perths under manned frontline will get a hammering and i'm a cats fan.Got to be real here.

Breakers easily. Heart and brains both with the Breakers on this one. Especially of a poor performance at home last game.

Hard to get excited. I can't imagine the Breakers will make the same mistakes they made against the Kings. Whilst the Cats are still massively undermanned, and struggle in NZ at the best of time.

I just hope Gleeson has the sense to run his bench, and keep something in the tank for Sunday!

I'm a cats fan and I have to be realistic. If we lose by single digits I will take that.

Pledger won't be playing this one, his surgeon has recommended he take a week off.

Perth will be desperate for a win.

Breakers should get this one fairly easily. It's a question of how the Breakers play the game. Do they get a 15 points lead and then tease the Cats by playing their bench? Or do they just play it like a normal game and aim to win by 30?

Koberulz: what kind of professional team would go into a game wiith the beleif that they have zero chance of winning. Do you think Sydney would if won with that attitude ? You go in to win every game. Despite their recent form they certainly are capable of beating NZ.

Go Breakers..

We're toast, but you gotta play it out.

Never know, dysentery might be sweeping through the Breaker's camp right now...

If pledger is out, it's a + for us. Need martin to start going to the rack an beal and redhage to have good offensive games. I would foul Jackson every time and make him shoot free throws and give him the 3 all night

Carter and ibkwe are the keys for the breakers, the give it a shot for 40 min and keep the scoreboard ticking. They can get up tonight it will go along way for a playoff birth.

After getting their asses handed to them in front of a home crowd by Sydney one would expect the Breakers to come out firing against the Wildcats tonight.
I wouldn't rush to write off Perth either, having their backs to the wall may bring the best out of them much like the Kings last round.

Game is big for both sides. Perth to keep their nose ahead in the game for a place in the top 4, while the Breakers want to earn back top spot.

Breakers for mine will be too good. 6 point win even if Pledger misses.

Preview: Rivals to battle in New Zealand

Is that true about Pledger, mystro?

Could be interesting if Pledger is out and Ibekwe gets into foul trouble early

NBL website listing Matt Knight as a maybe to play tonight " Matt Knight - Fractured Toe - Test"

Was not aware of Louis Timms injury either(not that we play him anyway)

http://www.nbl.com.au/article/id/1c07jxpmhto7s1uc91epyje7w0

Marty didn't go with them did he? I heard he's back for Sunday.

I don't think he traveled with them, you are probably right though...if anything he would play vs Sydney Sunday if anything. Cant see them flying him over for this game.

If Knight can play effectively against Sydney then that gives the Kings some very serious problems on the inside.

Sorry, meant to say Matty ^

From what I have heard (a TV3 News article a couple of days ago and the trusty rumour mill) Alex Pledger won't be suiting up under advice from his Surgeon (he was told to take a week off).
He didn't play many minutes against Sydney so he may have been struggling with playing through the pain.

Jervis 2 fouls in first 2 minutes....

One was a clean block!

Need to get early fouls on their big men to have a hope.

Jervis gets two fouls in minutes.

Welp, nice game, see you all next week.

He did get it pretty clean, no real body contact. Its the NBL they blow calls like that. So far so good for 36er fans!

Cats garbage D concedes 32 points in the first :-/
Haven't quite figured out how we managed 26 of our own. Offence looks highly suspect, as usual.

So many points being conceded, it's driving me to drink.

Well, okay, I was already a drinker, but if I wasn't a drinker it would have sent me there!

Plus side: Damo with points, hell yes.

Damo scoring on a drive is definitely a hell yes. Damo putting up 3's is still an Oh No for me, even when the first one does drop. Actually, especially when the first one does drop.

He can hit them, he needs to put up the open three and he needs to take responsibility for hitting the damn thing. He's been a 40+% shooter in two seasons and he needs to sustain it.

I wouldn't want him shooting, teams have worked him out, there is a reason he is open!

But they did that in our championship years and Damo murdered teams for it. This is actual statistical record, he can be a 40+% shooter and has been in two years. He can hit those shots, he needs to take the shot and take responsibility for hitting them.

