Live stream: Albury-Wodonga out to shock at the Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup (Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup)

Albury-Wodonga isn’t shying away from the massive challenge at the Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup. Here’s why there’s extra motivation. Watch them LIVE on KommunityTV from Tuesday.

Albury-Wodonga has a point to prove at the Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup.

The tournament hosts are set to take on some of the country’s best regional athletes, including players who have worn the green and gold.

KommunityTV will LIVE STREAM 48 games from the tournament over five days, starting on Tuesday, January 17, including all four gold medal playoffs on Saturday, January 21.

Full of quality players, Albury Wodonga is confident its four selected sides (under-16 and under-18 boys and girls) will match it with the best.

HOW TO WATCH THE AUSTRALIAN COUNTRY JUNIOR BASKETBALL CUP

Jake Baeurle, Keira Freeman and Jess Freeman will play for Albury Wodonga next week.

In some respects, it’s a David v Goliath battle for the region.

“It’s a big battle for us,” Albury Wodonga team operations manager Matthew Kowalczyk said.

“It’s an opportunity for our local talent to show what they can do at this level.

“We know we have got a lot of players that can compete at this level. but there are only a few limited spots available (in state teams).

“It’s an opportunity for everyone else to step up and show what they can do.”

Albury U18 player Harry Dean trains for the big tournament. Pic: Matthew Kowalczyk

Kowalczyk said some Albury-Wodonga representatives were close to playing for either NSW or Victoria at the event.

“They are coming out with this chip on their shoulder, they think they should have got a spot over player x and player y, but they didn’t get selected for whatever reason,” Kowalczyk said.

“They are going to come out and show it was a mistake and show they deserved that spot.

“There’s no expectation on us, no pressure on us to perform and beat anyone, we’re just there to learn, play with the best and show what we are capable of.”

But Kowalczyk said the team needed to be competitive.

Albury Wodonga has some advantages to allow them to widen the pool of talent it can pick from, including an extension of the age in some age groups.

“As much it is an opportunity for us, we don’t want it to be a waste of a game for the other states,” Kowalczyk said.

“They pay a lot of money to be in this competition, they earnt the right to be in this competition. It’s not worth them playing against teams that can’t compete and are just wasting their energy and time.

“We make sure we are competitive.”