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Episode 2: NBL1 East 2023 Women's Rosters
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Welcome back! In our second episode of "East Got Game", we analyse the NBL1 East 2023 women's roster's. Some big names and new teams have entered the competition this season which begs the question, who you got?
Hosted by Jacinta Govind and Lachy France
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Transcript
Introduction to 'East Got Game' Podcast
00:00:01
Speaker
Welcome to East Got Game, an unofficial podcast for the MBL One East basketball competition. Join us as we review, preview, and interview our way through the MBL One East to showcase your favorite new talents. My name is Jacinta Govind. I'm from the Central Coast Crusaders. And joining me as co-host is the living legend and diehard Sutherland shark, Locky France. Hello, Locky.
00:00:29
Speaker
G'day, Squint. It's great to be back.
2022 Finals Recap: Canberra vs. Frankston & Albury-Wodonga's Upset
00:00:32
Speaker
Excellent. It is great to be back chopping it up about the MBO1 East. Clearly the most underrated MBO1 East competition in the country, would you say? Oh, a hundred percent. I mean, look how we went in finals last year. Canberra almost beat Frankston and, uh, you know, they got some wins and our champions, Aubrey and the women beat Townsville. So. Yes. The Aubrey. Anyone was expecting that.
00:00:56
Speaker
Absolutely not. Aubrey Wodonga bandits without LJ for that tournament because we're so close to the Fever Women's World Cup, yet pulled off a win against Townsville who still had the likes of Steph Reed and Courtney Woods and Mia Murray. So yeah, the Easter turning up. Certainly are and we'll get a chance to talk about that Aubrey team very, very soon.
MBL1 East Women's Roster Changes and New Teams
00:01:22
Speaker
We sure will, because this being our now second episode of Hopefully Many, this time we'll be going over the rosters for the MBL One East Women's Competition. As mentioned in our previous episode about the men's roster,
00:01:37
Speaker
We have seen the addition of quite a few, I'm going to say new teams, but they're not new to New South Wales senior competitions or formerly known as Waratah competitions. But they are new to the NBL1 East because they decided not to join in the inaugural season, but they are back and looking as competitive as ever. So just a reminder that the NBL1 East competition actually starts on Saturday, March 11th, the first of all the NBL1 comps.
00:02:06
Speaker
and you can watch all of the games on KO freebies. So let's get to it, Lockie. Let's get through these current player rosters as they stand or based on the information that is available to us. Kicking off with, as we just talked about, the Albury-Wodonga Bandits. Well, I know you'd say exactly the same. The thing we have to talk about first, the elephant in the room, is the players they've lost rather than the players they've gained because
00:02:36
Speaker
Lauren Jackson, Unique Thompson, Ai Yamada. They made up 60% of the All-Star 5 in MBI1 East last year. And they will not be on court this season. And neither will the main backup to LJ and Unique, Amelia Hassett, because she is over-killing it at junior college.
00:02:59
Speaker
But fortunately, they've signed Emma Mahade, a local product who dominated for Diamond Valley and MBL One South last season. And one of the great, great stories of this season potentially is the return of Ashley Hannon to the basketball court. She was an Australian junior star, briefly went over to college, came home and has not been cited on a basketball court since.
00:03:29
Speaker
And she is back for all we were donger this season. Perhaps a sign that she needed a good break from basketball before she found her love for the game again. Perhaps. Not exactly sure what the story is, but it is so good to see her back on a court because she was outstanding throughout the junior ranks and up to even under 19s and under 20 Nationals level.
00:03:56
Speaker
And what kind of position does she play? Uh, she's, she's a big, so she'll, she'll play the four spot or maybe the five, depending, you know, this league does trend a bit smaller. So maybe they can slot her and Mahady in there, maybe as the four, five. But they also, they also have your favorite player, Brody Paige Theodore back. Yes, excellent.
00:04:20
Speaker
As well as Casey Ardern, those two were integral to that grand final victory over Sutherland in MBL1 East last year. I think we agree that Casey Ardern might not have won grand final MVP, but Aubrey aren't winning that grand final if she doesn't shoot I think four or five from three.
00:04:39
Speaker
Well, yeah, I think between Casey and Brody Page, we gave them our MVP votes for that MBL one East women's grand final last season. So I think they would have been very close. The MVP honours going to unique Thompson, of course. But I'm also really excited for Jade Crook, who's
00:05:01
Speaker
also an up-and-coming junior making some Australian camps and best of all when LJ gave her captain's speech when they won the championship last season gave a shout out specifically to Jade for pushing her at training and to being such a
00:05:20
Speaker
uh, great person to have in the squad at, you know, I think she was only 15. So, I mean, to get a shout out from the goat in front of a stadium full of people. I mean, that's gotta be a highlight of your life, right? Oh, 100%. But she's not the only young star. They've also, uh, recruited Brydie White from West Wyelong, which I love to see a player from a smaller country association getting the, uh,
00:05:47
Speaker
And they call up just like Amelia Hassett did after playing for Kudamundra. So very interested to see how they go as they attempt to go back to back.
00:05:56
Speaker
Yeah, it'd be interesting to see how far they do go. It'd be interesting to see when LJ is ready to get back into that fold as well. But now we're going to roll into the next team, Bankstown.
Team Focus: Bankstown's Youthful Strategy
00:06:08
Speaker
So this is one of the teams that is new to the MBL1 women's comp. It looks like quite a young team from the roster so far, Locky.
00:06:19
Speaker
It is, it has a lot of young players, but also a few older players as well. You got young players like Abby Valance, Jennifer Milay, Joni Amor-Strayka, Lily Austin. But then you've got Brianna Mamoni and Jadine Barnes.
00:06:37
Speaker
Yes, formerly both Brianna and Jadine Hennessy for those of my vintage. They are back and Brianna was also a Australian junior way back in the day. I think she had a little bit of an opportunity with the Sydney Flames as well at some stage, but really, really great shooter, great scorer. Jadine Rees is a really great defender. They're gonna bring a wealth of knowledge to this team.
00:07:06
Speaker
And, uh, they've also got, um, Keanu Davis white, I think is a really underrated player. Um, and she's always been a physical player, but she's also taken up playing, um, Aussie rules as well. And I think that's only, uh, you know, made her, you know, better at taking, you know, the physicality. So looking forward to seeing what she can do. And it also looks like they might have an import in a Brittany, right? So we interested to see how she goes.
00:07:36
Speaker
Yeah, see what she offers. Have we got any intel on what position she's likely to play? I think she was an extremely good rebounder. So let me have a look. So she's a forward. She actually played for Alabama State, the same school that Corey Homicide Williams played for. Oh, wow. Yeah. So she could be half the player he was.
00:08:00
Speaker
Perhaps probably a few years to part a part. I don't think that would probably, uh, each other and say, Hey, I know you. No, but, um, for those who don't know, I'm also big on women's college soccer and a lot of Aussies have played soccer at Alabama State. So I'm actually friends with someone who knows Brittany.
