The Port Macquarie Dolphins have received a handy complement from Newcastle Falcons stand-in coach Jonah Armstrong after their 97-69 victory on May 28.
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He feels the Dolphins are good enough to challenge the higher-fancied metropolitan teams at the halfway mark of the Spalding Waratah Men's basketball competition.
Port Macquarie moved into second spot on the ladder after their 28-point win over the Falcons followed a 68-59 win over Canberra Gunners Academy 24 hours earlier.
"They (Port Macquarie) can go all the way for sure and it would be good to see a country team do that," he said.
"They're a very young, very quick and very youthful side who are well-coached. The imports do a really good job, but they're a team that doesn't have to rely on the imports so that's a really good thing for them."
But the hard work has only just started for the Dolphins as they prepare to embark on a challenging six-week stretch of fixtures on the road before they return home for the final four matches.
Coach Nick Prior, however, acknowledged confidence levels within the squad have skyrocketed and they now believe they can mix it with the best.
"The results speak for themselves; there's no-one now that we look at and think 'that's going to be a tough ask'," Prior said.
"It will come down to us being the best we can be and that's a nice position to be in. If we play our best basketball, we'll be there and thereabouts and that's within our control."
It's a crunch time of their season that could undo their promising start, but Prior said they're focused on the big picture.
And that's a finals berth.
"Realistically top two is our goal because that guarantees us a finals berth and we don't have to play the preliminary finals the weekend before," he said.
"That's a realistic goal now and that's what we're aiming for."
Captain Robbie Linton admitted all the playing squad had "brought in" to what they wanted to achieve, led by American imports Andre Wolford and Andre McPhail.
But it was the young guns - Caleb Prior, Logan Myers and Harry Bates - that impressed in the weekend wins.
"As the season goes on everyone knows what their role is and what they need to bring to the table," Linton said.
"We've got a good mix of young and old and everyone is doing their part for the team and it's showing."
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