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Speaker 1: You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Fine

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Speaker 1: from Newstorgs EDB Don't Get Caught off Side eight hundred

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Speaker 1: and eighty ten Weekend Sports with Jason Paine and GJ.

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Speaker 1: Gardner Holmes, New Zealand's most trusted home builder, news Dogs NB.

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Speaker 2: Two twenty eight on text. The reason these games cost

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Speaker 2: so much is all the team sports. Get rid of

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Speaker 2: all of them, just have athletics only. Yeah, I'm not

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Speaker 2: sure you can have just athletics, but I get your

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Speaker 2: point on the team sports, and I think of the

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Speaker 2: ten I name, not that I was using that as

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Speaker 2: my rationale. The only team sport I've got there is netble,

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Speaker 2: and I would have netball there, you know, listening to

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Speaker 2: Dame Nolan again, I kind of feel like, I remember,

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Speaker 2: this is a unique situation. It's not forever more, it's

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Speaker 2: it's just for the Glasgow Games of twenty twenty six,

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Speaker 2: a unique sporting proposition. Yeah, I'd have netball and lawn

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Speaker 2: bowls there as pinnacle events for their sports. But yeah,

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Speaker 2: I have I think in my summation, and they've taken

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Speaker 2: a hockey out of taken sevens out of taken t

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Speaker 2: twenty cricket out, although Ken says T twenty will be

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Speaker 2: there as it gets bums on seats makes it more

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Speaker 2: financially viable. And I don't even like T twenty six again, Yeah,

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Speaker 2: well I suppose in the UK, Yeah, cricket will attract

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Speaker 2: ticket purchases. Yeah, I guess that has to also be

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Speaker 2: a fact, it doesn't it. What is going to get

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Speaker 2: you the best bang for your buck in terms of

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Speaker 2: getting some ticket revenue back from these games where something

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Speaker 2: like triathlon it's free, isn't it. You don't have to

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Speaker 2: pay to watch the triathlon space. You might have to

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Speaker 2: pay to get a decent seat in the finish line,

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Speaker 2: but if you want to just watch it, you know,

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Speaker 2: the running and the cycling part of it, and even

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Speaker 2: the swim. I think you can just rock up to

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Speaker 2: the side of the road, can't you. It's one of

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Speaker 2: the free events. Anyway. Much more to come, I'm sure

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Speaker 2: on the Commonwealth Games of twenty twenty six. The new

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Speaker 2: Australian National Basketball League season meanwhile, as underway this weekend.

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Speaker 2: All ten teams open the season in Western Australia. It's

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Speaker 2: part of a unit initiative called hoops Fest, which'll so

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Speaker 2: includes the preseason games for the Women's National Basketball League,

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Speaker 2: and there's an under eighteen teams championship there as well.

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Speaker 2: The Breakers face the Brisbane Bullets first up tonight. There

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Speaker 2: are ten new faces on the Breaker's roster and a

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Speaker 2: new coaching staff as well, but one of those to

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Speaker 2: return is hugely influential guard and co captain Parker Jackson Cutwright.

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Speaker 2: Five seconds to go shoots the three gus look at

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Speaker 2: Jackson top right. Silence is kut offs Bacorina.

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Speaker 3: He says, Sydney, you want to see the anti hero here.

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Speaker 4: I am what a night this man has had.

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Speaker 2: Parker Jackson cut Right joins us now out of Western Australia. Parker,

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Speaker 2: thanks for your time. How do you feel the Breakers

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Speaker 2: are placed ahead of the new season.

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Speaker 3: Well, I feel so strongly about specifically entirely new group.

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Speaker 3: I know guys that have played in this league, a

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Speaker 3: good mixture of veterans experience, and you know some hungry

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Speaker 3: guys that you know are eager to prove themselves. So

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Speaker 3: I think it's the making of a team that can

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Speaker 3: really have a good season.