00:08:21
Speaker
Wow. Small world. Yeah. Small world of women's sport. I love that. That's right. So she averaged 20 points and eight rebounds in conference play and was named All Swack First Team in 2017 in her senior year at Alabama State, Brittany was. Wow. A definite addition to the front court for them. So despite being one of the newer members of NBL One East for the women's comp this year, doesn't sound like they're going to be an easy feat.
00:08:51
Speaker
No, well, I mean, I remember right back in the day, they put up their posted trial list and it was mostly, you know, players stepping up from Youth League, but they've really, you know, really bolstered their team. So, anyone who thought Bankstown would be a pushover this season, think again, I think, because, I mean, they played
00:09:15
Speaker
Sutherland without Lauren Nicholson and lost by 15 or so. I rolled out a bit in the end, but, um, I don't think, if you think about Sutherland without Lauren Nicholson is probably still a lower mid table team. You had to tack a couple of players onto Bankstown, you know, they're going to give teams a fair shake this season. Awesome. I'm looking forward to it. You know, Bankstown has always been known for their physicality and their toughness. So I'm looking forward to seeing them make
00:09:44
Speaker
a big impact this season. But as we roll on to the Canberra Nationals, some Canberra Capitals players are going to be staying in this Canberra Nationals roster.
Canberra Nationals: Retaining Talent and New Additions
00:09:58
Speaker
So the likes of Chloe Tulliak, Lizzie Tonks, Abby Solway are all returning for the Nats after their recent season with the Caps. The name that stands out to me that's an addition is Bianca Dufalmaier.
00:10:13
Speaker
Definitely. Well, she was meant to play last season and, um, injury prevented her from doing so. And I mean, they, they lose Kristen Langhorne and Abby Morton, but aside from that, they bring back just about everyone. So, I mean, they, they probably underperformed last year, finishing just outside the finals, but bringing Bianca back, that is a massive in. And if they can convert the talent they have into the results it deserves. Yeah. They're definitely a finals chance.
00:10:42
Speaker
Yeah, and a really good addition with Bianca replacing, as you said, Kristen Langhorne, who can be a real hard task under the basket. I feel like they are they perhaps missing someone else? Where do we know where Abby Morton has moved to? Abby Morton's playing in college. She's playing D1 college, so she's not allowed to play in the in the college offseason.
00:11:07
Speaker
Fair. And they also have Abby Keetles, who was their Waratah 1 championship winning coach last season. So she's now apparently a full time member of the MBL 1 East roster.
00:11:21
Speaker
Excellent. So she's also making her way up the pathway. Good to see. And Nat Hurst, of course, returning to the coaching duties. So we've got the likes of Nat Hurst, Lizzie Tonks, Chloe Tuleak, and Abby Solway, who are all also locals.
Central Coast Crusaders: Maddie Penn's Return
00:11:39
Speaker
Staying in their hometown program, which is which we really like to see And then we're going to drive all the way up to Central Coast for the Central Coast Crusaders Looking like a much healthier roster than last season and perhaps oh the season before that was a pretty good roster But yeah looking good with numbers a lot of youth a lot of talent and some more people returning that we love to see locky We certainly do love to see some of these returners just for kadilla Darnika row
00:12:08
Speaker
Uh, and the big one, Maddie Penn. Yeah. Yeah. Very excited for Maddie Penn to return. So those who don't know Maddie Penn, uh, you know, also Australian junior. Um, she tried it out at college at Virginia Tech, ended up finishing a college career, I think at, um,
00:12:27
Speaker
British Columbia in Canada, but had some pretty severe back injuries that sidelined her for a really long time, but her desire to play never burnt out. So she's worked her way up to being able to get back on court again. I think she's looking and feeling really, really good. She's a really tall, long, sharp shooter that can play the two or the three, maybe even a stretch four if the Crusaders get desperate.
00:12:58
Speaker
And so, yeah, she's going to join other shooters like Johnal and Witwa. We've also see Paris Witwa added to the list, who was formerly Paris Forkadilla, but Johnny and Paris obviously got married in the off season, so congratulations to them.
00:13:15
Speaker
And Sarah Matthews is returning, thankfully. But is there anyone else in this roster that you're excited to see? Oh, with Muffy Loder on her way up to Rockhampton, that does leave a bit of a hole. So I'm excited to see Erica Pittman not return to Hornsby from Hills, but overshoot and end up at Terrigal, which is something I wasn't quite expecting to see.
00:13:38
Speaker
Me either. I was stoked. We got Erica Pittman. She's a really great player. Very, very smart point guard. I think she's going to fit in really well with this group and perhaps provide very adequate, if not more than to fill the shoes of Muffy Loder.
00:13:57
Speaker
So I'm really excited to see her play. We also welcome Casey Quigley, who has just finished her junior career with Hornsby. And Nicole Hutchins is back. So it's good to see her back in the fold. So it's looking like a very good Central Coast Crusaders team. Good mixture of experience and core players and also use coming up in the ranks with Brianna Kelly. I'm really hoping that they can do better than last season. And I really believe that they will, to be honest.
00:14:27
Speaker
I do too. I mean, they only win four games last year. I certainly believe they can do much better than that this season. And if not challenge for finals, at least be a very, a nuisance kind of team. My favorite kind of teams are the nuisance teams. Yeah. Teams you just hate to play against. The teams you know you should beat and then you don't. And they're always, you always feel under threat. Always feel under threat with them. That's right.
00:14:57
Speaker
Now this team, next team is definitely not going to be a nuisance team but I feel like they're going to be quite a dominant team and that is the COE, Locky. Tell us what you know about this squad.
COE's Youthful Dominance
00:15:10
Speaker
Well, they dominated in the wildcard series last year under admittedly weird circumstances where they didn't play the East teams until right at the end of the season of the wildcard. So most of them were just using it as a preparation game for finals. But with that said, you could tell a fairly major difference in class for the most part.
00:15:33
Speaker
Of course, I think the one we've got to talk about first is Coffs Harbor's own Isla Juffamans, who won the Bob Staunton medal as MVP under 20s nationals in leading New South Wales to their second gold in three years.
00:15:54
Speaker
Her battles with Jessica Petrie in that tournament, who will also be on this COE team, only spell trouble for opposing front courts, because if they're that good against each other, imagine how they're going to go against some players, you know, who are not maybe not quite at that level. Yeah. And I mean, the youth, youth aside, we can't underestimate them just because they're a little bit younger, but
00:16:20
Speaker
Listen, RIP to anyone that has to guard Isla Jufferman. Her footwork and her touch under the basket is really, really admirable. So I'm looking, I hope that she can play most games because I feel like sometimes these COE squads, you know, they'll announce the full team and then we don't really know who's actually suiting up until the day off. So you might make the effort to go and see Isla Jufferman
00:16:44
Speaker
or the likes of even Summer Hanson and Opal Bird, Saffron Shields, you know the list goes on. You want to go and see them in the flesh and then they may be rested that day without notice. So I hope that this roster is consistent and that
00:16:58
Speaker
We'll be able to see a lot of that talent day in, day out. That's right. You also got to mention they do also have Sarah Portlock at 6'8", who is probably roarr than Jufferman's or Petrie, but when you've got a 6'8 product, you really hope to see them get molded into someone who can really, really produce at the next level.
