fan base, and we’re looking forward to being challenged at a higher level next Season.”
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