LAST weekend’s loss to Mt Gambier highlighted everything good and bad about the Albury-Wodonga Bandits’ season.
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While their competitive first half was undone by a lacklustre second, coach Brad Chalmers said the side's best was still good enough to match the league's best.
“We have to take confidence from the fact that our best is good enough when we stick to our game plan,” he said.
We have to take confidence from the fact that our best is good enough when we stick to our game plan.
- Brad Chalmers
“Unfortunately, when we go away from that we become a very average side.
“We're getting different levels of buy-in on a week-to-week basis.
“We're not far away, I think we're still right in the mix for finals.
“We just have to deliver.”
Chalmers said momentum would be key this weekend.
“The Pioneers were good at putting runs on us and we couldn't match them,” he said.
“It took a bit of confidence away from our defence, things snowballed a bit and our heads dropped.
“We're a little way off where they're at, and I think they'll challenge for the title again.
“It goes to show that we're probably lacking a little bit of confidence at the moment.”
Hosting Kilsyth on Saturday night, the Bandits will be out to square the ledger after falling to the Cobras by 18 points earlier this season.
Kilsyth big-man Tim Lang (27 points, eight rebounds) and guard Joel Naburgs (21, six assists) did the damage last time the sides met.
Chalmers said he wanted the Bandits to impose themselves on the contest early, after being strong-armed by Tyrone Lee and the Pioneers last weekend.
“Kilsyth's guard play is certainly strong, and Tim Lang is a big unit who hurt us early last time,” he said.
“He got a lot of easy buckets, we have to take those away from him.
“Our bigs have got a job to do in that regard.
“We got bullied a bit by Tyrone Lee last week, we need to bring a little bit more physicality to the table.
“Greg (Mays) is the guy that can do that, to try and reduce the impact Lang has.
“We haven't done a great job in terms of one-on-one match-ups this season.
“A lot of the star players in the league have torched us, that comes down to our performance both as individuals and in a team sense.
“We have to help each other out.”
Fortunately for the Bandits, playoffs are still well and truly on the cards.
Though they need to reverse their form slump against the Cobras, they're just two wins shy of North-West Tasmania and Geelong.