Cole Long enjoyed the sweet taste of playoff success after returning to Newcastle’s starting five and sparking a quarter-final first leg win against Manchester.

Just seven days earlier the Canadian all-rounder had been rushed to hospital with blood pouring from a serious gash to his top lip, as the Eagles lost out to Leicester.

But after missing Newcastle’s trip to Cheshire, Long lit up a mouthwatering clash against a Manchester side with it all to do in Monday’s second leg.

The versatile forward stacked the stat sheet with 13 points, five rebounds, five blocks, four assists and two steals.

And Long was one of five Eagles who finished with double figures as a topsy turvy tie delivered drama in spades.

The gritty hosts overturned a 10-point second period deficit to secure what could be a vital seven-point advantage at the halfway stage of a finely poised last-eight showdown.

But finding a way to stop Manchester dangerman Makai Ashton-Langford will be central to Newcastle’s dreams of securing a semi-final berth.

The classy guard carried the visitors for long periods as he bagged 26 points, nine assists, five rebounds and four steals.

And during a humdinger of a second half it seemed like every time the Eagles served up a crowd-pleasing offence they only served to poke the bear — Ashton-Langford responding time and time again with his own highlights reel of world class plays.

If the absence of unpredictable rookie De’Sean Allen-Eikens dampened the homecourt mood immediately before tip then seeing Seneca Knight back in a Newcastle jersey certainly lifted spirits.

The US star missed the regular season run in with a painful leg injury but came off the bench to make his presence felt against a robust Manchester roster.

Knight eased his way towards a regulation double double as he made a convincing return to Super League Basketball action — adding 10 rebounds to his 12 points in just 22 minutes.

And if Josh Ward-Hibbert was frustrated to finish a full-throttle first leg pointless then the Eagles’ Great Britain international came through 18 minutes of action unscathed on his own journey back to full fitness.

Mike Okauru played all but three minutes of a big win on his way to 19 points and in-form Trey Pulliam added some Hollywood glitz to some stifling defence as the in-form point guard underlined his growing reputation.

But after four quarters of no-holds-barred action it’s difficult to predict which team will progress to the SLB’s Final Four come Monday’s final buzzer.

Manchester started the stronger of the two teams on their way to establishing a six-point first period lead.

And with 13 minutes on the clock, Herman Mandole’s men had opened up a double-digit advantage.

Okauru and Knight sparked a late first half rally to reduce the deficit to just four points at the break.

But nobody could have predicted the thrilling third quarter display that turned a fascinating tie in the home team’s favour.

Marc Steutel’s men restricted Manchester to just 11 points in the period — an Okauru fast-break and cool finish levelling the quarter-final at 46-46 with less than 15 minutes on the clock.

From there Newcastle snatched the lead and seized control with Pulliam, in particular, turning on the style down the stretch.

Mandole might well look at 10 missed free throws and wonder what might have been against a shorthanded Eagles roster.

But Manchester came up against a committed team that’s proved its big game credentials time and time again this season.

And on this evidence few would bet against Steutel’s side finishing the job on Bank Holiday Monday and setting up a Vertu Motors Arena semi-final on either Friday 9 May at 7:30pm or Sunday 11 May at 4:30pm subject to the weekend’s results.

The fixture will be announced and confirmed on Monday night following the final buzzer in Manchester.