THE Portland Coasters are preparing for the long run to finals in the Country Basketball League, with that goal more than attainable for the women’s side.

The finals series is due to start in February, and so with the team taking part in a double header this weekend, they will be looking to boost their chances of a good finish to the season.

Fortunately, the games will all be held at home, and while the opponents will certainly not roll over, they are winnable.

They will play the undefeated Warrnambool Mermaids on Saturday, and then Horsham on Sunday, both at the Portland Basketball Stadium.

The games present a new set of challenges, especially Horsham, who they have not faced so far this season.

Last time they played Warrnambool, it was in Warrnambool as the second part of a double-header, and the Coasters were exhausted from the previous night’s game, which they had narrowly lost to Mount Gambier.

Whether fitness has improved or not remains to be seen, but the side is looking more complete than before Christmas, with the likes of Nicola Handreck and Kayla Pickert returning to the side.

The Coasters are currently in fourth place, level on points with Horsham (third) and Terang (fifth), although Terang has played two extra games so far.

With the top four qualifying for finals, the games this weekend take on added importance, especially the one against Horsham.

They are a team as yet unknown to Portland, and have had similar results, defeating Terang twice this season, and losing to Mount Gambier and Warrnambool.

This should give confidence to Portland ahead of the games this weekend, with opponents they are more than capable of beating.

“We’re looking forward to getting back into it,” said coach Ellen Zeunert, ahead of the weekend’s fixtures.

“It will be a tough double header, both sides are well-drilled and strong teams, but we can win both (games) for sure.

“We’ll go into each game knowing we can win.

“They should be close contests.

“We’ve got four weeks to look ahead, we need to step it up now, we need to step everything up.

“It’ll be tough to bounce back on Sunday, so we’ll just have to take it one day at a time.”

Saturday’s match against Warrnambool starts at 6pm, while Sunday’s clash against Horsham tips off at noon.