I mean stats or not the man is shaky from out there. Its weird his action looks like that of one who would be a dead eye dick, but he just isn't reliable atleast for right now. But if he is one yeah he needs to take them base on what other options the Cats have offensively.

How bad are the wildcats seriously it's embarrasing, and it even no pledger no knight so no excuses for perth. Sixers will be within one game of third, and hopefully by playoff time will be watching it from their homes.

Lets not get too far ahead here, but yes agree Perth have stopped. They have nothing about how they are playing that represents the Perth of years past. Its odd in a way too see.

"Sixers will be within one game of third, and hopefully by playoff time will be watching it from their homes."

Some sixers fan you are

Chris Robinson ‏@CJKRobinson 32m32 minutes ago
Trevor Gleeson sums it up to his team: "You're playing your arses off, but you won't win jack s--t if you're giving up lay-ups". #NBL15

If we've made some form of high-scoring, no D change in philosophy to be entertaining, the final half of a season with key injuries is one HELL of a time to try it.

Meant to say perth will be watching from their home

Hire doesn't look right either, that calf is hanging by a thread. Why risk it being soft tissue.... guess its now or never mentality. But he is getting blown by on defines, Abercrombie put him in cement off one drive and dunk.

Cats defense is MIA again. Sloppy turnovers and easy layups costing them bigtime

I reckon there defense has gone missing because the refs have taken there physicality out thats been very present the last few years. No stats to back it up, but it seems Perth have been in a lot more foul trouble this season compared to last atleast.

@Kobe24,

We're playing NEW ZEALAND, I don't think that's the conclusion you can draw.

You mean cos NZ's offense is that good... Im drawing this conclusion based on last few games Ive seen perth play. They seem to be giving up easy buckets or putting team at the line.

I like Damo when he is more offensively aggressive. He should attack more often

Brilliant out to 14, the door is just about wide open for the 36ers now! Perth look worse than United and have a tougher run. Id expect them to lose 1 to either NZ again or Cairns and Adelaide will hose them at home.

No, Kobe, I mean because NZ is the other most physical game in the league, and they're doing just fine. We reacted to the refereeing changes last year, so being screwed because of a crackdown on physicality makes no sense without it being an anti-Wildcats conspiracy.

Oh ok, well maybe it is! All I know is the Cats don't get away with half what they used to by looks of it, but props watching differently now the Cats results interest me.

No offence, but you were probably using a very jaded eye before :P

Nah I def think they've had a very good run at home but thats another story. Wasn't jaded just furious at some of the no calls. But back in the pack now...

Bloody Ibekwe.

11-points, lost the last quarter by 1.

After getting to within 5 in the dying seconds of the 3rd and then letting Rhys Carter pick up 5 in 13 seconds, that was a fairly annoying result.

Not as bad as expected. Need to get the W against Syd on Sunday now.

If we can't pick up the W against a missing Childress, Horvath, and Bandt, well...

Dont jinx us Nathan lol God I hope we have Knight back on Sunday.

Is Cedric Jackson having a bit of a form slump?

I didn't see the game, but wouldn't have thought Perth is going to win too many games with Redhage only taking 2 shots in 18-odd minutes, for zero points.

Not as much as what Beal is

One positive is a good game from Daniels on a foreign court, which has been an ongoing problem.

Redhage, I don't even know what to say.

Train, thanks but I know what Beal is doing! I just don't know what Jackson is doing!

What's happing at the Wildcats?

Has Daniels taken over as the prime import? 28% FG from Beal.

Off twitter:
"Trevor Gleeson confirms Shawn Redhage was far from fit tonight - has been in bed past two days"

That explains alot, thought it was strange he didn't get a lot of minutes.

Lol, effectively down one and a half starters and one and a half bench players. And one of the other bench players is Luke Martin. We've been serving up enough dross without the Redhage illness.

Considering Matty was out, Earnest is out, Hire is not at 100%, And Redhage should've been in bed I thought they played as well as could be expected. To only lose by about 10 with so many missing, or sick players is a great sign for their home stretch with Matty and Redhage fully fit.

