![The John Martin Country Tournament winning U14 Shoalhaven Tigers with coach Leighvi Dennison (top right). Picture supplied. The John Martin Country Tournament winning U14 Shoalhaven Tigers with coach Leighvi Dennison (top right). Picture supplied.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/157749079/ee9a1266-ef47-47cc-bbcf-d88d5705b546.jpg/r0_0_2048_1151_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The Shoalhaven Tigers were well represented at the John Martin Country Tournament last weekend which saw teams from across NSW travel to compete in the annual tournament.
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The Tigers' teams put forth an array of electric campaigns, with none better than the U14 Tigers who roared all the way to a grand final victory against Queanbeyan at Berkeley.
The side dominated their pool games, going 6-nilheading into their grand final match against the Roadrunners.
It was initially a close match before the Tigers took full control to easily snatch the gold, 41-26.
For Coach Leighvi Dennison, the grit and determination his side showed was all that he could have asked for across such a tough stretch of matches.
"I am so proud of the boys efforts on the weekend," he said.
"We knew it was going to be a tough ask to win seven games but the boys played as a team and supported one another to finish the season off undefeated, which is a huge achievement for us and our Shoalhaven basketball club."
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"To see our team celebrating and smiling is the reason why I love coaching, it's priceless."
Dennison praised the play of every Tiger that took the floor.
He said the starting five of Xavier Exton, Stephan Alfano, Cameron Donaldson, Diesel Romeo and Lincoln Whitting, always worked hard to get the team off to a fast start.
"They gave our team a good lead at the start of every game with their defensive pressure and quick scoring through our transition offense," he said.
He also credited the readiness and efforts from the guys off the bench who helped to elevate the team even more.
"The boys off the bench Lyall Swindlehurst, Liam Dennison, Lachie Field, Benjamin Anderson and Brandon Extonm who was made the MVP of the tournament, gave our team that extra boost to get the wins," he said.
"It was unfortunate for Max Kiehl and Jayden Barnes who were out injured, but they showed lots of support on the bench."
The U14 side weren't the only Tigers team to impress with several other teams having strong performances in the competition.
![The silver medal winning U16 Shoalhaven Tigers after their grand final clash. Picture supplied. The silver medal winning U16 Shoalhaven Tigers after their grand final clash. Picture supplied.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/157749079/bc76790c-f6cc-4c64-ba5a-489e201bddda.jpg/r51_0_1389_754_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The U16 Girls had a fantastic run in Maitland, finishing at the top of their division in the pool games, booking themselves a spot in the grand final against the Central Coast Rebels.
In a tough match, the Tigers came up just short against the Rebels, losing by three points, 24-27.
It has been a strong season for the U16s, who took home gold medals in Barrengarry and the Southern Junior League earlier this year.
![The U12 Shoalhaven Tigers had a strong run through to the semi-finals. Picture supplied. The U12 Shoalhaven Tigers had a strong run through to the semi-finals. Picture supplied.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/157749079/8bec2bcf-32a6-4904-8908-595e18263167.jpg/r0_0_1080_844_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The U12 Girls also had an impressive run at the tournament, winning four of their five matches, but came up just short in the semi-finals against the Lithgow Lazers losing 13-20 in Bathurst.