00:17:25
Speaker
And Petrie's got the advantage of being genetically blessed by two very talented basketball parents in Sarah Barry and Anthony Petrie, who both played professionally. So, look, I don't think she had a choice but other than to be a basketball player. And she's done, she's doing quite well at it. I mean, as all these players, we saw a lot of them. We know we saw Sienna Harvey and Summer Hanson play last year in the Wild Card Series, Jada Clark as well.
00:17:53
Speaker
And I'm excited because Jess Peachtree is going to go to the University of Nebraska where Jazz Shelley and Izzy Bourne are currently absolutely killing it over there with. So this may be the last chance for a little while that we'll be able to see Jess Peachtree play on our shores. That's right. I will have to remember to pack my Nebraska jersey when they play Sutherland. Excellent. Hopefully your hometown club of Sutherland won't hold that against you though.
00:18:22
Speaker
What can you do? Go be it. Take the risk. That's right. All right. Another team. So COE, Bankstown COE, as we mentioned, that new additions to MBL1 is the women's comp. And as is this team, the Sydney Comets.
Sydney Comets: New Entrant with Strong Leadership
00:18:37
Speaker
Looking like a pretty decent roster with a pretty decent coach in Shelley Gorman for their first time in the competition. Straight off the bat, we've got Vanessa Penoosa's back in her home colours.
00:18:50
Speaker
That's right. I mean, we all know what Vanessa Penoose could do. She can shoot the lights out. She can handle the ball. She can distribute, play the point guard or off the ball if she really needs to. And after a season helping lead Sutherland alongside Lauren Nicholson to a grand final appearance, she's back to attempt to do the same with her hometown club. And it is a very, it's a very comets roster. You know, they haven't had to go outside
00:19:18
Speaker
and lure players in from other clubs in order to build a competitive roster. The only one you could really say is truly not a comet comet is Hannah Griffin from Maitland. Yeah, that's correct. Hannah has made the move from Maitland to Sydney. She's been living in Sydney a little while now.
00:19:36
Speaker
I think she was on the train-on squad for the Sydney Flames, so she was getting a lot of experience under Shelley and next to the likes of Penucis. The same with Jada Croucher, so she was one of the DPs for the Comets. Also part of that gold medal-winning team of the Under 20s New South Wales team that recently won. Now I'm going to put it out there, Lockie. I've heard this rumor from multiple sources now.
00:20:03
Speaker
that Shyla Hill is going to play for Sydney Comets this season. Wow, that's a turn up and that would be a major, major game changer if they can put Shyla Hill and Vanessa Penoosa's next to each other. That's top back court in the league kind of territory, if you can put those two next to each other.
00:20:28
Speaker
I mean, Sutherland will have me, Lauren Nicholson and Callie Hove had it together, but that would be massive. Yeah. And, you know, the likes of Panusas, Heal, Cross Shore, or having that experience of playing together under Shelley. I imagine Shelley is going to implement similar systems to what was implemented at Sydney Flames. You know, these guys are going to be competitive.
00:20:55
Speaker
That's right. And they've got Alexandra K. Roos, who was on that New South Wales Under 20s team. They've got Michaela Minschel, Piper Anderson, and Sarah Wachar, who are all in the grand final team in Youth League last season. And I've got Megan Cannellano coming back to provide some veteran presence as well. So plenty, and they've only announced 10 players, but it's a very, very, very strong list of 10 players so far.
00:21:25
Speaker
And the Comets Youth League women's team were very competitive last year too. I think they made it to the final against and just lost to Manly Waringa-C Eagles. So even though they've listed 10 on their roster now, I'm sure they'll be able to get, you know, borrow a couple of really quality players from the Youth League team as well.
00:21:44
Speaker
Definitely. I mean if you think maybe they pick up like they need help in the front court Maybe an Ella Pinkerton goes in there or something like that. We don't know there's you know They've named a few players who are still youth league eligible, but they've got plenty more in reserve Sounds good now another team Staying relatively in the metro area is the Heels Hornets.
Hills Hornets: Blending Experience and Returning Players
00:22:05
Speaker
I can see the likes of Cassandra Petney is back Kelsey Curtin
00:22:14
Speaker
Now, did she play last season for Hills or is this her first season? No, she's been at Hills for a while now. She was playing for Hornsby before, but she's been at Hills for a while now. I think the two biggest inclusions are the second last and third last name on your list, Wendy Strong.
00:22:36
Speaker
Yes. Who has been playing for, well, the Warritile League website starts only go back to 2003 and she's in that season. So. Yeah. I mean, even if it was since 2003, that's legit 20 years. That's right. There are literally players on the roster who weren't born then. And then the other one is one of the most athletic players in MBL One East, Taylor Cotties coming back after giving birth.
00:23:07
Speaker
So she was missed a lot last season and she was pregnant and now she is back for the Hills Hornets. Awesome. They certainly missed her last season, I can imagine. And then for those who don't know, Wendy Strong, despite having such a long playing history, she is really tough under the basket. Like she, she used to lead the league in rebounds and if she wasn't leading, she was second or third.
00:23:32
Speaker
That's right. And they're going to need her because, I mean, they're going to need both of them. They're going to need everyone to step up this season on that roster because they've lost Erica Pittman, they've lost Rachel Lavaki, they've lost Journey of Moistraka to Bankstown, Lavaki and Moistraka to Bankstown. And Alana Goodchild, who played for them last season before heading to college, is now at college at Northwestern University. So she won't be playing MBL1 East either. So.
00:24:01
Speaker
Definitely a good thing to have both those players back. They've got Taryn Marnie back who's going to be great on defense again. Brittany Soule returns to the roster for a first time in a few years. And Ella Laisouasu, former New South Wales junior representative, played Hornsby Youth League, is suiting up for Hills now.
00:24:24
Speaker
Awesome, so it sounds like they've managed to jostle some really good pieces back into the gaps that were missing to keep them relatively competitive. Now they were still competitive last season, but I wonder though if this roster might be, while it's different, maybe a tad bit stronger.
00:24:45
Speaker
It could be in a way, uh, depends on losing. Oh, they've also, sorry, I mentioned Eric Pitman, but Paris Raditas also isn't mentioned. So that's two point guards gone. So that could be an area where they have to, even if they can slot someone into play the point, it could take a while to get everything rolling in a competitive situation.
00:25:09
Speaker
Yeah, Paris Rodidis has been a, um, some, a long standing Hills Hornets point guard in the youth league and in Waratah, uh, MBL one status for a while now. So yeah, interesting that she's not, uh, suiting up this season. I know she's been playing, she's been doing double duty playing Aussie rules as well. So I don't know if she just hasn't been listed yet, or if she's decided that, you know, if footy is the sport for her or what's going on.
00:25:38
Speaker
going on there, I guess we'll see on Saturday. We sure will. And now let's take it over to Hornsby, another of the new teams in the MBL1 East Conference competition.
