Basketball: Away monkey off back

Paul Henare has stayed loyal to the Breakers. Photo / Getty Images

The Breakers have managed to get a monkey off their back that, as Paul Henare says, was turning into a gorilla.

The North Shore outfit beat the Crocodiles 85-73 in Townsville on Friday to win their first game in six attempts on the road this season.

The result saw them ease into fourth on the eight-team table with a six win, six loss record.

While the victory was the most important thing for Henare, it was also a significant night for the 30-year-old, who was playing his 200th ANBL match for the Breakers.

Some of his teammates have played far more games, like Tony Ronaldson (637) and John Rillie (469), but Henare joined an exclusive bunch of only five others who have notched up 200 games for one club.

"Being here from the start and seeing what the club has gone through, it has been a pretty amazing ride," Henare said. "We have had some serious ups and downs but I have a little sense of self-pride to achieve that [number of games]. It pales in comparison to the likes of Tony and John but, for me, it's pretty special."

Henare has been with the Breakers from day one in 2003 and it is only in recent times that the club have enjoyed life as contenders. They won only 12 of 33 games in that first season, which included a run of 10 losses in 11 games, and also endured a club-record 11-game losing streak in 2005/06.

"People expected us to make something happen straight away but, as we found out, Australians aren't too bad at playing this game," Henare says. The point guard has had his knockers over the years, with some saying he wasn't good enough to play in the league, but he has remained a constant with the Breakers and played 130 consecutive games early in his career.

The recruitment of the highly-acclaimed CJ Bruton last season to run the point has taken considerable pressure off Henare. His value to the side has also been more widely acknowledged and last season he won the Players' Player of the Year award.

"I have always had people knocking me," Henare says. "When I was younger it was hard to take, but I have grown to learn that I don't care what people think. The only opinions that matter to me are the coaches and my teammates.

"The guys made it a special day for me [on Friday] and got me a couple of things and said some nice things before and after the game. They dedicated it to me. That shows how much they mean to me and what I mean to them. All I want to do, though, is win a championship with this team."

Friday night's result was a step in the right direction. Star shooting guard Kirk Penney, last season's league MVP, is also due to return to full training tomorrow in the hope he can line up against the Cairns Taipans at North Shore on Thursday night.

Penney has played only three of the 12 games this season because of a troublesome back injury and he has been sorely missed.

"Not having Kirk Penney is a huge factor [in our results], especially on the road," Henare says. "He has the capability to keep the scoreboard ticking over when things aren't going so well. Once Kirk gets back, we will be in even better shape than we are now.

"Every single player on the team has 100 per cent faith that we can win the championship. We have been up and down this season, and we are a little behind where we want to be, but we are in not too bad a shape. If we win two or three in a row, we could find ourselves on the top of the table."