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Speaker 2: I want to ask you about some of the new

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Speaker 2: faces in just a moment. But how challenging. Has it

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Speaker 2: been to mesh quickly as a playing group with so

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Speaker 2: many new faces on board?

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Speaker 3: Now? Yeah, I mean it's difficult. You know, you have

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Speaker 3: to integrate everyone in.

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Speaker 4: Very quickly. You know. Pre season kind of goes by

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Speaker 4: like a blur. And although we didn't win a game.

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Speaker 3: We did get better at the things that we set

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Speaker 3: out our site to get better at. So it's a

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Speaker 3: process and we understand that and we have to take

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Speaker 3: each day as it is, you know, not miss a beat.

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Speaker 2: Do you feel an increased responsibility to lead, you know,

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Speaker 2: internally as part of this playing group, given the fact

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Speaker 2: that you know you're back one of the few who

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Speaker 2: are back from last season.

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Speaker 3: Well, you know, every year is different, and I don't

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Speaker 3: feel any added pressure to to do anything or be

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Speaker 3: anybody who are not Obviously I am a veteran at

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Speaker 3: this point, and we do have some young guys and

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Speaker 3: I feel the need to lead in that regard. But

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Speaker 3: as always, I have to be myself and I have

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Speaker 3: to have to do that by leading by example and

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Speaker 3: sharing my knowledge with my voice.

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Speaker 4: When I can.

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Speaker 2: Let me ask you about some of your new faces

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Speaker 2: on the roster. Met Mooney likely will partner you I

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Speaker 2: guess on the back court, what sort of players is

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Speaker 2: Matt Mooney.

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Speaker 3: Oh, well, Matt is you know, the ultimate professional. You know,

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Speaker 3: he's a tireless worker and he's a very smart player.

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Speaker 3: You know his background can attest to that. But you

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Speaker 3: know he's he's just that type of leader, that guy

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Speaker 3: that's going to bring it every day and he's he's

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Speaker 3: taking this serious.

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Speaker 4: You know, this guy wants to win and he's.

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Speaker 3: He's very competitive and showed in practice and u every

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Speaker 3: bit of day that we have.

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Speaker 2: But you is seen to Freddy Galaesi. He's going to

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Speaker 2: miss the first game through suspension. But when he gets

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Speaker 2: out there, what can we expect to see from him?

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Speaker 3: Well, Freddie Lesbia, you know, he's played at the highest

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Speaker 3: levels of basketball around the world span NBA, he's played

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Speaker 3: in euro League. You know, he knows kind of what

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Speaker 3: it takes to win at the highest level. You know,

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Speaker 3: so we're counting on that experience from him, and you know,

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Speaker 3: in terms of being on the floor, you know, he's

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Speaker 3: a rim protector, he's a guy that can finish, he

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Speaker 3: can impact with his length of his physicality.

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Speaker 4: So you know, we're gonna be looking forward to getting

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Speaker 4: him back and.

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Speaker 2: You've got a bit of NBL experience added with with

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Speaker 2: Ustritian Mitch McCarran coming in nearly two hundred and fifty

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Speaker 2: games in this in this league. He's with you. Now,

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Speaker 2: how important will his experience in this league in particular

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Speaker 2: be to you?

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Speaker 4: He's going to be huge.

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Speaker 3: You know, he he knows league, he knows what it

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Speaker 3: takes to win in this league. He's been a leader

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Speaker 3: for I mean since since the start of his career,

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Speaker 3: so you know, we rely heavily on him, not just

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Speaker 3: his voice, but the way he brings it each and

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Speaker 3: every day. And you know, he's the ultimate teammate. You know,

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Speaker 3: the guy is just an all around person. So we're

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Speaker 3: very lucky to have him on this team.

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Speaker 2: And guard and you, of course a new head coach,

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Speaker 2: Butter Copenan replacing Modi Mayor, who's taken up an opportunity

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Speaker 2: in Japan. Can you tell us a bit about your

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Speaker 2: new coach and in the style he's likely to ask

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Speaker 2: you to play?