Hornsby: Youth League Graduates Step Up
00:25:52
Speaker
And look, I'll be completely honest with you, Locky. Like I said in our episode about the men's rosters, I recognise two names on this roster, Sarah Cherry,
00:26:02
Speaker
Tyler Mundine, coached by Alicia Porto, the rest. I'm going to need you to talk me through it. Okay. Well, of the two, the two you mentioned, and then Maddie Delafranco also played Youth League and a bit of Waratah for Hornsby way between five years ago. I think she moved to Melbourne for a little bit.
00:26:25
Speaker
But she's back now. And I believe the entire rest of that squad, so Ashley Thacker, Kara Bishop, Hannah Chan, Isabel Aziellkowski, Jess Knight, Maddie Davie and Sabrina Delafranco are all still Youth League eligible. So they are all making the step up from Youth League despite still having years to play in that competition.
00:26:48
Speaker
Uh, so it's going to be a lot is going to go through cherry and mundane at this stage. And it could be a sink or swim season for some of these players. We shall see. We shall see. Absolutely. I know that, uh, on photo day, they only had five of their women's players arrive. So I was feeling a little bit worried about what their roster was going to look like in terms of numbers and depths.
00:27:16
Speaker
if they didn't only had a few people for photo day, but good to see they filled a roster of 10 so far. So we'll see. It'd be interesting to see how those roster numbers change over the season. Fatigue injury. And I mean, as I said with the Hornsby men's team and all of these new teams, it's going to be starting off one year behind is almost like starting again. So.
00:27:45
Speaker
It's a little easier if you manage to maintain like a Waratah 1 team to pick players from. But if you're starting a whole new senior program again, even after one year out, it can be very difficult. So it's going to be a process. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Hopefully they'll be able to stick together through a second thin of this season because it's, you know, with the 16 team season out, it's going to be a lot more competitive and a lot and a bit longer. So.
00:28:10
Speaker
I think that it'll be a mental game by the time we get to the final rounds. But we roll down south, Illawarra, women are back in the competition.
Illawarra: Aiming for Consistency with Veterans
00:28:20
Speaker
Oh, I shouldn't say back. Well, they are back because they were there last year, so they're back again. But this time the roster does look a bit different. I can see Ella Dent has returned, thankfully, because I love how she plays. And also Mel Kirby has returned and Madison Delaney.
00:28:35
Speaker
But that is not who you're excited about, is it? I'm sorry. Please. I am always excited about Ella Dent, Mel Kirby and Madison Delaney. Don't get me wrong. But with Tyler Scafe last season's import and front court star Georgia Ordorf out, the fact that Courtney Jardine, who you may know as Courtney Dean, and Lauren Gatwood, who you may know as WMBL champion, Lauren Sparks, are back for Illawarra.
00:29:05
Speaker
So good, so good. When you told me that, I think it was last week you told me that they were playing or earlier this week you told me that they were playing. I couldn't believe it. I'm really, really glad to see both of them back on court, both exceptional players, both exceptional role players. I think they're going to do a really good job guiding this team this season. I feel like last season the Hawks women, perhaps also one of those teams, I feel like underperformed
00:29:34
Speaker
And I think they were lacking a little bit of leadership and direction, but with Lauren Gatwood, you know, Lauren Sparks back, I mean, they're going to be in the best hands. Yeah, I mean, they finished fifth and even there, but I mean, they finished fifth and then lost a qualifying final, but it felt like they could have done even more.
00:29:57
Speaker
And now, and they've also got, you know, Beck Abel is back, you know, the Tasmanian devil. And they've got Chelsea Hogg, so they've added a few players and, you know, they'll lose a couple, bring a couple in, but, you know, with those two experienced players and especially Courtney having that height that not every team is going to have, that's going to be a real point of difference for them. Oh, yeah, because she's tall and she's long. She's got serious reach.
00:30:22
Speaker
Um, and I was going to say, oh, the other thing about this Hawks team, like you said, they did finish fifth, but the times I watched them, I think they're a little bit inconsistent. So I think, you know, to refine what I said before, I hope that they have a little bit more consistency in their success this season as well.
00:30:43
Speaker
All right, should we roll on an end to the inner West Bulls?
Inner West Bulls: Strengthening with International Recruits
00:30:47
Speaker
We should because I think they're going to be slightly better this season than their one win of 2022, which was their first win in program history and full credit to them for picking that up. Sorry for mentioning that to a Central Coast legend. Oh, look, I love an underdog story, so I'll take the L when I need to. But yes, so they've picked up, obviously,
00:31:13
Speaker
The big pick up is Michaela Dompkins down from Maitland. So that's an in. They've picked up two Japanese players who last year were playing with Dubbo in the Western Regional League.
00:31:29
Speaker
I actually messaged a player I know who played in that regionally. She told me there are small speedy guards. So their names are Ai Matsumoto and Shiho Yamazaki. Interestingly, Tasman Haynes stays with Inner West and didn't go back to Bankstown.
00:31:47
Speaker
Yeah, I noticed that too. I thought that was quite interesting. I wonder if that was a case of what inner west were able to offer compared to Bankstown. Was it a roster thing? Was it a location thing even? Perhaps. I'm not entirely sure the story, but either way to see Tasman Haynes in a jersey other than Bankstown at a time when Bankstown are in the competition will be
00:32:13
Speaker
Definitely different. And they also have a young guard, Naomi Reed, coming down from Queensland as she looks to prepare herself for college. Apparently, she's looking to go to college and hoping to get some playing time in MBL1 East, showcase her talent.
00:32:30
Speaker
Awesome. I mean, speedy Japanese guards when they were described as speedy guards and anyone that has watched a lot enough international basketball to know how speedy some Japanese players can be. I think I'm already predicting a great matchup between the likes of these Matsumoto and Yamazaki and the likes of
00:32:55
Speaker
Braid, Brody Page Theodore. I almost like joined her two names together then. Brody Page Theodore and Casey Ardern who are really great onboard offenders. I'm hoping that that's going to be a very strong matchup in that game. Just rereading what the Scout scouting report I got also not afraid of contact. Oh, nice. Neither are the guards from Albury. No. It's going to be our own version of a Rochi Wallace duel.
00:33:25
Speaker
Um, all right. So inner west, looking pretty good. Newsome, uh, uh, Japanese players, Michaela, Duncan's going to be the anchor for them under the basket. She averaged a double double last season and Maitland are fools for not getting her back. Speaking of Maitland speaking
Maitland Mustangs: Stability and Experience Boost
00:33:45
Speaker
off. Yeah. Would you want to give us a bit of a wrap of the Maitland Mustangs women's team for this season?
00:33:52
Speaker
Well, as you just mentioned, they lost Michaela Domkins. They also lost Hannah Griffin to Comet, so that's two big outs.
