After the weather put paid to last weekend’s tie, a swift rearrangement sees Hemel Storm take on Newcastle Knights this Saturday at the StormDome, looking to secure their spot in the National Cup final for the second time in three years.
The Knights will be looking for some revenge, as Storm claimed a comprehensive 109-81 victory on the road the last time the sides met in the league matchup in early October.
Since then, the Northern-based side have added to a roster already containing a wealth of talent, with ex-Storm man Hafeez Abdul heading to Tyneside. He dropped an almighty 37 points and seven rebounds on debut, and averaged over 26 points in the three times he suited up for the side before Christmas.
He reunites with Ronald Blain, whom he most recently shared the court with at Worthing Thunder when they aimed to challenge Storm’s quadruple-winning squad in 2022/23, and they could form a partnership that sees the fortunes of the team pick up, with a league position of tenth failing to expose the true potential of the side.
The standout names don’t stop there though, with former Derby Trailblazer Corey Johnson and Logan Rooney also plying their trade in Newcastle.
Having beaten Bradford Dragons in the quarter-finals to reach this stage, the Knights will leave it all out on the court and will play hard in a bid for a shot at silverware in Manchester later this month.
Storm go into the tie as undeniable favourites, sitting top of the NBL Division One standings having not yet lost a game in that competition. They will be buoyed with confidence, given their earlier success in Newcastle, but will take nothing for granted as they look to blow away the cobwebs of the festive break and return in style.
Sam Newman revealed the squad were very excited to get back on the court in our interview with him last week, but remain wary of the threat a strong Newcastle lineup will pose. Home advantage may play an important factor, and the Hemel side will lean on their sixth man in the stands to get them through the tough moments in this blockbuster semi-final clash.
Matt Ellis leads the side in scoring and stepped up repeatedly in the crucial moments before Christmas brought a halt to all NBL action. In the hotly anticipated matchup between title challengers Storm and Derby Trailblazers, Ellis was superb in posting 28 points, earning him a place in the NBL Team of the Week, and followed that with 31 points in another important meeting with Birmingham Rockets, seeing him named as NBL’s Player of the Week.
Then, in the quarter-final of this competition, with Storm locked in an intense battle with the MK Breakers, it was Ellis again who knocked down a tough jumper in the dying embers of the game to secure victory and see his side through to the semi-final, where he will hope to have a similar impact on proceedings.
His head-to-head with Ronald Blain and Hafeez Abdul in and around the paint will be vital in how the tie unfolds, and if he and teammate Darien Nelson-Henry can make the most of Newcastle’s lack of height under the rim, it may just be another destructive evening for the duo.
Elsewhere, the Storm side will be boosted by a few weeks away to refresh and re-energise ahead of the crucial second half of the season, where the big honours are up for grabs.
Trent Monkman, in particular, enjoyed a prosperous break as he announced his engagement to fiancee Correina McNeice and he’ll now be hoping to continue his solid start to life in Hemel on the court.
With Storm returning home for the first time in 2025, they’re going to need your support. Grab your tickets via the Fanbase app and continue the noise, after a thunderous StormDome lit up the SLB match with Manchester Basketball last time out.
Tip-off is at 7pm on Saturday evening, with a new date soon to be confirmed for the home game against Essex Rebels originally scheduled for this weekend.
Written by Callum Humphrey