Going into this game, we were well aware that YMCA had been having a great run in the league so far (5-0). I think all the guys know that we've got a great team this season and while we knew it'd likely be tough, we were more than up for the challenge.

We'd heard that YMCA are fond of the full court press, so it was our plan to get the ball in as soon as possible, get it over the half, then get into our offence.

Curley, Burns, Smith, Barrand and Thompson started for us.. the game was physical from the start and the refs seemed content with letting a lot of contact go at both ends.

We struggled to get into our offence and took some wild shots initially -- never seeming capable of slowing the game down in the half court. Meanwhile, YMCA were hammering the boards at both ends and getting lots...well, too many second chance opportunities.

We had an eight point deficit to claw back in the second, but we never seemed able to string enough baskets together. Again, there was a lot of contact, but I guess to be fair we were giving as good as we got. We were 15 points down at one point, until we fought back and cut their lead to six.

By the third quarter, we'd started breaking YMCA's press quite effectively with some long outlets and easy layups at the other end. But no sooner were we within three points, YMCA broke again and got up by 11.

At the start of the fourth, we were determined to come out and take control of the game. We tied and even managed to get up by three, but YMCA were always right on our heels. With only five minutes left on the clock, we got into a rhythm and started breaking; all of our players got on the end of some great outlets. Jon Hylton nailed a three and a jump shot in the final minute to bring YMCA within three, but we held out and got a 5 point victory.

This was by far our best team performance of this season but everything that you could expect from the "top of the table clash" that MABL predicted.

Every one of our starters scored double figures and everyone played hard. Adam Smith, Ryan Curley and James Burns were as solid as ever -- taking control of the game when needed, getting out on breaks and steadying the ship when required.

Anthony Barrand and Matt Thompson were excellent at both ends of the floor and played better than I'd probably ever seen. They really stepped up their games, both offensively and defensively. They had a hard time against YMCA's inside guys, but pulled down rebound after rebound and made some timely blocks.

We were solid all round though with some great minutes off the bench from the rest of us.

Looks like we're off to Warrington again next week as we face Canute 2. We'll be taking each game as it comes... but for now, we'll savour the moment of being 4-0.