Coach Creon: The wins will come

Creon Raftopoulos believes that better times are coming for the Surrey Scorchers as they look to fill the roster ahead of the new year.

Scorchers narrowly lost at home last weekend against the Leicester Riders, but despite a tough first half to the 2018/19 season, there was a feeling of positivity from the Scorchers fans and the team.

Leicester Riders were greeted by a sold out crowd at Surrey Sports Park, something coach Raftopoulos felt was a vital component to their improved performance as he said, “when the fans get louder, the team gets stronger.”

“I feel the game against Leicester was one of our better performances this season. It still hurts to lose, but I’ve got to accept there were a lot of positives,” said Scorchers head coach.

“We were undersized against a champion pedigree team, but the guys showed great heart and put in all their effort for 40 minutes and we intend to produce that every game.”

Following the departure of Demario Beck and Jordan Williams in the past few weeks, the Scorchers roster has been a difficult challenge for the club in 2018.

“Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to get our newest signing Anthony Elechi here in the country as quickly as we wanted,” he added.

“Our priority is finding the right player, and with a limited number of British power forwards available we may resort to a short-term signing until the new year.”

Looking ahead to 2019, Raftopoulos appeared optimistic that with some hard work and determination, the team will be able to turn their season around.

“It’s been a tough season with injuries, and I can’t think of two games this season in which we’ve had a fully fit roster for back to back games.

“The group will continue to work hard and as a team, and we believe that once we’re at full fitness, combined with a full roster, the wins will come.”

Surrey Scorchers will head back on the road this Sunday as they face Cheshire Phoenix for the second time this season.

Cheshire Phoenix have bolstered their roster this week, having recently re-signed seven-foot CJ Gettys, but Scorchers hope they can repeat their performance of last weekend to earn their third win of the season.

Surrey Scorchers return to Surrey Sports Park on New Year’s Day as they face their new local rivals London City Royals. Click here to buy your tickets.