Riders - Issue 11 by Joe Pinchin

Riders ISSUE ELEVEN

O F F I C I A L M AT C H P R O G R A M M E

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31/01/2015 v WORCESTER WOLVES

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Leicester Riders 25 Rutland Street Leicester LE1 1RB info@leicesterriders.co.uk +44 (0)116 255 8635 @ridersbball

Club Officials Managing Director Russell Levenston russell@leicesterriders.co.uk Director Kevin Routledge kevin@leicesterriders.co.uk

CO N T E N T S 5 Welcome

Head Coach Rob Paternostro rob@leicesterriders.co.uk

A welcome message from

Meet our visitors the Worcester

Introducing our team for the

the Leicester Riders

Wolves

2014/15 EABL Season

Operations Manager Joe Pinchin joe@leicesterriders.co.uk

Commercial Manager Ian Davidson ian@leicesterriders.co.uk

A message from Rob

Worcester Wolves

36 Charnwood College

21 Lambles’ Ramble

39 Behind the Game

A message from our Head

A word from our Captain

Intern Shawn Knight gives an

Coach Rob Paternostro.

Leicester Riders, Barry Lamble

inside look to the game day at the Riders.

Leicester Riders Roster

Endicott Experience

Introducing our team for the

Coach Liam Jefferson takes

Men’s Student Head Coach Mark Jarram mark@leicesterriders.co.uk

2014/15 BBL Season

us through his two weeks at

Woman’s Head Coach Matthew Harber matthew@leicesterriders.co.uk

Check in with Harrison Gamble

as he leads Loughborough

Introducing our team for the

Check out next week’s

College

2014/15 WBBL Season

opponents the Sheffield Sharks

Endicott College.

WBBL Fixture List

BBL Fixture List

10 Gamble Inspires Youth WBBL Riders Roster

54 Sheffield Preview

and Hatters in a BBL/WBBL 13 Ticket Office Tel: 01162558635 info@leicesterriders.co.uk

Site Work Begins

34 Loughborough Roster

Kevin Routledge shares the

Loughborough University

progress of work on the site of

Roster for the 2014/15 season

double-header Saturday.

the new arena.

Contributors: Rob Paternostro, Barry Lamble, Russell Levenston, Michael Hanson-Morris, Liam Jefferson, Kevin Routledge, Shaun Knight Editor and Design: Joe Pinchin Photographers: Paul Davies, Matthew Withers, Zak Pinchin, Ville Vuorinen

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S E C TWI EO LN C HO ME AE D I N G

RUSSELL LEVENSTON

WELCOME Firstly I’d like to welcome tonight’s guests, Worcester Wolves, to the Sir David Wallace Arena at Loughborough University for this BBL Trophy quarter-finals game. What a start to 2015 it’s been for the Riders on the court! We’re currently unbeaten in the BBL Championship and it’s going to be an exciting few weeks ahead with some really big games coming up. But tonight’s game is all about the BBL Trophy. Following our last match against Worcester Wolves on December 23rd where they got the victory, we hope to repay the favour tonight. Don’t forget the Plymouth Raiders game has been rearranged to Wednesday 8th April at 7.30pm. You can now buy your tickets online at leicesterriders.co.uk. I’d like to welcome the Countesthorpe Scout Group and Beaumont Lodge Primary School who have both taken part in today’s Development Day. Tonight, the WBBL team are away playing against the Manchester Mystics and I wish them all the best of luck in Manchester as they continue their WBBL Championship

action. And keep in mind that the WBBL and BBL play against Sheffield next in the Sir David Wallace Arena. Please come and the support the women’s game that kicks off first at 4.30pm. This week we have launched our website with all the latest information on the continued development of the new arena in Leicester at leicestercommunitysportsarena. co.uk. Don’t forget to like on Facebook and follow on Twitter for the most recent updates on the Riders’ new home. Don’t forget we have got the Riders Half Term Camp from February 18th to 20th which costs £45 for 3 days. To book a place please contact the Riders office on 0116 255 8635 or email dave@leicesterriders.co.uk. Following the consecutive sell-outs the atmosphere has been phenomenal. Please make some noise for tonight’s game and get behind your team! #RiderUp #HardworkBringsSuccess

Coach Rob

ROB PATERNOSTRO

ONE AT A TIME Welcome to Loughborough University and tonight’s BBL Trophy Quarter Final versus the Worcester Wolves. Coach James has the Wolves playing very well this season. The Wolves organization has put together a veteran team with a lot of depth. They have good players all over the floor and can hurt you from inside and out. Last time we played them it was an excellent game and we expect the same tonight. We are coming off a 2-0 weekend last week. Our crowd was great Saturday we got off to a flying start and the travelling supporters were awesome on Sunday. The support we are getting both home and away is much appreciated and a major factor in the recent success. We are hoping for a “Playoff” type atmosphere in here tonight, lots of noise from start to finish. Thanks again for your support All the best. Rob Paternostro

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HC USA.

Rob

P at e r n o s t r o Head Coach

AC GBR.

MARK

JARRAM A S S I S TA N T C o a c h

AC GBR.

