The Central Coast Crusaders were prepared for a slog over the weekend of March 25-26 with back-to-back games starting on Saturday against the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles.
The Crusaders crossed the Hawkesbury for Saturday’s matchup against the Sea Eagles looking for redemption after a tough defeat on home turf against the Sutherland Sharks.
Despite the odds being in their favour against a Manly squad missing their star players, neither the men’s or women’s Crusaders could secure the win despite stellar performances from Luke Cassidy and Sara Matthews in their respective matchups.
The Crusaders then travelled home to the Central Coast on Sunday to face a mountainous challenge from reigning champions Canberra.
The men’s side got the show started in the early afternoon hours as both teams traded blows with the Canberra Gunners led by Glenn Morison.
Young star Luke Cassidy’s hot hand carried over from Saturday’s matchup as he racked up 11 points on efficient shooting from deep, to end the first half 53-52 in favour of the Crusaders.
The second half was much easier for the Crusaders as captain James Trustum came online to help outscore the Gunners 25-14 in the third quarter.
Trustum, who suffered a pre-season injury to his right shoulder, has had to adapt to shooting under duress and struggled leading up to the match.
He proved why he’s a veteran in the league as he led the Crusaders to a statement 102-88 win over reigning champions Canberra, finishing with 22 points and 5 boards.
The main event of the day was the much-anticipated matchup between the Canberra Nationals and the Central Coast Crusaders women’s side.
The last time these two sides met was at Breakers indoor sports stadium where the Crusaders were handed a crushing defeat.
Things looked to be going the same way as former WNBL player Abby Solway drained an endless barrage of three pointers to see the Crusaders go into half-time down 37-52.
Returning star Jasmine Forcadilla sparked a Crusaders resurgence out of the gate with her own collection of threes as the ladies began chipping away at Canberra’s lead.
20-year-old wunderkind Sara Matthews turned on the jets as the Crusaders triumphantly toppled the Nationals in front of a roaring home crowd, notching an outstanding 23-point 15 rebound double-double in a 17-point comeback, downing the Nationals 90-81.
Both the men’s and women’s Crusaders squads advance to 2-2 for the start of the season which is miles better than where they sat this time last year.
The Crusaders play host again this coming Sunday, April 2, to league newcomers Penrith with the men tipping off at 2pm and the women at 4pm.
Stefan Kataric