Rossendale Raptors travelled to Mold in North Wales on Sunday for their latest fixture in the National Basketball League.

Mold have had some impressive results of late and Rossendale were uncertain as to how difficult the game would be.

The fact that Pasquale Kornecki, Rossendale’s top scorer last season, had transferred to Mold made the fixture even more interesting.

The Raptors jumped to an early 22-8 lead after the first quarter, with veteran John Lindsay starting quickly and scoring the first eight points for the Raptors.

The Raptors extended their lead to 38-18 by half-time and looked in control as Mold were finding it difficult to score.

In the second half Matthew Ngara and John Lindsay continued to play well and finished with 14 and 16 points respectively.

The duo did a terrific job in support of Steven Gayle who took over in the second half and finished with 43 points – nine rebounds, seven assists and five steals as Raptors won 89-42.

The remaining players on the squad struggled with their shooting but what is encouraging is that behind the leadership of Gayle, different players from within the squad are stepping up each week.

This strength in depth is an indication of the strong squad which coach Jim Fry has assembled.

He said: "We have a terrific squad, Steven is scoring a lot of points at the moment but we have another 11 guys on our team who are playing hard, defending well and taking their chances offensively.

"We have a lot of talent here and, on any given night, I have 12 players who can all score 20 points. That’s what makes us tough to beat."

The Raptors have moved to fifth in the National League Division Four North having won three of their five games and are looking to continue to push the league leaders.

The Raptors are also putting on a great show each week and only Middlesbrough have scored more points per game than the Raptors.

Chairman Ken Masser said: "The team are developing really well.

"All our home games have been exciting and we’re putting a lot of work in to make sure that people are enjoying the games and getting real value for money.

"I think we can continue to do well and as the season progresses hopefully we’ll be there or thereabouts."

The Raptors next game is this Saturday (19th November) at Haslingden Sports Centre (5.15pm start).

There were more than 100 spectators at the game last week and it was a terrific family-friendly atmosphere.

For more information visit www.rossendaleraptors.co.uk. Admission is £3 for adults and £1 for children.

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