PHIL

GLEADELL A S S I S TA N T C o a c h

THE RIDERS

SEASON 2014/15

AC GBR.

JOSH

MERRINGTON A S S I S TA N T C o a c h

BBL Roster

2 GBR. Guard 1.97m

12 GBR. forward 2.08m

Y o r i ck

29/07/1975

Ita. Guard 2.00m

Harrison

10/04/1992

GBR. Guard 1.83m

W il l i a m s

Gamble

tyler

06/12/1988

USA. Guard 1.80m

Conner

04/06/1992

Gbr. Centre (c) 2.08m

Bernardini

Washington

N e il

W at s o n 02/02/1991

Levi

GBR. Guard 1.95m

15/03/1991

Noel

barry

Jamell

17/02/1983

GBR. Forward 2.03m

06/07/1990

Lamble

Anderson

www.redmonkeyplay.co.uk Creative play for schools, nurseries and the home.

速

Red Monkey Play

22 USA. Forward 2.03m

Rashad

23/09/1989

SLO. Forward 2.0

Hassan

P av o l

23/06/1988

GBR. Guard 2.00m

Losonsky

ANthony

T r ay V O N N

20/10/1985

USA. Forward 2.01m

26/12/1991

Rowe

WRIGHT

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A R E N A U P D AT E

ARENA UPDATE

SITE WORK CONTINUES We finally got work underway on site on 6th January 2015, after a great deal of site investigation and preparation work over the last number of months. The Charter Street site has had a very rich industrial past, which mirrors that of Leicester, going back to the time when the canals were the arteries of industrial Britain. With the site having the Grand Union Canal as its northern boundary, the Canal & Rivers Trust, which took over from the British Waterways Board as the guardians of the canal, take a very close interest in any industrial developments on its boundary. This is because of any pollution or effluents which might end up in canal, but also, for example, due to concerns about the impacts of the developments on the integrity of the canal wall. The Environment Agency (EA) must all sign off on any plans to clean up a site, including the impact of flooding, and of course, the City Council takes a very close interest to ensure work is undertaken safely and in compliance with local planning requirements.

However the site has been extensively studied and extremely well characterized. Most of the contamination is at extremely low levels. We have a very experienced licensed contractor, VHE, to undertake the site remediation, and they have completed remediation of former gas works, in particular, many times, very successfully. We have also very experienced technical consultants, WYG, to monitor the performance of VHE, and provide the necessary reporting to the EA. The remediation programme is scheduled to take 8 to 9 weeks, and is I am pleased to say the work is currently on schedule. Indeed, the blue billy has all been removed from the site. So not much to see at this stage of the project, but definitely progress! Kevin Routledge

Charter Street is a brown field site. It is contaminated and thus must be cleaned up before any new development of the Arena can take place. The contaminants reflect that industrial heritage, which has included the use of the site as a Gas works, including ammonia tanks, petroleum barrels, coke heap, retort house, and above and below ground tanks; as a bone works; as a manure works; as a fertiliser factory; as a Boat yard; as a warehouse, depot and factory buildings; and as a bus depot. Contamination will be in the soils, including contaminants like sulphur, cyanide, sulphate, water soluble sulphate, speciated/total PAH, TPH (aliphatic and aromatic); and they will be in leachates, including arsenic, ammonia, cyanide, phenol, sulphate, speciated PAH, total PAH, BTEX, TPH (aliphatic and aromatic); and in the ground water, including arsenic, ammonia, ammoniacal nitrogen, cyanide, phenol, sulphate, chloride, speciated PAH/total PAH, BTEX, TPH (aliphatic and aromatic). For example, as a gas works, ‘town gas’ for those of you who remember the days before North Sea gas, produces a by-product called ‘blue billy’ from the purification process. This is a cyanide which can by toxic to humans.

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MEET THE WOLVES SEASON 2014/15

Worcester Wolves return to Loughborough on the back of an 86-82 victory just before Christmas. The reigning BBL Trophy Winners look to take one step closer to retaining the trophy which became their first ever BBL success after edging out the Glasgow Rocks last March.

Paul

James HEAD COACH

MVP of the Final Jamal Williams leads a small group of returnees whilst a new backcourt of Chavis Holmes and Paul Guede who join the leagueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 5th leading scorer, Alex Owumni who has returned for a third consecutive season with the club. New signing Dejan Radojevic adds some must needed frontcourt depth joining Rob Thurman who is back having returned from an ankle injury last weekend in a 3 point victory over Sheffield. â&#x20AC;&#x2039;

Wor cester wolves

C h av i s

Disraeli

Paul

Remi

k a l il

dejan

jamal

alex

robert

Holmes

Dibo

w il l i a m s

L u fa d e j u

Irving

owumi

Guede

r a d o je v i c

thurman

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Lamble’s Ramble

BARRY LAMBLE

LAMBLE’S RAMBLE Fantastic January, undefeated in the league and ending the month with a 16-3 record in the Championship. The team have really stepped up our game in the last month with Deuce and Tyler scoring consistently high numbers, Neil dishing out assists all over the place (average of 10.5 for Jan), Tray providing highlight reels every game and Rowe properly returning back from injury. But for me the main reason January has been a great one is because of Jamell. The guy has been fantastic on both ends of the court. A couple of games where coach has found it too hard to even take him out of the game, he is a true team player that does everything that is needed of him for as long as you need him. Tonight’s game we face the team that last beat us, Worcester. Last time we played it was a close game and

