This weekend the Scottish Basketball Cup Finals took place in Glasgow. The City of Edinburgh Club which we support as a family had a team in all 6 of the finals which was great!

Our under 16 men fought valiantly against strong opposition but on the day did not manage to win. The Under 18 men took part in a low scoring, scrappy game but came back from being 13 behind to win in overtime by 2 points in the last 2 seconds. It was like a Hollywood basketball movie ending! It is no exaggeration to say that the emotions of the Edinburgh supporters went through the ringer from despondency to euphoria in a few minutes.

Basketball is very much a minority sport in Scotland but the dedication of the (usually) unpaid coaches, committees running the clubs and constantly challenged by fundraising and supporting parents and other interested adults is admirable. Ultimately the benefit is for the young people and - though they may not notice or care at this stage in their lives - will almost certainly impact on their futures.

I am not a natural sportsperson and know the rules of basketball just enough to get by but it is easy to see what can contribute to winning and losing. Sometimes the lads come out onto the court full of bounce, other times shoulders are down and all looks lost from the start. We watched the St Mirren team start to celebrate their win yesterday a bit prematurely when it seemed beyond doubt with subtle smiles and jokes only to have that taken away in the last seconds. Their pain was almost tangible.

But it is what life is all about. The younger boys from Edinburgh got through their disappointment and celebrated with their older club mates. The losing team members generously applauded the success of the winning teams. There was no obvious diva-like behaviour.

It is such a pity that in some adult versions of sports this behaviour - if not condoned  - is certainly tolerated.

Well done City of Edinburgh Kings Junior Men!