Sheffield Sharks must show the will to win

Sharks lost 100-62 against unbeaten league leaders Leicester Riders on Sunday – their heaviest defeat on their home court in 27 years of top-flight action – in front of their biggest crowd of the season.

Atiba Lyons’s side were down to eight men in the rotation with two players out after positive Covid tests and the team in a transitional period at shooting guard with Jonathan Williams departing last week and new recruit Devante Wallace due to arrive this week.

Leicester were able to put 10 players on the court throughout the 40-minute game and their strength was reflected in the scoreline.

Sharks were also playing for the first time in 25 days due to Covid-enforced postponements while Leicester’s festive schedule has not been disrupted.

But Ratinho, in only his second season as a professional after graduating at the University of San Francisco in May, 2020, says neither can be used as a reason for such a heavy defeat.

“It was definitely a tough one, it was definitely apparent that we hadn’t played for a while, it’s been a long break for us and we felt that on the court,” he said.

“I know we’re missing a few guys, it’s not all about that, it’s about us wanting to win and being competitive. We let ourselves get down after going behind in the first half and we never had that fight to get back into the game.

“We knew coming in that we were going to have to play a lot of minutes, but that’s not an excuse for the way we played.

“They’re obviously a very good team, they haven’t lost in the league and they shot really well against us.

“I’m not saying we played terribly defensively, they made some good shots, but we’ve got to step up on both ends of the court.

“Going forward, we’ve got to take every minute and every possession serious to try to get back on track.”

Ratinho at least had a good game personally, firing five of seven three-pointers in a 21-point haul, his second best with the Sharks whom he joined exactly a year ago today. “I shot it pretty well,” he said. “It was just one of those games, I’m more focused on our team winning so it doesn’t feel as good.”

Sharks are next in action on Sunday when Manchester Giants visit Ponds Forge (4pm).

By then they hope to have Wallace, a 6ft 5in shooting guard, available after he joined until the end of the season from a club in Romania.

Games should now come thick and fast for Sharks, something Ratinho will welcome after a long period of inactivity prior to Sunday.

Ratinho said: “It’s been a tough stretch, especially not being able to get in the gym, so it takes a bit of time to get back into it from a fitness standpoint.

“It will come, we’re going to have a good week of practice and be ready to go next week.”