It was a mega Monday at Smithfield for the wheelchair basketball semi-finals, where our medal match fixtures were determined!
First up, Scotland Women were welcomed by the Smithfield crowd as they headed out to play Canada in the first women’s semi-final. The Canadian side took the win 12-5 after a strong first half by the Scottish team. They’ll head into the bronze match.
Next up, England Women had a 8-6 defeat by Australia after a scorching match-up between the two, with the host nation team drawing the loud support of the crowd. With the result of both women’s semi-finals, we’re all set for a home nations bronze medal match as England meet Scotland!
Jade Atkin commented:
“Tough game, tough loss so we’ll catch up and work that out tonight. We could have won if we had a few minutes more! It was just one of those games. It’s made us all the more keen for the bronze medal match – we’re ready come back and at least get a medal!”
In the next session, England Men’s match against Australia went into overtime as both teams were evenly matched on court. In 3×3 ruling, there is no set time limit – whichever team gets 2-points first wins. With England Men landing 1pt within only seconds of overtime beginning, Australia answered with a 2pt shot from across the court and claimed the spot in the final with a 11-12 win. England Men will go through to the bronze medal match where they will meet Malaysia.
Lee Manning commented:
“We couldn’t get it done in front of the amazing home crowd here, but we’ve got a lot to still play for coming in tomorrow to get that bronze medal and show off for the crowd here.
“You can learn a lot from a defeat. I just want to say I’ve got the utmost respect for every single one of [my teammates]. They’ve come out of their shells – the development they’ve shown since the start of the summer is honestly staggering. I’m proud to be part of the team with them.”
Northern Ireland will play in the 5/6 place playoff tomorrow during the first session of the day.
Schedule: https://iwbf.org/2022/07/26/match-schedule-released-for-the-3×3-at-birmingham-2022/
