THE Wollongong Roller Hawks will have to overcome the loss of their tower of strength Michael Auprince to win the national title this weekend.
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Auprince will miss Friday’s elimination final against the Red Dust Heelers at Minto after suffering a wrist injury.
The National Wheelchair Basketball League star has been ordered to rest his arm for at least a week, meaning he may only receive limited game time as part of the Australian Rollers UK tour.
Hawks trio Auprince, Brett Stibners and Sam White will join the Australian squad to travel to the UK on Monday.
They will take on Japan, the Netherlands, USA, Great Britain and 2012 Paralympic gold medallists Canada in the Continental Clash series, a warm-up for Brazil.
But friends and Australian Rollers teammates will be foes on Friday, as the Roller Hawks face an elimination final against Western Australian outfit the Red Dust Heelers.
The Hawks are unbeaten against the Heelers this year and have beaten all three finals rivals without Auprince, who returned from playing in the US after the season started.
“It’s a huge blow, having Michael out,” he said.’
“He’s been brilliant for us since he came back.
“We have beaten the others without him, but he certainly makes it a bit easier for us to do it.”
Stibners knows all too well the unpredictable nature of an NWBL finals series, after the Hawks finished atop last year’s ladder but missed the grand final.
Andrew Tarrant and Brad Fisher will fill the void for Auprince.
Former Roller Hawks star Tristan Knowles, who won the championships with Kilsyth last year, is wary of a Wollongong finals run.
“From Kilsyth's point of view our sights are set on defending our championship,” he said. “It's pretty open between the top four teams. The top three teams have all beaten and lost to each other.
“When you allow Perth and Wollongong to play their style you're in for a long game.”
The Australian Rollers finished with silver at the London Paralympics, losing the final to Canada. It leaves them with every motivation for success in Rio de Janeiro in two months time.
NATIONAL WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL LEAGUE
Finals, Friday
Major semi-final
KILSYTH COBRAS v PERTH WHEELCATS (6pm)
Minor semi-final
WOLLONGONG ROLLER HAWKS v RED DUST HEELERS (8pm)
Preliminary final: Saturday (6.30pm); Grand final: Sunday (1pm).
CONTINENTAL CLASH
Australian Rollers squad for series in Leicester (UK), July 2-5: Josh Allison (Kilsyth), Michael Auprince (Wollongong), Jannik Blair (REd Dust Heelers), Adam Deans (Red Dust Heelers), Tristan Knowles (Kilsyth), Bill Latham (Queensland), Matt McShane (Queensland), Brad Ness (Red Dust Heelers), Shaun Norris (Perth Wheelcats), Tom O’Neill-Thorne (Queensland), Shawn Russell (Kilsyth), Tige Simmons (Queensland), Brett Stibners (Wollongong), Sam White (Wollongong).