Pressure — the force that turns coal into diamonds.
After an inconsistent start to the season, the fresh-faced Seymour side looked down and out.
The chances of making finals, its shot at four straight championships and a record-breaking 10th North East CBL title were slipping through its fingers.
With three games to go, Seymour had to win all of them to guarantee its place in the final four — an unlikely scenario given the calibre of its opponents.
But the Blasters got the job done on Saturday night on their home court at the Seymour Sports and Aquatic Centre.
The home side defeated Albury to clinch fourth place on the table at the last opportunity.
Seymour vice-captain Jack Murphy was proud of his team’s drive and never-surrender attitude.
“(We’re) absolutely rapt to clinch a final spot,” Murphy said.
“We were under no illusions coming into the weekend. We needed to win to make it. Otherwise, it was time to go home.
“We put all our eggs in our basket to win this week to get over Albury and claim that final spot.
“It’s obviously awesome, but we know that it means nothing if you don’t continue it on for a couple more weeks.
“Tom O’Connor has been exceptional all year defensively, particularly guarding a lot of the bigger players in the competition.
“Ethan Bateman and Keenan Gorski really ramped up their defence, particularly in the second half, and created a few stops in play and got us a few steals, which led to transition points, which was outstanding.”
The Blasters’ match against the Cougars was essentially an elimination final.
Whoever won would progress into a semi-final, while the loser’s season would end.
With the weight of the title of reigning premiers on their shoulders and a home crowd behind them, the Blasters settled into the contest.
They started strong, a trademark in their previous two wins, taking the first quarter by seven points.
Albury, who had handed league-leader Benalla a loss in the previous round, lifted towards half-time.
Seymour held on and extended its lead to nine points.
The home side looked dominant and unwilling to let the opportunity slip by.
While the third quarter saw both sides put 12 points on the board, it was the nail in the coffin for the Cougars.
The Seymour defence was impervious.
It did not need to outscore its opponent after the strong start. All it had to do was grind it down.
Albury looked spent as it took to the court for the last quarter.
The Blasters outscored the visitors by 10 points to cap off a 78-59 victory.
Seymour had claimed a once improbable finals berth.
At the attacking end, scoring contributions were shared.
Gorski shot 21 points and Eden Hobbs scored 19.
On Saturday, Seymour will face minor premier Benalla in a semi-final.
The 2022 grand final rematch is sure to be electric.
Seymour won that decider and was one of only two sides to hand Benalla a loss in 2023.
Murphy is ready for the next chapter of the rivalry.
“They’ve finished on top for a reason,” he said.
“They’re the best side in the competition this year and they’ve got plenty on the offensive end and three or four really good players.
“Nullifying some of those guys would be a starting point for us, but we won’t look too far out of our own bubble.
“We’ll sort of stay within what we know and try to execute our systems and also hold them to hopefully a lower score.
“We know that defence is going to be the biggest part of that and something that we’ll sort of hang on to.”
All the pressure will be on Benalla to perform in front of a home crowd, so with the pressure off Blasters, will Seymour revert to coal or continue to play like diamonds?
Only time will tell.
Women
Is there a scarier prospect for North East Women’s CBL teams than facing the Blasters?
Seymour dominated its last two games of the regular season to top the league with a record of seven wins and one loss.
After the double-header weekend at the Seymour Sports and Aquatic Centre got off to a competitive start, the Blasters found another gear and breezed past Wodonga and Albury.
The Wolves looked up to the challenge on Saturday evening, winning a high-scoring first quarter by one point, 20-21.
But as the adage goes, awakening the beast is not a good idea.
Seymour blasted the second spell to hold a 22-point lead at half-time.
The second half was more one-way traffic.
The Seymour women won by 36 points, 98-62.
The Seymour players shared the scoring as Carley Cranston shot 19 points, Caitlyn Kennedy 18 and Kasey Lennox 17.
Seymour carried its dominant form into its last game of the regular season against Albury.
The Blasters racked up a 17-point lead by the end of the first quarter.
That figure was up to 30 by half-time.
Albury lifted in the second half, winning the last quarter by two points, but by then the damage had been done and Seymour claimed the victory, 72-42.
Lennox was the standout performer, scoring 20 points, including two three-pointers.
After claiming the minor premiership, a battle against Shepparton on Saturday stands in the way of the Blasters and the big dance.