I don't think the Cats are far off the mark at the moment. there were some good signs against Cairns and the game tonight. 4 out of the next 5 games are at home, if they get Knight back this week they should be OK

I think if they win either of the home games against Cairns and NZ they'll make the playoffs, if they don't it will be very tight.

I'd imagine the good signs against Cairns were the three quarters before they only scored six in the last quarter?

The fact they led for a majority against Cairns until they ran out of legs was quite encouraging. Daniels and Martin putting up good stats against NZ. I don't doubt they aren't playing good , my point was there are some good things to be taken out of those games when you consider the schedule and injuries .

I would think we'd go into the Kings & Taipans games as favourites, if only slightly in the latter case.
They're both at home. The last Taipans game was the 3rd game in 4 days. Hardly surprising that the 4th quarter of that one wasn't our best effort. The next time we play them will be the first time in about 6 games that we'll go into a game with relatively fresh legs.

I see what happened there, you have a filter that exchanged "signs" for "four-quarter performance"!!

Cats are just so out of sync right now.

Defensively, they're missing rotations, box outs, covers that they usually make.

Offensively, i was amazed at what i saw today. I saw U'u taking contested jumpers and trying to do too much, Beal taking on 2-3 guys..no fluidity no offensive sets.

"Lol, effectively down one and a half starters and one and a half bench players."

You're forgetting NZ had one of their starters out as well

Looks like someone has put a curse on the Wildcats ....... sorry about that

Typical anonymous rant

"Martin can't hit ocean"

You just outed yourself as not paying attention. Martin has shot 46 per cent on FGs and 37 per cent on 3Ps in the last seven games.

If you're not paying attention to the games it's little wonder you can't see some solid signs amongst some really crappy periods.

The way the Cats hung with Cairns for three quarters on their third game in four days with over 6000km travel, and the way they kept fighting back hard against NZ both suggest they'll be ok if they can get Knight back.

Without him fit though, it's going to be a tough ask because they are anchorless at both ends despite Jervis' best efforts.

I really hope D.Martins performance tonight is an indication of how he is going to play from here on. He has great strength and is more than capable of attacking the rim. I think teams have cottoned on to him making the pass, or backing out when he penetrates . Cats offence looks a lot better when he is a offensive threat.

Just because Knight comes back doesn't automatically mean they will be ok. If hes back he still wont be one hundred percent. Hire wont be one hundred percent fit for the rest of the year. And teams will keep double teaming beal as there is no fluidity to their offense to find him open. It will be an incredible struggle to make the four this year and i dont agree they deserve to be favourites against cairns and nz because they are at home.

Why is that Perths current injury woes can be ignored when discussing form but every other team can use it as a valid reason for when they lose a few?

@Uwe Blab A lot of people on here like to get off on the recent decline on form of the Cats and the fact they could miss the finals.

@KingJames,

Well, that explains why Pledger being out got mentioned half a dozen times in the first half a dozen posts in this thread nicely. Thanks for the catch.

Train i totally agree. Martin has great athleticism and i think he should drive and dish more often and be more aggressive offensively. For a pg he should be averaging more assists p/g
Now more than ever he needs to be creating more offense with many of his team mates down on form.

The more he forces teams to respect the scoring threat of his drive to the basket, the easier it will be for him to also dish and drive. Like most things in sport, successes in one area open up successes in others.

Ok son

Anon#281 : get over it mate. Every team has their arrogant players and equally arrogant fan base. Most people on here have an appreciation for the sport, teams, and players ( be it for their team or others ).... Then there's trolls like you.

Injuries are part and parcel of the game.

Kings lost Childress and Brandt, 36ers had/have injuries with Wilson, Creek, Anthony, Wollongong and Davidson, NZ and Pledger, Abercrombie, TVL had some issues with Markovic' health.

I'm sure I am missing some.

Perth's run of injuries coincided with a tough part of the draw, but that's sport as MACDUB said.

Massive win by the Breakers.

Perth have found themselves stuck in a a growing hole from which they may not be able to climb out of...

