VS Friday 25th May 2018
GAME NIGHT PROGRAM FRIDAY 25th MAY 2018 Printed by
14 Hepner Place North Geelong 3215 Ph: 52722558
VS TODAY’S GAMES SEABL WOMEN– 6:00PM SEABL MEN – 8:00PM
GAME NIGHT SPONSOR
It feels weird as it’s only the fourth game of the year at home, but this weekend both of our teams will pass the halfway mark of the season and with both sitting outside the top 8 it’s a little bit of unchartered territory for our club. All we can ask is that our supporters have faith… we are positive our teams are on the right path off the court and we just need to see them take their opportunities on court and we will shoot up the leader board. I guess what goes in our favor this year is how tight the competitions are; excluding the top two teams of the women’s competition everything else is very tight. Our girls are only one game outside the 8, while the men are only 1 ½ games out of the top 4 so with 7 more home games we remain confident of extending our finals run in the men's competition and setting ourselves up to defend out title in the women’s comp. I also wanted to take a moment to acknowledge the success of our women’s Head Coach David Herbert, the 2017 SEABL Women’s Coach of the Year was selected as an Assistant Coach for the Australian U19 Women’s Team earlier in the year . What Herbie has been able to do for our club in the last 3 years has been outstanding. The quality of our junior coaches continues to improve, the skill development of our players is increasing everyday and our development programs are structured and effective. We wish David well later in the year when he and the team head to the 2018 FIBA Under-18 Asian Championships. We have a couple of events coming up. Firstly our Business to Business lunch at the Empire Grill on June 8th. Details of this event can be found at supercats.com.au. The second event is our 40th Anniversary Dinner, a celebration of the NBL, ABA and SEABL days of the Supercats. This event will be held on July 6th with details coming real soon. Enjoy the day #SeeRed #GetLoud #SupercatsFamily Regards, Dean Anglin CEO
WOMEN’S PREVIEW A five and five record is the best coach David Herbert can hope for as the reigning champions head into the middle weekend of the 2018 season. A win on Friday night against the Dandenong Rangers is the primary focus for the Lady Supercats as they attempt to get their season back on track. Standing in the Supercats way though will be a star studded line up consisting of Australian Opals Point Guard Tess Lavey , former Australian Opals Guard Tess Madgen and Rangers WNBL duo Tayla Roberts and Rosie Fadjlevic who have both spent time at the Supercats in recent years. “Dandenong have the depth and talent to really challenge for this year SEABL title” Herbert said, “they have been up and down a little like us but certainly have the experience to pose a real threat”. It is not lost on the 2017 Coach of the Year that the season sits on a knifes edge, but two wins on the weekend could see the Lady Supercats rocket into the middle of the tp 8 with the 6 teams above the 12th placed Supercats one or less games ahead of them. “Our season is getting to the stage it is in the balance so we will be fighting tooth and nail to find answers to our current lack of playing form” In previous seasons you would say the trip to Albury should be much easier than it may be this year, backing up after a tough Friday game the team will hit the road early Saturday morning to take on a Lady Bandits team boasting twin towers in Kristi Mokube and Emilee Harmon. Coach Herbert believes Albury to me are one of the big improvers this year, highlighting that Mokube and Harmon have been outstanding both averaging close to a double double. Added to this former WNBL star Molly Rice has returned to full fitness so this team cannot be underestimated.’ There is no doubt the Lady Supercats will be challenged again this weekend as they face their fourth double header of the season and fourth interstate trip. Recovering will be the key factor this weekend without a days gap between the games. Herbert remains confident that import duo Daniela Wallen and Chelsea Poppens will start to have a positive impact on the Lady Supercats season, “We have made minor adjustments and I expect big things from both girls in weeks to come” “We have to make a stand at some point and one of the biggest areas to improve will be our shooting percentage” which sits at around 30% and even less from the 3 point line. A damning statistic is that only one Supercat sits inside the top five of any of the 16 key stats for the season. That being Isa Brancatisano who is 4th in Total Steals and Three Pointers Made and 2nd in Total Assists.
MEN’S PREVIEW After a short week on the training court, a big weekend awaits the Supercats men and the task is not lost on Head Coach Leon O’Neill. The Supercats kick off the weekend with a home court clash against the fifth placed Dandenong Rangers before heading up the highway to Albury on Saturday who the Supercats hold a slim half game margin over. Two 1 point games last weekend produced one win and one loss and has the team still sitting outside the 8, however having taken second placed Nunawading to the final few seconds of the game should give the boys heart that they can match it with anyone in 2018 “we have had a good week on training court” coach O’Neill said “we have been working hard to address some of the issues that we have identified and are hopeful that this weekend’s double header of Dandenong at home and Albury away will provide us with the opportunity to play some better basketball”. The Rangers got the better of the Supercats in their only meeting last year, as the eventual 2017 league runner up outclassed the home team on the opening night of the season, while the Bandits and Supercats split their two meetings in 2017 with both teams winning on their home court. While the Bandits sit just shy of the Supercats this year, coach O’Neill is wary of what they can produce, especially in front of a hostile home crowd “Albury are once again led by Deba George, who has been a longtime rival of the Supercats” “Both Albury and Dandenong are quality teams and we will need to be working hard to slow down their key players”. The Rangers boast a roster containing two NBL players in Anthony Drmic and Rhys Vague and have so far taken care of every team they have faced that is below them on the ladder. With a tight ladder from positions three to eleven the Supercats will be looking for this weekend’s two games to springboard them into the top 8 and set up the second half of the season. O’Neill also commented on the crowd and the importance of having support while travelling “we are looking forward to seeing another loud and passionate crowd on Friday night at our home game against the Rangers and welcome any fans who feel like a trip up the highway to follow us to Albury.” “We have a great history of fans traveling, whether it’s to Albury, Ballarat, Mt Gambier or any of the Melbourne venues and again we would love to have the support on the road as we try to get things back on track for 2018” Saturday’s game marks the half way point for the Supercats who still have a further 6 games to play at home this season. But if the region’s top team does not start to make a move soon, a 21st straight finals appearance might allude them.
