Tara Murray
There were plenty of celebrations for Whittlesea Pacers on Saturday in the Big V men’s division 2 competition.
Not only did the side pull off its best win of the season, but the club honoured four of its key players.
Captain Jason Dirkx played game 250, Brendan Hughes played game 200 and Christopher Petroro played game 150.
They also recognised Ashley Bryar, who was out injured, but recently played his 200th game. Bryar was on the side lines having taken over the coaching role.
Dirkx said it was pretty big that all four could celebrate their milestones together.
“We’ve grown up with basketball together,” he said. “I’ve played a lot of games with Brendan and Ash, and Chris came a bit later.
“You kind of count in your head [how many games you’re on]. It’s pretty special to share that with your other teammates.”
Dirkx said the on court highlight for him was the 2013 division 1 championship, which saw the side play in the championship division for a number of years following.
Hughes and Petroro were also part of that team.
Dirkx said the friendships were even more special.
“We’ve had some successful years,” he said. “You share the ups and downs as a team. I’ve got friends for more than 20 years from playing basketball.”
The 250 game milestone didn’t seem likely for Dirkx after he stepped away from the game for three seasons.
He said he didn’t think he would ever come back to playing for the Pacers.
“I was adamant that I wasn’t playing again,” he said.
“I had a few years off with two young kids and wanted to help around home.
“I kind of like to keep fit and healthy. My first training session back, it was a funny feeling. I was itching to play again.”
The Pacers will be back on court on Saturday night against the Craigieburn Eagles.
The Pacers currently sit 3-6.
“It has been an interrupted start with injuries and illness,” Dirkx said.
“We had a lot of games with low numbers. We won on the weekend which was very positive and there’s a bit of energy.
“It’s something we can come back to. We want to push for finals at the end of the year.”
