Dubai: Australia coach Mark Watkins says revenge is on his mind as his team continue their campaign in the ongoing 2014 Fiba Under-17 World Basketball Championships here.
The Aussies were runners-up to two-time champions USA in Kaunas, Lithuania, two years ago and Watkins hopes they will get the chance to right that wrong in Dubai this month.
They won their second successive Group B game 84-81 against France on Saturday and afterwards the coach told Gulf News: “There are no expectations on us [from outside], but we have expectations on ourselves.
“Our first goal is to be in the final four and get a medal. And, of course, the ideal scenario would be to play USA in the final and beat them. We want to turn things over from the last time.”
For a land with a population of only 23 million people — the US has an estimated 317 million to put things in perspective — Australia is proud of its legacy in sports. From swimming to rugby union and league to cricket and the national sport of Aussie Rules football, Australia has consistently stamped its class at the highest level.
Naturally, it’s a tough call for a sport like basketball to find a following, let alone building a team of players capable of competing with top international sides. However, Basketball Australia has done a great job in fighting the odds and attracting youngsters to the game.
“We are indeed struggling to keep the kids in basketball. But to our advantage, A-Rules and rugby are not Olympic disciplines, while basketball is. So that’s the bait we throw out to our players and keep them going with the hope of an Olympic medal,” Watkins said.
“We are a sporting nation and we are proud of that. When one of our youngsters takes up a sport, he or she means business and that’s the thinking we have back home.”
And Australia’s junior basketball team is quite a handful as they maintained their strong showing in the Fiba event here.
None of the youngsters who suffered the heartbreak of a final defeat two years ago are still in the team, but the Aussie coach expects his team to come to the party and deliver.
“As I said before, there is no pressure to deliver, but we are here to make a difference and I hope we can,” Watkins said ahead of Monday’s final group game against Canada.
