LOUELLA Tomlinson has enjoyed her two years in the SBL and WNBL in Perth but what is missing is a championship and she hopes she can head back to Europe having ticked off that accomplishment on Friday night.

Tomlinson has had a tremendous impact on the SBL the past two years as the premier centre in the competition having set the league's record in blocked shots in 2015 and continuing to score, rebound, block and defend strongly again in 2016.

Her presence and output is a major reason why the Goodlife Homes Willetton Tigers are now into a second straight Women's SBL Grand Final where they will take on the Merriwa Tavern & Bistro Joondalup City Wolves this Friday night at Bendat Basketball Centre.

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On top of her two SBL seasons with the Tigers, Tomlinson also played the 2014/15 WNBL season with the West Coast Waves and then remained with the club as they transformed into the Perth Lynx this past season.

Her time in Perth has so far included a losing SBL Grand Final last year to the Rockingham Flames and then a losing WNBL Grand Final earlier this year with the Lynx against the Townsville Fire.

Tomlinson has now made the decision to not play in the WNBL in this upcoming season or to remain in the SBL in 2017 as she will depart for Spain to play with Campus Promete on Saturday.

Before that, she desperately wants to win a championship with the Tigers and it would be the perfect way to sign off on her time in Perth.

On top of that, Ebony Antonio is another who will be playing her last game with Willetton and there could be others in the same boat so Tomlinson really hopes that this group gets to achieve a championship together.

"Willetton is a really special club and has tonnes of history and a lot of the girls have won championships with the club and would love to win one more, but it would be the same case with Wanneroo. It's going to be special on Friday and hopefully it goes well for us," Tomlinson said.

"Next year's team at Willetton will be a lot different and a lot of girls are coming and going, but for me last year really sucked and then losing another Grand Final with the Lynx hurt on top of that. It makes me just want to get back to enjoying my basketball before I head to Europe.

"I want to have a good time and enjoy a win. I now have one more game to play with some of my best friends so that's exciting but it won't be as enjoyable if we don’t win obviously."

Getting revenge on the Flames for last year's Grand Final was also a good feeling for Tomlinson and the other Tigers players who endured the heartbreak of last year.

While the last two games were a real grind, Willetton was outstanding in Game 1 and Tomlinson hopes all her teammates take plenty out of that having seen just how dominant they can be.

"I don’t think many people thought we were going to beat them either so it's always nice to make a stand and prove a point. They struggled without Ify on Saturday, but we weren’t at our best either so it was an ugly kind of game, but it's exciting that we got through to the Grand Final," she said.

"That first game against Rockingham was really good for us because the girls who aren’t so experienced in winning finals got to see how good we could play.

"That was a super effort from us and that will help with the confidence of our younger players and role players. We have some girls who have played six or more SBL Grand Finals but some haven’t played in any so that confidence of knowing how good we can play will help them."

Tomlinson also enjoyed another chance to go up against Darcee Garbin who she spent a season playing with at the Waves, but has played against for two years in the SBL and then last season in the WNBL as well after Garbin joined the Fire.

"I was pretty under the weather over the weekend so it was nice that we showed we have a team where anyone can step up and make a big impact," Tomlinson said.

"Coming over here to play for the Waves two years ago with Darcee, it's always fun to battle it out with her. We are good friends off the court so that was good and will be really nice for me to finish off my two years in Perth now with a championship. I'm really looking forward to Friday."

Looking ahead to Friday night's Grand Final against the Wolves, Tomlinson is ready to take them on whether or not their centre Ellyce Ironmonger will be there.

"We have played Wanneroo twice this year and once we were without Zoe, so for us we don’t really concentrate on the other team too much so we aren't focusing much on whether Ellyce will be there or not," she said.

"We concentrate on getting prepared with our game and doing what we do best, and working on our stuff. We have never been big on scouting the other team and who we are playing against. If we do what we do well, then it will work out well for us."

It remains a great unknown of Grand Final week whether or not Ironmonger will return from the United States to play in the Grand Final, but Tomlinson actually hopes she does otherwise it makes it hard for her, Zoe Harper and Emma Lobb to find suitable match ups.

"It would be better for us if she was here but we are willing to play whoever turns up for the Grand Final," Tomlinson said.

"That's a tough one because I actually think we struggle more against teams that we don’t match up with because things happen where the smaller teams get called differently and sometimes the refs allow them to be more physical against a bigger team."

Tomlinson has had a tremendous time in her two years in Perth and now a championship would be the perfect way for her to sign off as she heads to Spain to begin playing with Campus Promete.

"I have actually really enjoyed my two years in Perth. The Waves and Willetton and Lynx have all been very different but I have made some amazing friends in my two years here and for me that's probably the most important thing," she said.

"This is the longest I've stayed anywhere since I left home when I was 16 so two years is a long time for me and I think I'm ready to move on. I had a WNBL experience and I think that while I have nothing tying me down and I'm still youngish in the basketball world, I might as well make the most of my opportunities.

"When I got that opportunity to go back to Europe I was definitely going to take that up and make the most of the chance to travel and play in a different country because it really is like a different world. You learn so much and it will be good for me because it might help invigorate my passion for the game again."

There won't be a lot of time for Tomlinson to soak up the Grand Final result either given she flies out for Spain on Saturday.

"I have a flight out at 11pm on Saturday so hopefully the celebrations don’t leave me too dusty for that flight, but it will certainly be good to go out on a high note by winning a championship with a great club," Tomlinson said.

Article by Chris Pike
Photo by Sebpix Photography