00:33:59
Speaker
but they've replaced them pretty well. They've managed to lure home local hero and one of my absolute favorite players in the league, Shakira Riley, home from Mount Gambia. Well, firstly Canberra, then Mount Gambia. And they've also secured an import, Sydney Hunter, who played at the University of San Diego. So playing in the West Coast Conference, she'll have plenty of experience playing against Aussies. And she's also spent time playing in the Turkish League. So she is,
00:34:29
Speaker
uh she was listed at six foot uh looks like she could play guard for maybe the two three maybe a four depending on height lineups she's uh definitely a very good rebounder and they also name i did not expect to see uh was kelsey moss over from new castle
00:34:52
Speaker
Yeah, me too. Cause Kelsey Moss has been like, uh, through and through, uh, Newcastle, Hunter, then Falcon for a very long time. I was also surprised to see her on the Maitland Mustang roster. That's right. But they've, uh, kept a lot of the same players, Dale Walker, Hannah Fox, uh, young star who is Nick going to the university of San Diego, where Hunter played is, uh, Mila Woshkovich and Bette Gallego, you know, they've, and Shannon Burton, a lot of players returning. So it's almost.
00:35:21
Speaker
Duncan's Griffin out, Riley and Hunter in. So hopefully the year under their belt with a very similar roster, some of these young players got an extra year of experience. They can tack on a few more wins than they are managed last season because they were, I think they were better than their records suggested. I think they only won, was it three games last season, finished a second bottom, only ahead of inner west.
00:35:48
Speaker
So I think, I think their roster is better, was better than that last year and could be better than that again. Yeah, I agree. I think the last couple of years, cause I think Maitland for a long time, the women's team were only, we're only playing state league, uh, which is now just now just called Waratar, I guess.
00:36:07
Speaker
Um, and so I remember when they, that first year they took the leap into, uh, champion, uh, championship, which is now NBA one. Everyone was a little bit shaky in how they would go, but they've honestly gone strength to strength since they've came into this, uh, top tier.
00:36:24
Speaker
semi-pro competition here in New South Wales. So full credit to them.
Manly Warringah Sea Eagles: Building on Success
00:36:29
Speaker
They've done a great job recruiting. I know that Shaq is really, really excited to be back home and spending another season at home and her family close by. Also, I know you said she's one of your all-time favorite players in this league especially, but also just a great human. Oh, 100%.
00:36:48
Speaker
Yeah. So yeah, I'm really excited for Maitland. I've probably, you know, me trying to be unbiased now without my Central Coast Crusaders hat on because Maitland always being one of our rivals. I'm really excited for them and I hope that they can grow in the success of the last few years of them growing this
00:37:09
Speaker
semipro women's program they've got there. A bit of instability in terms of rosters and especially coaching staff, but hopefully that won't have too much of a negative effect. And don't forget, they do have championship pedigree because when the league was cancelled due to COVID, they went and won a local Maitland Comp netball title.
00:37:28
Speaker
Ah, there you go. I didn't know that. So there you go. That's hilarious. Really making lemonade out of lemons there. That's right. Hilarious. All right, we're going swooping into Manly with the Manly Oringa Seagulls. This was one of the rosters that we were keeping a close eye on that we had very little information up until the last 24 to 48 hours.
00:37:56
Speaker
Um, but it looks like some of the nice, uh, the homestays are back. Alex Delaney, Brie Delaney, Kimberly Hodge. And we've got two of the three Henderson's that we know of. How many more are there? I know that there's obviously Antonia and Felicity playing, uh, NBA one East this season. And we know that, uh, cat is over in cat. Yes. Kitty. Kitty. Gosh.
00:38:25
Speaker
RIP me. I'm cancelled now. Henderson is over in college playing for Columbia. So they're the three I know. Are there any more Hendersons? That's enough. They're all good. They're all good. They're all really good. I'm pretty sure Felicity's due to go college to Columbia herself after this season. She is. So she'll be there with Kitty. Wow. RIP the Ivy League.
00:38:50
Speaker
Yeah, a shout out to Kitty just to make up for calling you the wrong name before. Honorable mention in the Ivy League over there as well for her season.
00:39:01
Speaker
But yes, as you mentioned, not a lot of, I guess a lot of players back, they haven't really brought in anyone from other clubs. They have lost. Meg Jeffs isn't playing this season. Holly Wills has gone to North and Rose Nelson is over at Fordham University. But aside from that, you know, you've got both your Delaney's, Kim Hodge, Josie Ballman, both your Henderson's, Maya Jelena.
00:39:24
Speaker
Sari Mowbray and Zoe Miller. So a lot of players returning from what I said, team that was very, very good last season. They were. I still feel like I'm going to be greedy again, but I still feel like they could have given me a little bit more this team. There were definitely periods in some of their games where everything on offense just kind of stopped. They lost their flow, they lost their ball movement, and then they'd find themselves in really tricky situations in games. But
00:39:53
Speaker
I'm hoping now that they've got Nathan Kerwin as their coach, as you said in our previous episode, he used to coach the men's team for a really long time. I wonder if he's going to put in some different systems to get the best out of a lot of their shooters.
00:40:10
Speaker
We shall see. And I mean, you've got to remember as well that players like Fliss and Sari and Zoe are now all a year old. They've all got another year of experience. And if you remember Zoe Miller in the qualifying final against Newcastle, where she just took over in the last 90 seconds and just mainly had no right to win that game before Zoe decided. Like just the situation of the game, not in general, just the situation of the game at that time.
00:40:40
Speaker
And Zoe was like, no, we're winning. And they won. Yeah. And then they nearly beat Sutherland in the cities. Yeah. She just really took, like you said, really took over that qualifying final was definitely one of the highlights, I think of the whole MBL one East women's competition.
00:40:58
Speaker
She was on a mission. She's like, I'm going to put an end to this. All right. And we're going to go home as winners. And then we're going to book our ticket in the semi-final. It was, yeah, it was really, really great. And I'm really glad it happened to her. Like, it shouldn't say happened to, but I'm really glad it was at the hands of an up and coming player as well. Because, you know, traditionally we look to our bigger players like your Delaney's or your Hodges and
00:41:23
Speaker
Here comes Zoe Miller. She's like, nah, guys, guys, I've got this. It's Miller time. Miller time.
Newcastle Falcons: Reinforcing with Nicole Munger
00:41:29
Speaker
Now that is definitely one of your own phrases, isn't it? I think that's something you need to trademark, Rocky. I think the Miller Brewing Company has dibs on that. I see. So you gotta borrow from little niche references and stuff like that. Yeah, I love a niche reference.
00:41:46
Speaker
But you talk about up and coming players, I mean, mainly one youth league last year, so they've got players coming through as well. Alana Ready, Chloe Dix, Ella Gale, Georgia Banks are all listed on the roster. Not sure how much playing time all four of those will get. Word around the traps is that Ready and Dix are maybe the more likely, but I don't know. Anything could play out during the season. They could all get plenty of playing time. You just never know. But
00:42:14
Speaker
Very good roster, finished six last year, but showed in the finals that they're a very good team. And despite the losses they've had, they can come back just as strong in 2023. Yeah, I'm excited to see them.
00:42:33
Speaker
And I think it's not so much a bad thing having some of the youth league players up now in the NBA one roster, but manly are going to be a very competitive team for a while because even their under 18s last season were very talented. So yeah, they've got they've got longevity in this women's program. So yeah, they're not going away anytime soon.