LUINA GEELONG SUPERCATS SEABL WOMEN Number
Full Name
2
Ellen Kett
4
Position
Player Sponsor
Age
Guard
24
Eve Braslis
Forward
18
5
Alex Duck
Guard
27
8
Carly Remmos
Guard
15
19
Daniela Wallen
Forward
23
20
Ebony Rolph
Forward
23
24
Isabella Brancatisano
Guard
23
30
Charlotte Brancatisano
Guard
21
31
Chelsea Poppens
Forward
27
33
Tiarna Rolph
Centre
22
37
Georgia Hiscock
Guard
18
53
Alisha Knights
Guard
16
98
Maddy Brancatisano
Guard
17
Head Coach Assistant Coach Team Manager Physio
David Herbert Glenn Sharp & Darren Busuttil Mindi Wells Sam Rice, provided by Corio Bay Health Group
DANDENONG SEABL WOMEN Number
Full Name
Position
Age
4
Tess Madgen
Guard
27
5
Tessa Lavey
Guard
24
6
Kiera Rowe
Forward
19
7
Rosie Fadljevic
Forward
24
8
Bec Pizzey
Fwd/Ctre
19
9
Tayla Roberts
Centre
24
11
Maddi Puli
Forward
17
12
Taylah Giliam
Guard
20
Head Coach Assistant Coach Team Manger
John White Julian Fields
Aimee Puchinco
NEXT HOME GAME Friday 15th June Women 6pm & Men 8pm
LUINA GEELONG SUPERCATS SEABL MEN Number
Full Name
Position
Player Sponsor
Age
5
DeMarcus Gatlin
Combo Guard
24
8
Kris Blicavs
Combo Guard
28
10
John Davis
Power Forward
32
11
Nathan Herbert
Shooting Guard
32
12
Matthew Johns
Guard
29
14
Michael Luxford
Guard
26
15
Ma'alo Hicks
Power Forward
23
17
Nathan Freind
Guard
26
21
Kristian Rocci
Shooting Guard
30
24
Liam McInerney
Power Forward
34
52
Jamie Medved
Shooting Guard
35
Head Coach Assistant Coach Team Manager & Assistant Team Managers Physio
Leon O’Neill Luke Beauglehall & Greg Smith Jesse Drever, Nathan Scarlett & Marcus Lovell Sam Rice, provided by Corio Bay Health Group
DANDENONG SEABL MEN Number
Full Name
Position
1
Liam Gibcus
C
2
Anthony Drmic
G
5
Dieuson Biyendolo
C
7
Declan Soukup
G
9
Josh Oswald
F
10
Tyler Roberston
G
11
Lucas Barker
G
12
Puoch Puoch
F
15
Tim Lang
C
21
Rhys Vague
F
35
Keli Leaupepe
F
Head Coach Assistant Coach Team Manager
Age
Darren Perry Mike Funke, Jay Broadhurst & Warren Brown Beth Carpenter
NEXT HOME GAME Friday 15th June Women 6pm & Men 8pm
Geelong Advertiser WILL HOGAN SEABL MEN AN agonising one-point loss to Nunawading Spectres overshadowed the Geelong Supercats’ weekend double-header, as they sit outside the top eight. Coach Leon O’Neill was bitterly disappointed after his side led for the majority of the match yesterday, but the individual brilliance of reigning SEABL MVP Simon Conn lifted the Spectres to an 86-85 victory at The Arena. O’Neill admitted his side needed to drastically improve its ability to close games out late. “We didn’t do the little things that good teams need to do to close out close games,” O’Neill said. “We don’t block out, we don’t rebound the ball with enough discipline and we don’t make free throws. “It cost us a game earlier in the year against Ballarat and now it’s cost us another game here. “I’m sort of scratching my head a little bit trying to figure out what we can do differently during the week to try to address this stuff during games.” The Supercats led in the dying moments of the game but multiple offensive rebounds and a subsequent layup by Conn proved the decisive play to go with his 31 points and 14 rebounds. O’Neill will spend the week debriefing with his players and coaching staff in an attempt to regain some momentum in their season. “The message somewhere between here and there is getting lost, so we need to as coaching staff find out a way to be better at communicating what we want to happen,” he said. In the Supercats’ other game of the weekend, a dominant performance from captain Nathan Herbert proved the difference as Geelong defeated the Sandringham Sabres 97-96 in a Saturday night thriller. Herbert shot 32 points for the match and was well supported by John Davis (24 points) and DeMarcus Gatlin (19 points). O’Neill praised his captain’s game but lamented the fact that his side could not rely on talent alone to be a contender come finals. “Nathan Herbert was brilliant. He made tough shot after tough shot ... he carried us down the stretch,” he said. “There will be nights where we will be able to rely on the talent of our guys, but if we’re going to contest a SEABL final, then we have to realise that’s not just going to get the job done. “These are the moments that are really season-defining and I think these next two games are really going to let us know if we’re fair dinkum about making any noise come finals time or if we’re just making up the numbers.”
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