Townsville Fire looking to sink in-form Perth Lynx in season series

THERE will be no coasting into 2016 for the Townsville Fire as the defending WNBL champions gear up for tonight’s hugely important clash with competition leaders the Perth Lynx.

Townsville Fire v Dandenong Rangers from RSL Stadium. Fire coach Chris Lucas. Picture: Zak Simmonds

THERE will be no coasting into 2016 for the Townsville Fire as the defending WNBL champions gear up for Thursday night’s hugely important clash with competition leaders the Perth Lynx.

Their New Year’s Eve showdown with the red hot West Australian club is shaping up as their most important fixture to date this season as they look to gain ground on the top ranked side and take an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the crucial season series.

With plenty on the line tonight Fire coach Chris Lucas called on his team to cement themselves as genuine contenders by taking down the league’s most consistent team in front of a hostile crowd at the Bendat Basketball Centre.

“They have a very good group, are well coached and are fully professional so we need to look at our depth and try and use it to our advantage this weekend,” he said.

“We may be calling on some other people to step up and do a job and I’m confident in all of the girls after the way they have been training.

“If we can get the series win on them that will give us a chance to be in the top two and that’s where you need to be to win the competition.”

Perth’s impressive first half of the 2015/16 season has seen them jump to outright leadership on the competition ladder, with their 11-4 record marginally ahead of the third placed Fire’s 9-5 start to their championship defence.

The Lynx also boast a formidable 6-1 record when playing in front of their home fans and Lucas has called on his team to make their mark against their hosts before backing up two days later against an improving Lightning side in Adelaide.

“That’s probably been Perth’s strength, they’ve been consistent and that’s the advantage of them training twice a day and being together 24/7,” he said.

“We have 10 games to go and there will be six games gone in three weekends so we need to find consistency quickly.

“This league is far too tough, you need to be on your game every night otherwise you’re just not going to win.”

The Fire tip-off against the Lynx at 9pm (local time) tonight before backing up against the Adelaide Lightning on Saturday in the South Australian capital.

Originally published as Townsville Fire looking to sink in-form Perth Lynx in season series