Newcastle Eagles held off a spirited and surprising Cardiff Met Archers challenge to take a 66-62 victory in the Vertu Arena on Sunday evening to maintain their 100% start to the SLB Women’s Championship season. In doing so they improved their record to four wins from four games.

For a gallant Archers side, it was the opposite. A fourth successive league defeat to see them right down at the bottom of the table whilst for Newcastle it’s the summit reached as they lead the chasing pack at the moment.

But it was very very tight as Newcastle just managed to get over the line in the end. Cardiff arrived in Newcastle very much as second favourites. Averaging only 55 points scored per game and conceding 101 points per game they were not expected to give the Eagles such a fright. But they did.

Perhaps there was an element of complacency from Newcastle or perhaps Cardiff just had one of those days that sport sometimes throws up. Whatever the reasoning behind the events that unfolded it was the expression, ‘a win is a win’ that seemed the most quoted post-game comment.

It started close in the first quarter until leading by one at 7-6 the Archers scored ten unanswered points to take an eleven-point lead despite Eagles’ Head Coach Chloe Gaynor calling a time-out during that visiting run that at first her side couldn’t stop.

It meant a surprise lead for Cardiff who took the period 21-14 to give themselves real hope of an upset win. But a game is seldom won nor lost inside the opening ten minutes of a basketball game and so it proved on this occasion.

Eagles came flying back at the Archers in the second quarter. Alyssa Marin really getting into her scoring rhythm netting from far and close to record nine points in the period. It inspired her teammates into a 13-2 run that was largely responsible for bringing the sides level at 34-points.

Newcastle had to dig deep to get the game level in the face of an Archers side that looked determined to show that they belong at this level. It could be imagined that the team talks in the locker rooms at half-time would have been vastly different despite the score line being tied.

Whatever Gaynor said to her players in the confines of their room seemed to have finally had an influence. Cardiff did score the first bucket of the third period and second half but were hit by a huge Eagles run.

Marin who was on fire from deep hitting three triples, one of which she converted into a four-point play after being fouled. Thirteen unanswered points suddenly turned the game on its head and Eagles led by double-digits for the first time.

With Cardiff restricting Eagles top scorer and SLB Player of the Month for November, Andrea Daley to scraps and Maria Mongomo not bringing her shooting boots to the game it was Marin and backcourt partner Shanique Lucas who superbly carried the home town load.

Archers though were not overawed nor concerned about their losing record and by the end of the third had done superbly well to battle back into the game. Late scores in the third meant they cut into Newcastle’s lead significantly.

They were only three down going into the final period and even cut that to a single possession. Lucas though continued to drive her side on scoring and creating to help nudge Newcastle into a lead that gradually increased to eight points at one stage.

Archers kept battling but a late basket from Lucas and two points from the charity stripe for the rock-solid Marin gave Newcastle just enough breathing space to ward off Cardiff. In doing so the Eagles were able to prevent Cardiff from taking what would have been a shock result.

Eagles were far from their best on the night and in many ways will be disappointed with their performance. One thing they will be pleased about though was their ability to get over the line despite those disappointments and with once again showing they have multiple game changers in their side.