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Speaker 3: Well, Yeah, Copa has kind of taken this role on

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Speaker 3: and you know, head on with open arms or these

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Speaker 3: a players coach. He's played at the highest level before,

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Speaker 3: so you know he knows what it takes obviously, and

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Speaker 3: I think that's a good change for the team that

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Speaker 3: is has such a turnover because you know, there's not

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Speaker 3: a lot of you know, how would you say, I expectation,

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Speaker 3: but more so you know, he's been he's been great.

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Speaker 3: The guys love him, and you know, we're excited.

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Speaker 2: And I know you're not one really who likes to

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Speaker 2: talk too much about yourself, but a brilliant first season

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Speaker 2: and a Breakers single it last season for you, Parker,

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Speaker 2: you know, leading the team in scoring and a lot

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Speaker 2: of other stats as well, leadership on the court, MVP

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Speaker 2: candidate without a doubt. How do you reflect back on

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Speaker 2: your first season and what do you hope to I

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Speaker 2: guess springboard into in season two with the Breakers.

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Speaker 3: I just think just keeping the focus, you know, understanding

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Speaker 3: that every year is vastly different. You know, you can't

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Speaker 3: rely on what you did the previous year, you know,

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Speaker 3: because it doesn't really have any meetings. For myself individually,

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Speaker 3: I have to you know, keep that hunger and you know,

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Speaker 3: kind of drive myself through this season, try to be

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Speaker 3: the best version of myself and I can put myself

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Speaker 3: and my team.

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Speaker 2: And I know that the team with a change roster

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Speaker 2: will likely be in the eyes of a lot of

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Speaker 2: outside of observers, a bit of an underdog the season.

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Speaker 2: Is that a tag that you're comfortable enough wearing, maybe

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Speaker 2: flying under the right ear just a little bit.

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Speaker 3: I mean yeah, I think if we have been deemed

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Speaker 3: that flag and you know.

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Speaker 4: So be it.

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Speaker 3: You know, we we don't see it any kind of way,

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Speaker 3: whether we're an underdog or a team that's expected to have

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Speaker 3: a good season, and we just kind of understand that

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Speaker 3: we have a job to do. It's going to be

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Speaker 3: difficult regardless. You know, if we have quote unquote you know,

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Speaker 3: the talent that people think we should have, you know,

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Speaker 3: we still have to go out and play the games

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Speaker 3: and compete.

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Speaker 4: So you know, that's what we're focused on.

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Speaker 2: Can't wait to see it back out there in the

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Speaker 2: breaker single at Parker all the basted against Brisbane in

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Speaker 2: your first up game across the weekend, and look to

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Speaker 2: seeing you back at Spark Arena for the first time

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Speaker 2: in a couple of.

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Speaker 4: Weeks or so, Kevin, thank you.

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Speaker 2: Thank you, Parker Parker Jackson cart right there sounds like

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Speaker 2: he's enjoying a cup of coffee in the background there

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Speaker 2: or something some clinking of some crockery there. The Brisbane

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Speaker 2: Bullets are first up for the Breakers tonight, their favorite

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Speaker 2: going into that game, according to the latest i've scene

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Speaker 2: from the tab eight o'clock tip off its at HbF

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Speaker 2: Stadium in Perth, so hopefully the Breakers can get off

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Speaker 2: to a winning start. And then it's the Southeast Melbourne

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Speaker 2: Phoenix and the first home game of the new season

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Speaker 2: that is next Sunday seven point thirty at Spark Arena.

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Speaker 2: Will keep very close eyes on how the Breakers go

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Speaker 2: across the season of twenty twenty four twenty five.

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Speaker 1: For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen live

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Speaker 1: to News Talk zed B weekends from midday or follow

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Speaker 1: the podcast on iHeartRadio