Breakers look convincing in cruisy win over Wildcats

I am shocked this season at the body language between the players and Gleeson. Some seem to be communicating behind Gleeson to the assistant Tats. Others wander off and don't seem tone listening at all and then Redhage pipes up and gives advice at the end of the TO. Could it be that Gleeson has simply lost the playing group ????

"Perth's run of injuries coincided with a tough part of the draw, but that's sport as MACDUB said."

NZ's had an equally as tough schedule at the beginning of the season when Abercrombie was out with his Hernia and they overcame the adversity to be top of the table.

Good win.
Over the last two seasons Perth have been the most talented and arrogant team in the comp. Without Mathew Knight, less than stellar form from Beal and the injuries they now have Perth drop to "just another team" status and if they don't play well, they are, and will be vulnerable from here, despite heroics from Martin.
Abercrombie gaining some much needed confidence. Tai Wesley proving as (maybe more) valuable as Ibekwe. Duane Bailey showing he deserves more time, probably at Te Rangi's expense. Cairns only threat to top spot.

""Perth's run of injuries coincided with a tough part of the draw, but that's sport as MACDUB said."

NZ's had an equally as tough schedule at the beginning of the season when Abercrombie was out with his Hernia and they overcame the adversity to be top of the table."

And thats why they are the team to beat this season.

Injuries are a part of sport and no one is complaining that the Cats deserve special treatment because injuries are exclusive to them, but their current injuries coinciding with the reason tough draw is a large factor in their form slump.

They haven't really clicked this season and that has been exposed because they don't have the guys to bail them out. I am sure a couple of the results would have gone differently if they had Knight to throw in to the mix for even just 15-20 minutes a game. But thats life and they are still keeping in the contests for the most part.

Agree with Anon about Gleeson. I think he has done just a bit too much finger pointing this season when some of his subbing/putting certain players in the doghouse has been questionable this year and cost the team.

Yair, it be the Gleeson.

Would not be surprised to see a different coach next year.

The thing with last season is Ennis was so good at creating his shots and finishing, he demanded a lot of attention and drew the double team. Players like Beal just had to wait to get the ball in the right spot. Daniels while he has improved significantly he is predictable in offense and lacks in the areas that were Ennis strengths. Beal seems to have taken on the Ennis role and try to hard to create his shots and attack the rim but he struggles.....and he doesn't seem to handle a double team situation very good at all. Cats really needed a player like Jordan McRae this year.

Need a new breed and new coach. Players are not playing for him and I do hope we go back to a coach and a assistant. Not fussed if we do of we don't make it, just wonder if some people jump off the bandwagon? Marvin would be pisst and if Perth started the season 1 and 5 would gleeson still be there?

I would just sack gleeson, I understand how many games left, but someone needs to make a statement, u keep playing the way u are ure out to and don't care who, no player is bigger than the club.

Who responds u keep, who doesn't can leave. I can understand having a slump but this whole season has been a slump, can't say not many players have consistant, for me Jervis and waggs gave been worth the pay packet.

Redhage - bench player
Martin - keep
Beal - gone can't handle pressure without Ennis?
Knight - gone, only plays half seasons
Daniels - gone any way
Jervis - keep
Wagstaff - keep
Hire - keep
Ross - keep
U'u - gone

All coach es gone, start fresh and rebuild

Settle down people. Perth is still in 3rd spot. Sacking a coach who just won a championship and has a team in 3rd at the moment? C'mon. There are far too many wanna be coaches on this forum for me.

Just quietly, NZ's win in this game guarantees their top 2 finish. Cairns will also guarantee their top 2 spot with 1 more win.

The problems with Gleeson were evident last season; he just had the best player in the comp to bail him out.

Now that their backs are against the wall, his lack of gameplan has been exposed. Sacking him now is a terrible idea but I don't think he should be here next season.

And talking about sacking coaches and players is not wannabe coaching. Its wannabe GM'ing!

Why the small crowd for suchh a big game??

skull, one explanation could be that it was 29 degrees yesterday in Auckland; people probably spent the evening by the water or outdoors for a BBQ. (was still 27 at 7pm ish).

