From where I sat there was only six point two seconds in the game. Six point two seconds between a Dragons win or Dragons loss. With seconds left in the round eleven clash at Vodafone arena the Perth Wildcats capitalized on the South Dragons inability to seal the game late in the fourth. With 3:30 left in the fourth the scores were tied at 91 points apiece after which time I felt the Dragons had their chances to take the game; full credit to the Wildcats though as they put two poor performances behind them and won on the road 103 to 99. The Dragons, who have gone four and one over their last five games, seemed unable to find fifth gear throughout the night despite some impressive individual performances from Rosell Ellis, who simply went to work against opponents twice his size, and Jacob Holmes who continually found the ball off the offensive glass.

In fact there wasn’t a Dragon who didn’t contribute to what was an exciting game for each of the three and a half thousand fans who attended. There was however one Dragon who rose above, as strange as it may sound, himself; Shane Heal. Coming into the game Heal needed 32 points to reach eight thousand career points (NBL) and yet couldn’t find his shooting touch with any consistency throughout the game. A combination of an average night and strong Wildcat defense limited Heals effectiveness throughout the contest. When crunch time came however it was Heal, along with Joe Ingles, who attacked the basket and created repeated opportunities for victory. Thus with just over six seconds remaining in the game you would be forgiven for assuming that Heal would take the last shot. It was not to be as unfortunately Heals in bounding pass was stolen and laid up and in virtually on the buzzer.

On the buzzer the air was sucked clean out of Vodafone arena but upon reflection it became clear that Heal, without argument one of the best Australian basketballers ever, had decided that he was not the man best suited to hit the game winning shot and that the creative ‘Scoot’ was. This for me was a sign of a man who wants to win within the team fabric and not as an individual. I was very impressed to see ‘ego’ left behind and team put first, second and third. It is for that reason that I thank Shane and the Dragons for providing a spectacle that embraces each and every person on and off the floor. Go Dragons.