Basketball Game: Manchester GIANTS vs Plymouth Raiders in Trafford*

Last night we were invited to watch Manchester GIANTS Professional British Basketball Team, at the George H Carnell Leisure Centre in Trafford. Back in the early 1990s The GIANTS were the biggest British Basketball team drawing in crowds of 15,000 per game, however, they then had a 10-year gap of being a together, but were brought back into action in 2012, with some local professional talent and a handful of foreign pros to match. The GIANTS proudly wore their bright green and purple kit, and to their rears featured their memorable hashtag of #beegiants – which symbolises the iconic image of the Manchester worker bee which we so often see dotted around the City. With a sell-out game we were squished into our court-side seats surrounded by their family of fans.

Before we start the review here’s a brief lowdown on the aim of the game. So, the basic rules are that you have 5 players on the court and 5 players sat on court-side. The players on the court have to run and dribble (bounce) the ball to get across the court and then aim to shoot a basket to gain points in order to win. Depending on where you throw/shoot in a basket from on the court, depends on the number of scores earned – so basically the further away you are the more points you receive for getting the ball into the basket – for the official UK rules check here.

The game is fast-paced and a great sport to come and see with kids as there is always something happening, and unlike football, you are really close to the action, so feel totally immersed in whats happening. Not only that but as the ball heads down into the guests side of the court – you should ‘DEFENCE’ for your team which was obviously the GIANTS for us last night! And then when the ball is on the GIANTS side of the court everyone shouts ‘GIANTS’ so the kids love all the tapping of feet and shouting as it really makes them feel part of the game.

We had a really great evening, so much so that my daughter (who hadn’t wanted to go!) wants to now buy a season ticket! There is just so much interaction with the crowd that although you are watching athletes you really feel that your presence is really affecting how they play. And on the night overall they did play well, but sadly lost to the Plymouth Raiders! In the first three quarters they were in the lead but it seems that they somehow fouled several times (which I really didn’t see how they had but according to the refs on the night they did) which meant that the Raiders had penalties which really allowed them to catch up. I actually feel that the GIANTS were actually the better team but with a few really decent shots from the 3 point mark the Raiders soon caught them up and as the GIANTS became tired in the final quarter it meant that the game was sadly lost.

That being said you still all leave feeling like you’ve been part of a great sporting event. You have no time whatsoever to be bored, as even when they break after the second quarter, you get the chance to win a signed ball by throwing a rubber duck into the centre of the court – the rubber ducks cost £1 per duck. Each has a number on the base and if you’re lucky enough to hit the target your number is shouted out and voila they have a winner! And to top this, at the end of every game you get the chance to walk on the court and have the players, either sign a ball you have brought with you, or the back of the program you can purchase for £2 on the night. As we didn’t realise we could have brought a basketball with us, my three took their program down and got signatures and photos with some of the players, all of whom were so happy to do it and chatted with the kids down on the court, once again really making you feel part of the GIANTS family.

The venue location is great too – it is in Trafford Leisure centre which is located five minutes drive from the Trafford Centre, and as most games are on at around 5pm, you can either go to the Trafford Centre prior to the game or once the game is over! We decided to go and eat once the game was over, and although we live around 25 miles from Trafford, we were still home before 9pm. But if you want to drink and eat at the event, rather than heading anywhere else before or after, they have a great little food cart outside, selling brioche bun chicken burgers and burgers which chunky chips. You could also buy drinks and other merchandise inside, making it a one-stop-shop for a fun evening out.

Ticket Cost and Booking 

Adult – £13 Online £16 On the Door
Concession – £11 Online  £14 On the Door
Junior (under 16) – £8 Online £10 On the Door
Family – £35 Online £45 On the Door

They also have season tickets available. You can find more info on how to get hold of tickets for their next rostered games here.

Games coming up in 2020 

22nd March V Surrey Scorchers – 5pm

4th April V Leicester Riders – 7pm

5th April V Glasgow Rocks – 5pm

19th April V Bristol Flyers – 5pm

If you want to get into a great family spectator sport then Basketball is definitely a great option. We are pretty sure this won’t be our only visit to see the Manchester Giants and with the fact that this was a sell-out game, if you want the chance to see them ‘bee’ sure to book early to avoid disappointment.

GO GIANTS!!!!

Review by: Lex Ward

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* We were provided with tickets in exchange for a feature. All opinions are our own.