With the absence of coach and spiritual leader Declan McCusker holidaying in Thailand and forward Paul Hayden at home in Dartford, it was a 6 man Erks squad that travelled to take on bottom placed Eastbury Tigers. Swingman and webmaster Peter Horrell was making his seasonal debut, forming an experienced core with point guard Dave Bromfield and sharp-shooter Lee Atkinson. Richard Williams took on the coaching reigns and his minimalist approach to coaching (1 substitution per quarter, no profanities and no shots allowed off the first pass) proved ideal for this post-Xmas fixture which was always played in good spirit. Eastbury themselves were hard hit by post-Xmas unavailability, leading scorer Lee Miller and young gun (in Tigers terms) Tony Petoom also absent.

As ever, the Erks looked to John Kimani and Martin Overare for the bulk of their scoring, and the pair didn't disappoint. Kimani obliterated Lee Atkinson's first half scoring record at Eastbury, hitting 5 first half treys, including 4 in succession in the 2nd period on his way to 33 points at the break. Overare also made hay in the paint, his quickness and athleticism proving too much for the much smaller Tigers line-up as his 36 points was only good enough for 2nd top-scorer, Kimani finishing with 44. Elsewhere a rusty Horrell took until the final period before opening his account and Atkinson scored his usual 10 points in the first 5 minutes before taking his foot off the gas to finish with 14. Jump shooting centre Williams had the same number and also managed a couple of rare inside baskets as his 8 inch height advantage persuaded him to actually post up occasionally.

However the real sub-plot in the game was the battle between Erks long serving point guard Dave Bromfield and the Tigers driving force, league secretary Brian Pittman. Pittman was outstanding in a losing cause, hitting numerous fade away shots from the corner and utilising the glass to good effect on a succession of unorthodox moves, as he took his marker Bromfield to school repeatedly. Shaken by the onslaught, Bromfield put together a run of his own late in the 4th quarter, driving to the hoop relentlessly and hitting a number of jump shots from the free-throw line as the Erks lead inched over 70. However the final analysis revealed that Bromfield's 16 points had been over-shadowed by Pittman's 25, a sensational 50% of his team's total.

Erks:
Kimani 44, Overare 36, Bromfield 16, Williams 14, Atkinson 14, Horrell 2.