Don't forget Cairns have had to deal with losing Corey Maynard to injury :)

Uu doesn't need to go, play him more time and he will then perform. Like 20 points the other week and then yesterday 8 points. Hard coming off the bench for a couple of minutes

It was played at their slum stadium North Shore with the dark chocolate court not the nice which is Vector.

"I am shocked this season at the body language between the players and Gleeson. Some seem to be communicating behind Gleeson to the assistant Tats. Others wander off and don't seem tone listening at all and then Redhage pipes up and gives advice at the end of the TO. Could it be that Gleeson has simply lost the playing group ????"

Understandable when Gleeson provides no guidance in timeouts, perfect example below:

"Chris Robinson ‏@CJKRobinson 32m32 minutes ago
Trevor Gleeson sums it up to his team: "You're playing your arses off, but you won't win jack s--t if you're giving up lay-ups". #NBL15"

A good coach will provide suggestions/devise a solution, a bad one slags the players off as above. When struggling how does a comment like that help a player out. I wouldn't be listening.

What u want the coach to say? Get to the point, it ain't under 12's to hurt their feelings. I like gleeson maybe the players are to blame? There I'd only so much he can say. Do fell for him, he can't make them make djot under the ring, they have open shots but they just knock them down when it matters.

"Why the small crowd for suchh a big game??"

everyone in NZ with Sky Sport can watch every Breakers game live from the comfort of their couch on TV plus the weather has been pretty good the last few weeks as MACDUB said.

"It was played at their slum stadium North Shore with the dark chocolate court not the nice which is Vector."

NSEC has a better atmosphere (except for sell outs at Vector) and is in Auckland Basketballs heartland. Sorry you don't like how the court looked on your TV.
NSEC > Vector

Agreed cats4life. From my view, it's the players chemistry with each other that doesn't seem to click. Daniels and Beal can't stand each other and that translates on the court. People are always quick to sack the coach but I think Gleeson is a good coach who has done very well with each team he's had. Townsville hasn't been able to recover after losing him. I still think we'll be fine once we get Matty back. You can't underestimate how much we miss our big centre.

@Imousuck: it's a bit hard to gauge and question a coaches tactics in a timeout based on such a small part of dialogue. I'm sure a lot more was said during the time out then that one quote. I'm neither here or there on the Gleeson issues. What aspects of his coaching are you actually critical of ? Do you not like the plays he runs, is it his rotations?

I agree Tom, Duane Bailey has probably almost leap frogged TeRangi with his efforts at both ends.
TeRangi has defended well but struggled offensively where as Bailey has had his outside shots fall and had a bit more luck when attacking the rim in his limited minutes.
I think TeRangi will come right but the bench minutes must go to the form player.

The stadium was 90% full, I'm not sure it could accurately be described as "such a small crowd".

Anon,

Certainly not a "crap reason". If you lived in Auckland, you would understand that on a 29 degree sunny day in the city of sails it wouldn't make sense to stay indoors. Auckland gets three times more annual rainfall than Adelaide - people want to make the most of the summer.

Close to the water and beautiful scenery. Although i can't stand Aucklanders (JAFAs ;) )

Agree with above re: Bailey moving ahead of Te Rangi. Bailey can do a bit of everything and he is a smooth offensive player - big future.

Te Rangi is obviously lacking confidence but you do also have to question whether he is doing the necessary prep and working on his weaknesses. I looked at him as a possible future high level European league import following last season. Now he is struggling to hold his place in the rotation - and throw in the fact that he doesn't have an NZNBL team yet and you do question where his development will come from.

So Perth lose a game, that they were always going to lose, and suddenly that's proof their season is over?

Reality is there were actually some positive signs: No Knight, No Ross, and effectively no Redhage,
and Damo steps up with a massive 19 points, with good minutes from Hire & U'U.

Sunday against Sydney will be the test.

Margin will not have a shit fit. If they make playoffs, he'll be happy considering the season they've had.

Yes, because Marvin has shit fits every time the Wildcats don't win the championship. Its that stupidity and complete lack of professionalism that has allowed him to build the most successful club in the history of the NBL.

It must be so wonderful to be an Adelaide supporter, instead of bothering about your own team you can just hate on Perth. Why don't you just move to FREMANTLE and be done with it.