00:42:55
Speaker
No. And I mean, you think of some of the coaches they have in that system, not just Kerwin and Rad Raden coaching the Youth League women, but, you know, the MBL1 East Women's Assistant Coach is Gail Henderson and their Youth League Women's Assistant Coach last year was Brian Delaney.
00:43:12
Speaker
Yeah. And if you don't know, Gail Henderson and Brian Delaney, please go and look it up because they are legends and deserve your respect. They definitely do. That's like combined basketball IQ of like 400 between them. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So please, if you don't know them, please look them up and respect them because they deserve it. So let's roll onto Newcastle. Now this is another roster that has been
00:43:37
Speaker
you know, popped up in the last 24, 48 hours. I think the only signing I knew for Newcastle's women's team was Nicole Munger. We were talking some time ago, Locky, whether she was going to stay in Canberra or come back to Newcastle, considering she made such a great impact and seemed to really enjoy herself under the UC CAHPS program recently.
00:43:57
Speaker
would have made sense if she just stayed to play before the Canberra Nationals but she's come back for Newcastle and looks like she's got pretty good company in this team. Definitely does because you know I'm
00:44:13
Speaker
I'm not going to say I was worried because I knew Newcastle would find someone to
Norths Bears: Young Talent Meets Experience
00:44:17
Speaker
take Kyra Evans spot until actually extend Amelia Radovator to Biggs who are now off at college of course Kyra Evans, Bob Staunton medallist in 2021 leading New South Wales to gold in the under 20s and playing for Australian youth national teams but
00:44:33
Speaker
I've got Alison Ebsery back, which is massive. Of course, Newcastle, well, the name Ebsery is synonymous with Newcastle basketball, but Alison won a championship there and also went up and played in WMBL with Townsville. And Abby Curtin, former Hornsby North's kill scythe and Melbourne Rebels rugby player is playing basketball for the Newcastle Falcons this season.
00:45:00
Speaker
So do you have any intel as to how she found herself in Newcastle Locky? Absolutely zero at this stage. Not entirely sure. We might have to hit up the gram and do some snooping. That's right.
00:45:15
Speaker
we could just ask someone. That's probably the more sensible thing to do. That probably also is something we could do, but hopefully she's playing against Sutherland this week and we can find out then. Yeah, I'm glad that she's back. I mean, it was great for her to go to South and have a season with Kilsaas, who are generally quite competitive as well. But thank you for coming back, Abby Kern, and donning a New South Wales Country Club jersey, because she's traditionally in Metro. That's right.
00:45:45
Speaker
But I'm really keen, Nicole Munger, Hannah Chicken is a, you know, played 18s, Emily Foy is also in that under 20s kind of roster. I think she recently made an Australian camp too, Emily Foy. If I'm not mistaken, I might have to double check that. But who's the other big, big addition and unexpected addition to this roster locky? It's got to be Sophie Kleeman, doesn't it? Sophie Kleeman, hello.
00:46:15
Speaker
What's the story? I don't know, just calling me happy. Yeah, so for those who don't know, Sophie Clemen, Newcastle Junior, played alongside Katie Ray Ebzeri, really great, smart, feisty point guard.
00:46:35
Speaker
also went to Troy State in Alabama for D1 College. And the last time I heard she was living out West. She was. She played a bit of, um, she played regional league for Orange or maybe even some state league for Orange. And before that she was, well, before her second stint at Newhouse, she was playing Siebel for Aubrey.
00:47:00
Speaker
Yeah, that's right. Yeah, she was. So she was playing regional league for Orange. I think she ended up playing state league a cup one or two years for Bathurst. Yes. And I think they actually won one year a championship winning actually. But yeah, really great to see her back as well. I feel like
00:47:20
Speaker
She's going to add a little bit of stability to this team. I hope that she will be a really nice facilitator for Munger on transition. She will have Kate Kingham in transition for some threes. Probably someone that can nurture the likes of Annabelle Stubbs as well. But yeah, this roster is looking pretty hot. I'm enjoying it. I mean, yeah, they've not lost a huge amount, but they've definitely are
00:47:50
Speaker
Yeah, brought some big names in and, you know, some of them have had some time away from the game, but if they can return to what they are, to what they used to be, yeah, watch out. Yeah, definite, definite chance to make a repeat finals trip, definite big chance.
00:48:09
Speaker
Yeah. And you know, it's really funny actually, this might be a slightly shady story, but I'm pretty sure I've got this right. When Kyra Evans was under 16s, the, uh, MBL one East Newcastle coach for this season was the state coach at the time and actually cut Kyra Evans from the squad when they cut to like the 16, not even when they cut to the final 10. Wow.
00:48:35
Speaker
Yeah. Cut Kyra Evans. And then he eventually invited her back into the squad, kind of went back on his decision. She ended up making the team, makes All Australian, makes the COE, and now she's at Michigan. So just imagine cutting Kyra Evans from your 16 squad prematurely. I'm glad he saw the error of his ways. Saw the light. Saw the light. He saw the light.
00:49:04
Speaker
Now, we are going to roll onto the Mighty North's Bears. Also, a very solid looking team with a lot of people returning. A lot of people who have played for North's for a long time with Renee Garlett at the helm again. Who are you liking in this roster? Because there have been some new additions. They certainly have. So, yeah, you've got your old standards. Kate Seabomb, Matty O'Hare, Emily Simon, Sarah Schicher.
00:49:32
Speaker
but they have really stacked up on the young talent. Kaitlyn Martin, Holly Wills, and fresh off 24 points in an AJC U20's gold medal game, Emma Donnelly.
00:49:46
Speaker
Wow. Did she have 24 in the gold medal game? Yes. I'm pretty sure that was her final, final tally. Baller. I mean, she's also been one of the DP's next to Jada Crosshaw for the Sydney Flames. I think most people thought she was going to suit up for Comets in, in BO1 this year. Cause that is a home club. Yes. That is a good point. Home club, you know, back with Shelley, who she's been acquainted now with at the Comets.
00:50:12
Speaker
But no, it was, uh, it was the Renee Garlett effect. She was able to recruit these really, really talented young athletes. Also really like Caitlin Martin had to coach against her last year when she was 18. And we thankfully got the win, but she's also someone that's super talented. I think I saw her name on an Aussie list somewhere, but I could be mistaken again. She also had a short stint at COE last year, one of those kind of back of the year.
00:50:42
Speaker
Oh, there you go. So maybe I'm maybe I'm kind of my instincts are right, perhaps that she was on some kind of Aussie camp roster. But yeah, I really like how she plays. Really like how Holly Wills plays as well. How do you see them fitting into the very long standing existing dynamic that is this North team?
00:51:04
Speaker
I don't think Renee's like going to go out of her way to sign young players unless she knows they can all fit together. And especially having Carla Pittman already on the roster. So that's a player who's played New South Wales with Caitlin and Emma. And also in a healthy squad too. Yes. So, you know, I don't see any trouble with any of them fitting in.
