Hawthorn Magic Youth League Men’s Team go to Jail!

Added 23 December 2008

A couple of months ago, GMac was emailed to see if a Hawthorn team would be interested in playing a team at Port Phillip Prison. With the need for as many practise games as possible, the Youth League Men’s team agreed, and after a lot of organising, including security checks of all the players, and referees, we were able to go to the prison to play.

On arrival, the team was x-rayed and searched, and we were only allowed to take in the things we would be playing in. Everything else needed to stay in the car (including the camera). As we made our way through all the stringent security, we were given a final brief by an officer, reminding us of where we were, and not to say too much!

As we walked through the grounds of the prison, it looked like a scene out of a movie, and it was ‘eyes front’ for the whole team, not daring to make eye contact with any of the inmates.

Entering the basketball court didn’t have the same feel as entering BSC on a Saturday night for a BigV game, however the anticipation and nerves felt for this game was just as high. After moving weights and gym equipment off from the court, we were able to commence warm-ups, as the inmates made their way to the gym.

We were soon greeted by the Penhyn Youth Unit’s Basketball Team, and it soon became apparent that our fears of playing heavily tattooed, massively built, angry men, wasn’t going to be the case, and instead we were greeted by a friendly team.

The first game we played saw some great outside shooting from the Penhyn team, but the athleticism and skill of the Magic was too dominating in the end, and the Magic took out game 1 by 12 points.

Game 1 was followed by a short drills session, where both teams joined together to complete some basic drills that we would usually complete at training and gave Penhyn an insight into the type of drills they can use in their own practise.

Game 2 began shortly after, and the drills we did must have worked, as the Penhyn team broke out to an early lead. They continued to shoot well from beyond the ark, and began playing more as a team. Although the Magic fought hard, some costly turnovers and defensive blunders saw the Penhyn team take out the game by 2 points.

The Magic boys enjoyed the experience as much as the Penhyn boys enjoyed playing a proper team, and the Magic presented them with 2 new basketballs, so they can continue to train and enjoy their basketball.

Although the basketball wasn’t of the highest standard, the experience of playing against a team like this was a real eye opener and an invaluable experience for our young squad. We will never forget the day the Hawthorn Magic Youth League team played for the very first time together against the Penhyn Youth Unit’s team at the Port Phillip Prison.

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