Knocked Down, But They Get Up Again

After falling to Canada 50-57 on Saturday, the gliders get right back up to defeat the Netherlands 58-49 to secure their spot in the Quarter Finals.

It was a tough game which brought out the best in every player. Coach John Triscari left smiling and proud over the charter of his team.

“We wanted to get on top early and have them chasing us, so, in that respect, I suppose it did. We focused on stopping a lot of their big players, particularly (Mariska) BEIJER (NED), from getting into the keyway, and the girls did a sensational job. Gert (Gertjan VAN DER LINDEN, NED) is very hard to coach against because he throws a lot of stuff at you. Tonight, he was the one having to make the changes. Another day, it will probably be me.”

“We’ve been dreaming about medals since we first started together as a group, and our goal has always been to get into the medal games. But this is a super-tough competition – not many points between top and sixth. Any of the teams playing in the medal games have a real chance, so we will have to do the best we can and hope that along the way the gods of basketball smile on us once again.”

On the prospect of facing Mexico, Triscari was quick to remind that every game matters in Paralympic competition.

“No game’s easy, you know. We finished on top, so the crossover with the other side is in our favour. But they are by no means easy. We only beat Brazil by two points and Brazil only beat Mexico by two in the PanAm (Parapan championships) play-offs for third and fourth, so it’s going to be tough.”