00:51:35
Speaker
I mean, so they might have to buy their time a bit, but players of this caliber, I mean, Carla Pittman showed that she can step right in and just, Izzy Morgan went to college at Davidson, in comes Carla Pittman. And, uh, I mean, North haven't really, all they've lost is really Jazz Focadilla, who was on a, um, you know, it was an injury replacement last year. They haven't really, and, and sorry, and Riley Evans. So two, two, two major losses. Um,
00:52:03
Speaker
So maybe they won't have to buy their time as much, especially maybe Caitlyn gets a bit of an extra run in the backcourt. But I mean, they wouldn't move. Caitlyn wouldn't move from Penrith to Norse. You wouldn't move from Comets to Norse, especially Manly to Norse, unless you thought it was going to be the best thing for your career.
00:52:25
Speaker
Oh, absolutely. And like he said, Jazz Forky dealer did come into this North squad at the end of the last season as an injury replacement. The likes of Maddie O'Hare having a back injury for most of the time. And Simon's had a couple of injuries as well here or there. So I feel like I really hope Maddie is healthy and ready for this next season, so she can play most of it. But yeah, lots of young talent as backup.
00:52:53
Speaker
Yeah, Riley's going to be the one they really have to replace. She was scoring for fun last season and maybe they do it by committee. Yeah, whose turn is it going to be this week? That's right. Yeah, she was an exceptional three point shooter. North's loss is, I believe, Gold Coast game.
00:53:16
Speaker
Has she officially signed with Gold Coast for MBL1? Rollers? Well, she's up on the Gold Coast, so I would guess it would be one of those, one of those clubs. But fortunately, we can check these things. Correct. While we check that, I think we'll roll on to the second last team we're going to cover, which is Panrath, another, the final new team that's added to MBL1 East.
Penrith Panthers: Expanding Regional Connections
00:53:43
Speaker
Look, I'm going to be completely honest. I was really surprised that A, Penrith had a roster of 14 players. B, Emily Matthews is back playing, but I'm also very impressed with that they were one of the first teams, if not the first team of NBA One East, to announce their whole roster in due time. Loved that from Penrith.
00:54:09
Speaker
Yeah, they did. I think they announced just about everyone except Talia to fire.
00:54:18
Speaker
What a big signing. Big signing. Dave Hiko. Oh, Dave Hiko. Oh my gosh. You can tell that I've been doing this too long. Davo Hickey level signing for Penrith. Legit. So you put Tali Tupaul, Meg Jefferson, Emily Matthews, Dominika Faber, or as you may know her, Chuck Offner.
00:54:40
Speaker
There's four players that can really, you know, provide a great starting foundation for this team. And two 1990s or very early 2000s WMBL players in Brooke McInnis and Francis Spadina. Blast from the past.
00:54:59
Speaker
Yeah, definite blast in the past. So they've done a really good job bringing both of those players out. Have you and have you perhaps spoken to Emily Matthews about her return? I spoke to her about the two Japanese players playing for inner worst.
00:55:15
Speaker
Yeah, not so much about her, but I just want to make mention on the subject of Emily Matthews and Brooke McInnis that Penrith, when they announced Matthews and McInnis' signing, they made a real point of talking about how they want to connect with the clubs over the mountains.
00:55:37
Speaker
that maybe don't have the players to put together a team that can play at Waratara, MBL one level. Because of the Western Regional League, and I mean, driving from Lithgow to Gilgandra is bad enough. I mean, I used to play Western Premier League soccer for a team in Dubbo and we had to travel to Cowra. And that's three and a half hours each way. So Western Regional League's big enough without all the travel involved in a state league comp. So if Penrith can really tap into that,
00:56:06
Speaker
area, Bathurst, Orange, Lithgow, Dubbo, Mudgee, fingers crossed. That can reap so many benefits, not just for Penrith, but for the associations out West, if they know there is a pathway for them beyond playing Waratah I or Western Regional League.
00:56:28
Speaker
And I just, I just really hope that that really comes to fruition and it's more than just getting, you know, a couple of already well-established players down. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, definitely lots of talent there and to stretch that far, I think is a really, really smart idea. Um, but, uh, I'm looking forward to this team. I'm looking forward to seeing the likes of, um, Meg Jefferson back on our shores.
00:56:58
Speaker
Yeah. I think she ended her college career a little bit by her own choice. I think she ended it like before she was due to be finished. Yeah. Half a season early. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Cause she, she was at university. She was at Virginia university.
00:57:16
Speaker
Is it Virginia University or University of Virginia? University of Virginia. There you go. I was going to say that first and then I overcorrected myself, so I should have just stuck with my instinct. Then she was at Hawaii for a quick stint before she came back. Yes. I think she was a grad student at Hawaii and now she's studying at Sydney Uni. Beautiful. Also someone I used to see on the sidelines at the Sydney Flames game, so I think she was getting in a little bit of
00:57:46
Speaker
practice with them as a train on squad. So I'm glad that she is also back in her home colours for Penrose. But lock here, this brings us to our very last team to cover.
Sutherland Sharks: Overcoming Challenges with New Additions
00:57:56
Speaker
It is none other than your beloved Sutherland Sharks. My beloved Sutherland Sharks losing grand finalists in 2022 and hopefully can get back to the same
00:58:12
Speaker
same heights, but it's not going to be easy. It's very, uh, very competitive this season. And I guess we'll talk firstly about the losses. Uh, we lost Lauren McCaffrey, uh, just not playing, uh, Audra Passicarnas from Illawarra is now over in college. Georgia Jenna, I
00:58:31
Speaker
haven't seen her name on any roster. She's definitely not playing for Sutherland. So I'm not sure what the guys there, but I think the big one is definitely Courtney West. After that knee injury, she suffered last season where she took everything out in that massive knee injury. So that's going to be a tougher replacement because height, length, skill, lock shots for days can finish around the rim.
00:58:58
Speaker
just an all-around great player. And even if you went to try and find someone from another club, you're not going to really be able to find another Courtney West. Yeah, close to it would be like a Sarah Schicker. Exactly. And she's not moving from Norse. Uh, no. But with that said, two big ins. So, Callie Hovad is back in the league.
00:59:20
Speaker
Excellent. Love to see it. Welcome back, Callie. Yes, you will see plenty of Callie is on the court and also she's going to be joining our commentary team this season. Yes, that's really, really great. Love seeing another female behind the mic in the commentary box. I reckon she is going to be a wealth of knowledge and lots of fun to work with. She certainly will be. So we all know what Callie can do. She can handle the ball, finish off the glass, loves a mid-range pull up.
00:59:49
Speaker
We'll run the point very well and definitely take some of the responsibility off Lauren Nicholson. And speaking of Lauren Nicholson, she has a teammate from Townsville Fire joining her at Sutherland this season in Eliza Fabro. Yeah, really big pool, isn't it? Now, like Eliza Fabro has been part of the Townsville Fire Squad for the last couple of seasons. I think this year is a full rusted player last season as a DP. Is that correct? I think so.
01:00:18
Speaker
But so she's been, she's a Townsville junior and she's been up there for forever playing for them in WMBL and MBL1 slash QBL. And yeah, now she's coming down here. But of course we also have obviously Lauren Nicholson, Maddie Norris, shoot for days and work close to the basket. Liv White, it's like trying to move a lighthouse in the paint.
