E.Zadoroznij experience during ''Celtic Invitational Series''

The TEAMNI U17 Boys faced off against the Wales U17 Boys in a challenging two-game series at the Celtic Invitational, hosted at Ulster University, Jordanstown. Throughout the weekend, the youthful NI squad encountered a strong Welsh team, making it a weekend filled with competitive basketball and important learning opportunities.

We, as a club took a chance to ask Erik about his experience playing against Wales.

How did it feel to represent TEAMNI U-17 Boys Team in your first international game against Wales, and what was the experience like playing at that level?

-It was a great experience playing for TeamNI, Playing Wales taught me that I can compete at that level.

Despite the losses, you were one of the top scorers for the team. What do you think contributed to your strong performance on the field?

-The most important thing to me is confidence and playing with a dog mindset, being aggressive on the floor, defensively and offensively.

Can you describe how your off-season training with ''WolvesSkillsAcademy'' prepared you for this international opportunity? What specific skills or strategies did you focus on?

-Wolves Academy helped me develop my ability to handle and create contact with my defender, it also helped me to always stay low so it is easier to drive the ball and make the defender work more.

What were some of the challenges you faced during the matches against Wales, and how did you and your teammates try to overcome them?

-During the first game our defence and offense was soft, and were letting them get easy buckets around the basket and free throws, we tried to force too many shots, after game 1 we learned that we had to be much more aggressive and explosive as the refs were allowing more contact, we also had to help more on the defence and start using our bodies instead of our hands.

How do you plan to build on this experience moving forward in your career with ''Bc Wolves'' and potentially with TEAMNI in the future?

-This experience taught me that there are many things that there is to improve on, and that next time we will win whoever we are playing

What advice would you give to other young players aspiring to reach the level of international competition, especially in terms of preparation and mindset?

-My advice is that you should be very competitive and play with a dog in you, energy wins games and can help you perform better, it is also important to be confident in yourself, be confident not arrogant.

-I would also like to thank for all the Coaching I received from U-18's Coach Linas and other ''Wolves'' coaches, I have felt that everyone in the club were supporting me.

Photography by Jim Corr.