Chargers gear up for do-or-die preliminary final

SURFCOAST Chargers face a do-or-die Preliminary Final clash tomorrow (Saturday, August 16) against the Collingwood All Stars, after going down in the Semi-Final to ladder leaders Sherbrooke.

The Chargers had a big challenge against the Suns and put up a valiant effort in the 81-96 defeat at Bendigo Bank Upwey & District Stadium.

However, their season is not yet over and now have a second chance to stay alive in a home matchup against the All Stars. The two faced off just weeks ago in the Qualifying Final, where the Chargers prevailed by just four points – an echo of their earlier grit when the Chargers hung on in Big V finals.

After the Suns started hot and finished the first quarter with a 16-point lead, the Chargers steadied and cut the difference down to 10 at half time.

A small run by Surfcoast in the last quarter got the margin back to 12 with two minutes to go. However, Sherbrooke showed why they finished the season on top and held onto their double-digit lead all night.

Scoring was spread across the Chargers’ roster, with captain Nathan Gronbeck leading the way with 19 points and four assists. Rohan Jarvie had 12 points and nine rebounds, whilst Tyrone Remy had 11 points.

For Sherbrooke, Sabiri Bailo put up 23 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and Peter Deng Jr had 20 points and 11 rebounds.

The match will take place at Wurdi Baierr Stadium this Saturday, August 16 at 7pm .

Don’t miss the action as Surfcoast looks to reclaim form – just as they did when they returned to Mildura for a preliminary final tilt last year.

Coach Dan Riches has been optimistic all season, saying this week that the upcoming top-two showdown is “going to be a cracker” – and this one could be even bigger.