BOTH the Swan Hill Flyers men’s and women’s teams will get their 2024 Country Basketball League seasons underway against Melton at home this Sunday.
It’s been more than 10 months since the Flyers last took to the court, with both teams undergoing significant change in that time, with vastly different playing rosters combining with a change of leadership for both squads.
After impressing as assistant coach last season, Hugh Broad with take charge of Swan Hill’s men’s team this season, while Adam Kerr will take the reins of the women’s squad, bringing with him an impressive 13 year coaching resume that includes time in the Frankston Blues and Vic Metro programs.
Having missed the playoffs by three games last season, Broad was bullish about the prospects of his young squad this season, with a huge emphasis on the defensive side of the game expected to hold them in good stead.
“There’s a really good feel about the season, it’s only a seven week schedule and it’s a really busy seven weeks, but if we play well, then hopefully we have a few more weeks after that,” Broad told The Guardian this week.
“The last few weeks we’ve had some really good numbers at training and there is lot of promise in the juniors and the under-18s that are coming through.
“Our goal is to play finals, we haven’t played finals in a few years, but I know we’re good enough, it’s just about making sure we’re working cohesively.
“We have a lot of talent among our squad, Lachie Somerville for example has been playing NBL1 for Bendigo and he’s been dominating.
“He’s incredible to watch and Matt Gardner is another strong scorer for us and he’s also been playing Uni ball.
“It’s just about making sure we play as a team because when we’re on, we can compete with anyone.
“Last year we were able to score pretty well, but we just let ourselves down on defence at times, so we’ve been focusing on improving defensively as much as we can over pre-season.
“I’m very defensively minded as a player and I will be also as a coach as well, and when we have players of the calibre of Lachie (Somerville) and Matty (Gardner), we know the offence will take care of itself.”
Although finals will be the aim for the men’s team, it won’t come at the expense of development, with several under-18 players expected to get their chance to impress this Sunday including Julian Muir, Bryce Anderson, Kaiden Purcell and Tiger Vearing.
Developing the next generation will also be a key focus for Kerr and the women’s squad, with a young but enthusiastic team expected to take to the court against Melton.
“I think the girls are all pretty excited to get on the floor and start the season,” Kerr said.
“We’ll have a pretty young group, in fact we’re going to have only four or five girls that are over the age of 18 from last year’s squad, being Tess (Denham), Karla (Allen), Tamara (Weiss) and Ryley (Purcell), and then Shaylea (Kerr) is coming in this year and she’s just turned 18.
“It’s a pretty young and exciting group and I’m looking forward to seeing how they go this weekend.
“We’ve had our under-16 Flyers training with us over the pre-season to get ready for their own competitions. There’s a lot of good young players coming through and while some of them may not quite be old enough for the seniors, they’re really competing against the older girls and forcing them to raise their games.
“The upside, not just for this season but for the next couple of seasons, is going to be huge for the club.”
While the women’s Flyers are expected to be outsized most weeks, they will also be hoping to use that to their advantage, according to Kerr, with his team expected to leave nothing on the court each game.
“Speed will be our strength, we’re won’t be overly tall, but we do have some great guards and plenty of talent among the group,” Kerr said.
“Karla (Allen) is in super shape, as is Tamara (Weiss), while Tess (Denham) is back to full fitness after recovering from her knee operation last year.
“We’ll be aiming to put a competitive team on the floor every week and then the development and wins will come from that.
“We’ll be behind the eight ball in terms of height at stages in games, but we will compete hard and if we can take that attitude into Sunday, who knows what could happen.
“Hopefully we get plenty of support to the game on Sunday, there’s a good buzz around the club this week and to play our first game at home is always a bonus.
“Melton were a pretty handy team last year, but they’ll be coming off a trip to Mildura on Saturday night, so hopefully we can catch them a little bit fatigued and we hit the ground running.”
Swan Hill’s women’s team will host the Melton Thoroughbreds at the Swan Hill Stadium, with tip-off from 11am, with Swan Hill’s men’s team to follow at 1pm.
SWAN HILL FLYERS 2024 MEN’S SQUAD
Hugh Broad (Head Coach)
Lachie Gardner
Matthew Gardner
Torben McFarlane
Lachlan Somerville
Bryce Anderson (Development Player)
Julian Muir (Development Player)
Kaiden Purcell (Development Player)
Tiger Vearing (Development Player)
SWAN HILL FLYERS 2024 WOMEN’S SQUAD
Adam Kerr (Head Coach)
Karla Allen
Issy Corrie
Ava Crow
Tess Denham
Indi Grey
Scarlet Grey
Shaylea Kerr
Brooke Pearson
Ryley Purcell
Meg Rooney
Tamara Weiss
Arna Carroll (Development Player)
Jenna Gray (Development Player)
Lyla Morton (Development Player)
Kieley Styles (Development Player)
