Flames MSBL Coaches review
2005 has been an exciting year for the Rockingham Flames Men's SBL team. It marked the changing of an era with many of the club stalwarts calling it a day and opening the door to the young guys who had patiently waited for their turn. In one off season the club lost over 1000 games of SBL/NBL experience, it was always going to a big challenge.
It was a roller coaster ride this season. At times the team played well above all expectations defeating teams with far more experience and talent. We were able to defeat the top 4 teams throughout the year. This type of victory is important for the future, knowing that you can play with the best teams in the league gives the team plenty of confidence for the 2006 season.
At other times the team produced lack luster performances against lower ranked teams. We wasted valuable opportunities to consolidate our great victories. This inconsistency always placed us on the edge the top 8. The league was so even this year that 10 teams could have made the playoffs. This is the best news for basketball as over the last 5 years the competition has been dominated by 2 or 3 teams.
In the end it all came down to the final round of fixtures, results from all games would influence final placings. In our final game of the season against the Buccaneers in Geraldton, the winner would make the playoffs the loser missed out, a mini Grand Final. Unfortunately we lost in one of the best games produced this year and finished in 9th position with a 12-12 record a good performance all things considered. The atmosphere in which the game was played was awesome, with 800 spectators cheering for their beloved Buccs, the boys did a tremendous job in keeping the game tight right to the end.
Travis Moore and Darren Russell lead the team as Co-Captains, both have been part of the club since the under 12's and both were ready for the extra responsibility of the captaincy. Andrew Bowman a young player who had begun to show promise at the end of the 2004 season was named Vice Captain. Returning from the 2004 season were Sean Huston our American Import and Markus Dzuibak 2 old experienced heads who would provide assistance to the leadership group. Neil Purcell, Carmie Olowoyo and Nathan Perks were recruited to add more experience to the team and all were valuable contributors.
Our young brigade gave us plenty to be excited about for the future. After several frustrating years of injury Steve Watson finally got his opportunity to play. Jarryd Griffen's natural ability and poise out on court defied his inexperience. Dave Bown and John Troost although part of the SBL squad in 2004 developed significantly this year both become valuable contributors in the program. Carlin Hughes returned from America half way through the season giving us the last piece of our SBL puzzle. Rob Nelson and Cam Park trained tirelessly this year and their contributions in U/23's and Division 1 have been valuable. We have another 2 or 3 up and coming players who trained with the SBL Squad this year and will be pushing to make the team in 2006.
The coaching staff have done a magnificent job this year. Matthew Park an ex SBL player and Murray Perks an ex NZBL coach have put in many hours to help me as the assistant coaches. Ryan Petrik has done a great job as the SBL development coach and Des O'Neill has been outstanding in the role as the team manager.
We are all looking forward to the 2006 season already. Most players have already committed for next year, wanting to keep the core group of players together and improve on this years efforts. We have set some goals and identified some key points which we need to improve on over the summer.
It was a roller coaster ride this season. At times the team played well above all expectations defeating teams with far more experience and talent. We were able to defeat the top 4 teams throughout the year. This type of victory is important for the future, knowing that you can play with the best teams in the league gives the team plenty of confidence for the 2006 season.
At other times the team produced lack luster performances against lower ranked teams. We wasted valuable opportunities to consolidate our great victories. This inconsistency always placed us on the edge the top 8. The league was so even this year that 10 teams could have made the playoffs. This is the best news for basketball as over the last 5 years the competition has been dominated by 2 or 3 teams.
In the end it all came down to the final round of fixtures, results from all games would influence final placings. In our final game of the season against the Buccaneers in Geraldton, the winner would make the playoffs the loser missed out, a mini Grand Final. Unfortunately we lost in one of the best games produced this year and finished in 9th position with a 12-12 record a good performance all things considered. The atmosphere in which the game was played was awesome, with 800 spectators cheering for their beloved Buccs, the boys did a tremendous job in keeping the game tight right to the end.
Travis Moore and Darren Russell lead the team as Co-Captains, both have been part of the club since the under 12's and both were ready for the extra responsibility of the captaincy. Andrew Bowman a young player who had begun to show promise at the end of the 2004 season was named Vice Captain. Returning from the 2004 season were Sean Huston our American Import and Markus Dzuibak 2 old experienced heads who would provide assistance to the leadership group. Neil Purcell, Carmie Olowoyo and Nathan Perks were recruited to add more experience to the team and all were valuable contributors.
Our young brigade gave us plenty to be excited about for the future. After several frustrating years of injury Steve Watson finally got his opportunity to play. Jarryd Griffen's natural ability and poise out on court defied his inexperience. Dave Bown and John Troost although part of the SBL squad in 2004 developed significantly this year both become valuable contributors in the program. Carlin Hughes returned from America half way through the season giving us the last piece of our SBL puzzle. Rob Nelson and Cam Park trained tirelessly this year and their contributions in U/23's and Division 1 have been valuable. We have another 2 or 3 up and coming players who trained with the SBL Squad this year and will be pushing to make the team in 2006.
The coaching staff have done a magnificent job this year. Matthew Park an ex SBL player and Murray Perks an ex NZBL coach have put in many hours to help me as the assistant coaches. Ryan Petrik has done a great job as the SBL development coach and Des O'Neill has been outstanding in the role as the team manager.
We are all looking forward to the 2006 season already. Most players have already committed for next year, wanting to keep the core group of players together and improve on this years efforts. We have set some goals and identified some key points which we need to improve on over the summer.
Last Modified on 14/03/2006 11:48
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