By Emma Grodzicki

After five years of it alluding them, the Penrith Under 18 Men’s Division One basketball team has finally made it into the Grand Final of the Sydney Junior Championships.

Penrith toughed it out to obtain a berth in the Grand Final last Sunday, when the team played North Sydney.

The teams had to play an extra five minutes of overtime to decide the winner and Coach Steve Sardi said it was one of the most exciting games he had coached.

“Having a key player fouled out of the game, we had to play in overtime without him,” Sardi said.

“The team refocused and worked hard and we won by two points. The boys wanted the win more than Norths, diving on the floor for every loose ball, I could not ask any more of the boys, their intensity lifted another level in the last five minutes.”

The win has put Penrith on course to enter the Grand Final against Bankstown this Sunday, August 1, at 4.30pm at the Penrith Valley Regional Sports Centre.

The stadium will be buzzing with people from all over Sydney who are keen to watch the Grand Final, as well as those who have played earlier in the day in their respective age groups. Penrith Basketball is hosting the Sydney Junior Championships Grand Finals on behalf of Basketball NSW and will have a total of 26 Grand Finals played.

The Under 18 Men’s Division Three finished as minor premiers and will be playing St George at 2.45pm. The Under 14 Women’s Division One [pictured right] also finished as minor premiers which qualified them for the Australian Under 14 Club Championships to be held in Hobart in October. They play against Sydney Comets is the Grand Final at 2.45pm.