After four weekends of exciting basketball action, Basketball NSW’s annual D-League Tournament has come to a close for another year. The tournament saw 480 athletes and 96 coaches and 80 officials from both Metro and Country NSW compete against each other in a bid to showcase their skills and talent.
D-League, which stands for Development League, has been a crucial platform for young basketball players and coaches for years. It is the only opportunity for both regions to come together and compete with each other. The tournament also plays a crucial role in helping Talent ID evaluate athletes for their development within representative and state-based programs. Additionally, the platform provides education for coaches from across the state, helping them enhance their skills and knowledge of the game.
The D-League featured U14, U15, U16 and U18 age groups, allowing for players to compete and showcase their skills. Throughout the four weekends of the tournament, the roster of referees and officials have done a fantastic job on the court, ensuring that the matches were conducted in a professional and fair manner.
General Manager of Coaching and Development, Brett Coxsedge, shared his thoughts on the success of D-League and how it is an essential stepping stone for young basketball players and coaches.
“We’re thrilled with the turnout and performance of our athletes and coaches in this year’s D-League Tournament,” said Coxsedge.
“D-League is a highly regarded event on our high performance calendar each year as it plays a major role in the development pathway for not only our athletes but also for our coaches and officials” Coxsedge said.
“It provides an opportunity for our Country and Metro athletes to play together which assists us to instill the values necessary for our “Building Blues” culture for the future.”
BNSW would like to thank Sports Chaplaincy Australia for their generous support in this year’s Tournament, as well as Momentum Physiotherapy and Health Services for their help with injury prevention, managing injuries and getting athletes back on court. A special shootout as well to Sports Psychologist Karen Haddad for her “Grit for Girls” presentations to the athletes as well.
BNSW would like to wish all athletes best of luck with their current and upcoming representative trials and once again thank the efforts and dedication of the roster of referees/officials that participated over the past few weekends.
Congratulations to all our coaches listed below on another great year of D-League.
| U14 Girls Coaches | |
| First Name | Association |
| Abby O’Flynn | Inner West Bulls |
| Christopher Brown | Newcastle Falcons |
| Elle Fletcher | Norths Bears |
| Jacob Adan | Hills Hornets |
| James Griggs | Newcastle Falcons |
| Jamie-Maree Elliott | Norths Bears |
| Jo-Ann Jones | Wollondilly Razorbacks |
| Meghan Kemp | Kempsey Basketball |
| Mekdes Geist | Illawarra Hawks |
| Merinda Rhodes | Coffs Harbour Suns |
| Natalie Gentle | Coffs Harbour Suns |
| Thomas Garlepp | Norths Bears |
| U15 Girls Coaches | |
| First Name | Association |
| Bianca Wilson | Newcastle Falcons |
| Christine Blacklock | Bankstown Bruins |
| Fidoh Natividad | Penrith Panthers |
| Georgie Fleischer | Norths Bears |
| Jamahl Zegzula | Orange Eagles |
| Jennifer Dean | Hornsby Ku Ring Gai Spiders |
| Joanne Keating | Norths Bears |
| Laurie Fleming | Norths Bears |
| Leonie Moore | Penrith Panthers |
| Mel Thomson | Sydney Comets |
| Natalie Turner | Newcastle Falcons |
| Peggy Schell | Norths Bears |
| U16 Girls Coaches | |
| First Name | Association |
| Bilal Akalo | Sydney Comets |
| Danielle D’Morias | Hills Hornets |
| James Eggins | Hills Hornets |
| Jenna Weeks | Penrith Panthers |
| Jordan Zenere | Hills Hornets |
| Lauren Brahe | Queanbeyan Roadrunners |
| Matthew Shorrock | Central Coast Rebels |
| Michelle Comito | Hills Hornets |
| Sherwin Haldar | Bankstown Bruins |
| Silvio Miconi | Marrickville Spirit |
| Wayne Nicholls | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles |
| Yoppy Suwanto | Hills Hornets |
| U18 Girls Coaches | |
| First Name | Association |
| Annobel Starr | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles |
| Brook Pearce | Norths Bears |
| Daniel Howard | Maitland Mustangs |
| Jacob Adan | Hills Hornets |
| Kate Seebohm | Norths Bears |
| Lauryn Curtin | Bankstown Bruins |
| Martin Catto | Newcastle Falcons |
| Michelle Austin | Bankstown Bruins |
| Nathan Roach | Norths Bears |
| Rachel Maenpaa | Hornsby Ku Ring Gai Spiders |
| Shachar Shorer | Norths Bears |
| Shelley Bates | Illawarra Hawks |
| U14 Boys Coaches | |
| First Name | Association |
| Adam Melmeth | Newcastle Falcons |
| Daniel Howard | Maitland Mustangs |
| Jack Adlington | Newcastle Falcons |
| John Sebastian | Bankstown Bruins |
| Joshua Alexander | Norths Bears |
| Mosese Pamaka | Camden Valley Wildfire |
| Nick Hassab | Central Coast Rebels |
| Oscar Bradstock Forgan | Sydney Comets |
| Paul Barkley | Central Coast Waves |
| Simon Ramsey | Camden Valley Wildfire |
| Troy Hogarth | Orange Eagles |
| Troy Leedham | Maitland Mustangs |
| U15 Boys Coaches | |
| First Name | Association |
| Christopher Jones | Wollondilly Razorbacks |
| Cooper Avery | Bankstown Bruins |
| James McDonald | Penrith Panthers |
| Kurt Watts | Penrith Panthers |
| Lachlan Davidson | Hills Hornets |
| Michael Johnson | Newcastle Falcons |
| Pierre Hervay | Central Coast Rebels |
| Rowan Choi | Hornsby Ku Ring Gai Spiders |
| Scott Goodier | Central Coast Waves |
| William Bagot | Hornsby Ku Ring Gai Spiders |
| William Bowden | Taree Tornadoes |
| Xander Papadopoulos | Hills Hornets |
| U16 Boys Coaches | |
| First Name | Association |
| Blake Macfarlane | Penrith Panthers |
| Benjamin Nguyen | Bankstown Bruins |
| Richard Howard | Hills Hornets |
| Darren Buchanan | Illawarra Hawks |
| Tom Cranney | Illawarra Hawks |
| Adrian Brombal | Sydney Comets |
| Liam Cavanagh-Downs | Norths Bears |
| Emma Palmer | Bathurst Goldminers |
| David Hayman | Hills Hornets |
| Jackson Kirkwood | Newcastle Falcons |
| Benjamin Fricke | Hornsby Ku Ring Gai Spiders |
| Sheldon Saikali | Camden Valley Wildfire |
| U18 Boys Coaches | |
| First Name | Association |
| Adam Lareau | Newcastle Falcons |
| Adam O’Callaghan | Leeton Eagles |
| Aidan Zlotnick | Norths Bears |
| Christopher Byrne | Central Coast Rebels |
| Darren Duff | Newcastle Falcons |
| David Higgins | Sydney Comets |
| Jack Hutchison | Wagga Wagga |
| Jeffrey Gutierrez | Hawkesbury Jets |
| Lachlan Clark | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles |
| Steve Bateman | Inner West Bulls |
| Terrance Rone | Blacktown Storm |
Finally, as the D-League tournament comes to an end, we would like to wish all athletes the best of luck with their upcoming representative trials.
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Click HERE to visit the photo gallery.