01:00:44
Speaker
And then some younger players, Jordi Duhurst is really starting to take over some of the point guard duties as well. Emily Garland played two, three, probably has the strength, if not the height to even play the four, she does it at youth league level. And then one player I really want everyone to look out for this season on this team is Manuela Piljevic. So last year she was pulling double duty under 18's youth league.
01:01:11
Speaker
This year, MBL won. So last year she was doing so much other stuff. She didn't even have clearance to play MBL won last season. Now she's going to call up straight into the team. That's your hot tip. I really think she can really take advantage of this opportunity. She was one of our best youth league players last year. I think she can really make the step up. Might take her a few games to find her feet at the higher level.
01:01:39
Speaker
but no fear as we saw in her in pre-season against Manly. And of course, it would be remiss of me not to mention the Helensburg Hammer, Lauren Calver, if only for nickname reasons. Now, is that a nickname that you coined? That is a nickname that I coined. Okay, that one you can claim, that one you can claim. Although with the way she runs the court in transition for easy brackets, we might have to call the Sutherland Sprint.
01:02:07
Speaker
Oh, okay. Maybe, might need to do a bit of a poll out there to see what people are like the best. I think, I think the hammer's, hammer's stuck. The hammer's stuck now? Yeah. All right. Hammer it is. Yeah. So I think, it's not going to be easy without Courtney West, but I think Sutherland will gunning, like I think their own ambitions will be at least a top four.
01:02:30
Speaker
Oh, absolutely. I definitely see this Sutherland team as top four. No issue there. Eliza Fabro coming in from town. So as you said, she's going to feel that gap that Vanessa Penussis has left. She's going to be a great outsider and comrade to Laura Nicholson because I think their besties off court too. Oh, if Instagram's anything to go by, they certainly are.
01:02:56
Speaker
Oh, yeah, yeah. You mentioned Penusa's being, yeah, that is one big out, which Hovado will help cover. But also, Asia Cup this year, no WNBA players in the Opal Squad. How many Opals can't see Laura Nicholson going to go to? When will they be on? And who will Sutherland be playing when they're on? Oh, gosh, Lucky, that is...
01:03:21
Speaker
The million dollar questions right there. That is a very, very good point. Because if they play, say they play four games against teams when Lauren's at Opals Camps or in a squad. If they're against four teams, they can beat without Lauren, that's fine. But if they're against four teams that can beat them when they don't have Lauren, that throws a real cut amongst the pigeons.
01:03:46
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. And she might be back for finals, but then have they fallen into a lower position and face a really tough team? Maybe they face CoE in the semis instead of Manly or North or Aubrey. Yeah, yeah. If it falls that way, they could play first instead of second in a place and yeah.
01:04:08
Speaker
Really good point. Really, really, I think that is going to be such a huge determining factor for the Sutherland team. Jeremy Jones now stepping into the coaching role last year with Shelly Bates. I believe she's just having a break from coaching, from what I've been told, which is good. Got to have a balance in life.
01:04:28
Speaker
So I feel like that, yeah, that's going to be, everyone's going to be keeping their eye on that, hey, the Times and Lauren Nicholson's not playing.
Season Launch: March 11 with Live-streamed Games
01:04:36
Speaker
Definitely. Because looking at the rest of the rosters, there's no one else in the NBL One East Women's Conference that will potentially get called up for Opal Duty either. So it's not like there's going to be a bunch of players.
01:04:48
Speaker
Scattered. Um, I mean, unless depending on who's available, Isla Jofferman, I don't know if it's too soon for her to get a- Well, that's the thing. If there could be a gems camp or a sapphires camp gets thrown around as well, or something like that happens, or they pull a player in for just to give her a week's opportunity to test herself against the best, the camps will probably be where COE train anyway.
01:05:17
Speaker
at the AIS, so. Yeah, just turn up, Isla, and see what happens. Yeah. Just invite yourself. I'll probably all get made training partners anyway. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. All right, so now that we've wrapped up the rosters for NBL One East Women, tell me who's taking out the championship for 2023. I don't want to say the same club I said for the men.
01:05:41
Speaker
And it's all, and also it's can be so up in the air, but if they've got everyone at the important times, I'm going center of excellence, just the way they dismantle some of the East teams last year. And like I said, it was in weird situations, but I still don't think it's, um, it wasn't enough of a determining factor to, you know, to discard those results. So I'm going to go center of excellence, um, with.
01:06:12
Speaker
Sutherland, Manly and North's right behind them, unless Aubrey have something up their sleeve in port wise. No, they're the teams I had in my mind for top four with perhaps Comets not close behind. Comets, Comets and Newcastle I think are going to be fairly matched. I mean, depending if Comets actually get Shyla Hill as the rumour mill. That's the thing. If Comets get Shyla, then
01:06:37
Speaker
Yeah, straight away, Comets are a top four chance. So there you go. If Comets do sign Shyla, if that's actually true, she will be off for Opal's duties as well. Possibly, yeah. Yeah. Actually, yeah. If they have it, yeah, probably. Yeah, in case, if not the squad. Yeah. Yeah. All right. So you've got COE with Norse, Manly and Sutherland in your top four. It's so hard to pick, but I seem to
01:07:06
Speaker
My instinct is going with North Sutherland final. Really? No COE? Look, I just feel like, maybe North COE final, but I just feel like Renee's going to prepare.
01:07:24
Speaker
a lot. She's going to do a research going to do a lot of hard work to try and get over the COE. I feel like Renee is going to come up with some really good stuff to try and defeat them. And I think that North in a sense of their maturity as players and
01:07:41
Speaker
their team dynamic, I think that's going to go a long way to get over COE eventually. Um, but listen, I'm not very good at predictions. At times I have to make predictions for like the world cup. I totally suck. So. Yeah, me neither. I'm terrible. And even just saying that I go and take a look back at that Aubrey roster and say, well, I've still got my Haiti and Hannon.
01:08:01
Speaker
Yeah, I can't. It's too much. See, this is why I don't even coach. It's too much pressure. I just like saying as an assistant coach, here's the information. You can make a decision. I'm happy to get the information. But anyway, that will wrap up episode two of East Got Game. Lockie, thank you so much for joining me and giving me all of the information that you can for these two episodes.
01:08:25
Speaker
I'm looking forward to the first round. Do you want to give our listeners a reminder of when the season kicks off? Season kicks off Saturday, March 11th, game of the week on KO Freebies. Also, live streaming on the MBL One website. I'll be commentating on KO Freebies Sutherland versus Newcastle at 5pm for the women and 7pm. And where can we find you, Squint?
01:08:48
Speaker
Oh, on socials, you can find me at your center underscore governed on Instagram, and you can find me at s underscore squin on Twitter just because I like to confuse people. And I'm at Locky Heel, H-double-e-l on both Twitter and Instagram. Yeah, so you're smart. You kept it consistent. I put every possible name associated with my identity on the internet. So, RIP me. All right, let's wrap this up, buddy. We've got a WMBL game to watch. I'll see you next time. Catch you later, Squin.