Given the start to the season that Caledonia Gladiators have had, it would be understandable if the mood in the camp was somethign approaching panic.
It is, however, insists one of Gladiators', key players, Fraser Malcolm, nothing of the sort.
Rather, claims the 6’6” forward, there is merely a steely determination from him and his teammates that they will lift themselves from the depths of the Super League Basketball Championship table and upwards towards the league placings which they’ve become accustomed to in recent seasons.
Over the past couple of years, Caledonia Gladiators have established themselves as one of the best, and most consistent, men’s basketball teams in Britain.
Other than the odd glimpse of quality, that kind of consistently excellent form has been sadly lacking from the East Kilbride-based side in this campaign, with Gladiators languishing in bottom position in the Super League table, as well as having been eliminated from the Trophy Cup and FIBA Europe Cup.
There is, however, insists Malcolm, no need to become overly-alarmed by his side’s slow start to the season. Not yet anyway.
“We’re all competitive so of course we’re looking at the standings.
"The intensity and the quality of our practice have been good so we just need to trust that will translate into results. It’s a very tight league and a few good results can change things drastically in terms of standings. There’s still a long way to go in the season so things can quickly change with a few good performances,"the 28-year-old says.
"Domestically, it’s a very competitive league and any team can beat any other on a given day. So if anyone isn’t quite at their best, it’s difficult to get wins on the board.
"It’s fine margins – we’ve lost quite a few games by single digits and we’ve not been able to put together as many high-quality performances for the full 40 minutes as we’d have wanted but there’s also been moments when we’ve looked really good so there has been some positives."
Gladiators’ patchy form should perhaps come as little surprise given the disruption the squad has faced in recent months.
Perhaps the most significant change this season was the removal of Gareth Murray as head coach, with the 40-year-old Scot consequently announcing he has left Gladiators to take up a new position as head coach of Slovakian side, BC Prievidza.
Lluis Riera became Gladiators' interim head coach before Englishman, Robbie Peers, picked-up the reins earlier this month on a permanent basis.
Malcolm was, understandably, sad to see his compatriot, Murray, go given the lengthy relationship they’ve enjoyed but he’s also optimistic the new set-up has the potential to reap significant rewards relatively quickly.
“Gareth and I have known each other for years – we first became teammates when I was about 18 and he’s a legend of Scottish basketball so I have nothing but respect for him.
"It’s been great to see him get another high-level coaching job and I’m sure he’ll do well because he’s a very good coach," he says.
"Coaching changes can be unsettling but as a team, we need to stay together to make sure we keep progressing and I feel we’re doing that.
"Robbie and James (Hamilton, Peers’Assistant Head Coach) have come in and made a few changes – we’re playing more up-tempo and it’s been good to hear his views and learn what his philosophy is.”
Gladiators are in the midst of a particularly busy period of the season, with four games in ten days straddling Christmas Day.
A loss to London Lions last Sunday wasn’t quite the result Malcolm and his teammates would have wanted going into Christmas but tomorrow is, potentially, Gladiators’ most significant fixture of the festive period given they welcome Manchester to the Playsport Arena with the fixture a bottom of the table clash between the two lowest-placed sides.
Malcolm is, however, refusing to take the English side lightly despite their league placing.
“This is a very hectic spell but there’s real positives to that. The up side is that if we can hit a purple patch then it’s great because you can ride the wave. And I also view the busy schedule as a positive because if we do have a tough result, we can’t dwell on it, we have to move right onto the next one," he says.
"Manchester are a really talented team and where they are in the league is just another example of how strong the league is. They have bags of talent so it’ll be a tough game for us but a win will be a big result for us.”
Given Malcolm’s positive spin on the opening portion of the season, it comes as little surprise that he remains optimistic that Gladiators can salvage something tangible from this season. And, with league play-off spots and two Cup trophies still on the line, for which Malcolm believes he and his teammates can make a genuine push, he’s perhaps got a point that his side could yet make a success of this campaign.
“There’s still a lot to play for this season," he says.
"If we can climb as high as possible in the league and do well in the remaining cups then we can really turn our season around and perhaps even win some silverware.”
