FINCH TO STICK WITH TEL AVIV HEROES
09/05/2008 GET tough GB coach Chris Finch will keep his runaway young star Kieron Achara on the bench when the national team face the Czech Republic in a vital Euro qualifier at the O2 this afternoon.

GET tough GB coach Chris Finch will keep his runaway young star Kieron Achara on the bench when the national team face the Czech Republic in a vital Euro qualifier at the O2 this afternoon.



Achara walked out on the GB team two weeks ago for trials with Italian club Cantu.

But he asked to return, having won a contract with the team, and GB chiefs flexed their muscles by demanding his release.

However, Achara will have to watch in his civilian clothes tonight with Finch looking certain to stick by the heroes who came with HALF A SECOND of upsetting Israel in Wednesday's group opener in Tel Aviv.

Finch has lost a number of key players after their European clubs put pressure on them in recent years.

And he blasted: "This is a victory for British Basketball and it shows we are not going to let these clubs bully our players any more.

"We are happy to have him back but, also, we don't appreciate the way things went down over his departure.

"He wanted to come back and we made that happen but he has no birthright to a place on the team. Now he has to earn his way back into our squad.

"He is not entirely forgiven and this is an opportunity to send a message to everybody - to European clubs that try and bully our players into not playing for GB and, to the players, that they are not going to use us to profile themselves then move on.

"It's also a message to those players who have been around all the time, while players like Kieron walk away, that they have not gone unnoticed either."

Achara, 25, may have a chance of featuring in the four games remaining after today although a clearly furious Finch will take convincing.

Meanwhile, veteran seven footer Andy Betts will have a late fitness test today but again appears set to miss out with a back problem.

The heartbreaking 102-92 over-time loss to Israel could return to plague the Brits with only group winners -20 and the best three of four second place teams - guaranteed a place in Eurobasket 2009 in Poland.

But Finch insisted: "Our initial aim was to win the group and I think it can still be won.

"It is a big if, but if we win our five remaining games, I think that will be enough to get us through. But we will know a lot more after the Czech game."

Ian Whittell for 24/7