It has been a unique few days for the side this week, the boys waiting to see who we will play in the NBL semi-finals.
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Those questions were all answered on Tuesday night, South-East Melbourne falling to Brisbane resulting in a Wednesday morning flight to Perth to play the Wildcats on Thursday.
It's a place where we have had little success over the years, but as a squad we are confident of silencing the 'Red Army' at RAC Arena and returning home for Saturday's second match at the WIN Entertainment Centre with a 1-0 lead in the three-game series.
Thursday's clash is my first playoff game since the 2017 finals, the Hawks enduring a turbulent few years since that 3-0 loss to Perth.
Having arrived at Illawarra in 2015 and played in the post-season in my first two years with the club, it was something I expected to become a regular occurrence.
The last few years have been a reality check, playoffs basketball is not a given and is something that doesn't come around very often.
That will be the message to the team on Thursday.
The odds may be stacked against us, but we have the talent to claim the club's second NBL championship.
- AJ Ogilvy
This squad, led by Goorj and MVP finalist Tyler Harvey, has a chance to achieve something special this year.
The odds may be stacked against us, but we have the talent to claim the club's second NBL championship.
Playing in the finals is an opportunity I've only experienced once before during my time in Wollongong and we don't know when the next chance will come in the future.
So starting Thursday night, I will be drilling into my teammates how important it is they make the most of this opportunity. And I have every confidence the boys will do so.
Our job will be producing on the court, but once we get back from Perth the people of Wollongong have a job to do off the court.
Win or lose on Thursday, we need every Hawkhead in this city to turn out in force and make the WEC as intimidating as it possibly can be for the Wildcats on Saturday.
We saw how loud the place got last Tuesday when we knocked off Perth and secured our place in the post-season - and it wasn't even full.
If our Illawarra fans pack out the WEC and fill every seat in the arena, I have no doubt it will give us that extra dose of energy to get past Perth.
So Hawkheads, let's work together to ensure this post-season isn't over in the first round. Let's make sure we're doing everything we can to defeat Perth and return to the NBL finals.
We're focusing on doing our job on the court, can you promise to do your job in the stands?