I don’t expect anything different tonight except hopefully a change in the winner. With tonight’s game being the Quarter Final of the Trophy, the next piece of silverware on offer in the league, it’s going to be a highly tense game that both teams will be fighting to win. Worcester being the defending Champions and the trophy being the only competition that the Riders have never won, the stakes are high and neither of us will want to lose. This is a game where we are going to need your support more than ever, just like you have done at home during the whole of January. So for last time this month bring the noise as #WeRide again into quite possibly the most important game in January. #RiderUp

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Liam Jefferson

LIAM JEFFERSON

THE ENDICOTT EXPERIENCE I’m Liam Jefferson, Head Coach (Div 4) and Assistant Coach (Div 2) with the Loughborough University Basketball Programme. I was recently stateside working with NCAA Divison 3 side, Endicott College Gulls. Located in Beverly, Massachusetts just north of Boston, Endicott have won 6 Conference Championships and made 5 NCAA tournament appearances, the most recent coming in 2012. The one thing I have learnt in the short time I have been involved in coaching and sport in general is that it’s not what you know it’s who you know. I have been fortunate to develop some fantastic relationships with people in the basketball world in the UK and further afield. It was because of these relationships that I’m writing this blog from the basketball office at Endicott. Having arrived late in the evening on Monday the 5th in the dark I didn’t have a chance to get around campus so grabbed some food and settled into my room that the school have provided in College Hall, an awesome building built in 1750 that reminds me a lot of Hogwarts. Day 1 My first day was game day, vs. Salve Regina, one of the more successful teams in the conference. The first thing that strikes me as different from back home is the infrastructure here provides the ultimate environment for the athletes to be successful, and whilst that isn’t a knock on what we do back home, there is much to be learnt. All of the players live on campus, they share meal times together, they have a dedicated locker room that allows them to come in change, use the gym, get shots up and not have to worry about anyone else taking their

time on court or in the gym. The Salve game was great for me to be thrown into the deep end on the bench, I learnt a lot about the team and the systems they play here, Coach Bettencourt plays a very simple effective brand of basketball where all 5 guys play as one on both sides of the ball. They share the ball effectively, pass up good shots for great ones and defensively operate as a unit with great rotations and strong weakside help, I learnt a lot. At half-time we were tied 36–36, Coach joked that if we lost I was getting fired after the game, luckily we ran out 83–63 winners. Day 2 My second day was much more chilled but just as important as we reviewed film on the Salve game and also scouted and prepared for Roger Williams who we would play on Thursday. The team then had lunch together in the canteen and we came in for a really light shootaround and walk-through of some of Roger Williams sets, the team here are all high character guys, it’s obvious they’ve recruited well but also that the guys are bought in. Nobody cares about minutes or individual stats, they all just want to learn, get better and win, and that showed through their attitudes in walk through and then film after practice.

Endicott experience Day 3

Day 5

My second game in 3 days and it feels like I’ve been here for weeks and already part of the staff/team, I’ve really been welcomed into the group and hopefully my contributions so far have been good. We had a similar day to my first, the team ate, attended a light shoot-around and then had some down-time before we play. The game itself was a tough one, Roger Williams are a less talented team, but they play tough, hard-nosed basketball and are well coached, in the end we ground it out, not a pretty win but a wins a win. The thing that struck me most during the game, one of the senior forwards, Andre Makris, hit his 1,000th point during the game. He was being interviewed before the game about how it felt reaching such a prestigious total, his response summed up everything I’ve taken from the trip so far… “I mean it’s great but it doesn’t mean anything if we aren’t winning games as a team.” I wish more players back home understood that!

My third game in 5 days, it’s not usually this busy each week but January is the busiest period of the schedule, it’s interesting though that it comes whilst the school is still out on winter break as there are not that many students around on campus so the crowds are pretty sparce. The games have really allowed me to integrate into the team quickly and, I think, allowed for the staff to trust me so I’m starting to have more input with the staff and microcoaching the players some. The game itself was easily the best performance whilst I’ve been here, we got going early and didn’t look back running out winners 82–59, if we keep winning games then they won’t be able to let me come home!!!

Day 6 My first day off since I’ve been here and it feels like I’ve been here for at least 2 weeks rather than 6 days! I spent the day just chilling out and exploring campus, the campus here is beautiful, it sits right on the beach, and there are some fantastic new buildings mixed in with some from the 1700 and 1800’s. All of the players here do community service whilst they study and play, quite similar to community coaching, today there was a special Olympics festival/ tournament and all of the guys were on hand to help out. It was great to see them all giving back either coaching, refereeing and officiating and they were actually locked in and enjoying it rather than just being there for the sake of it. In the evening I actually managed to get off campus to grab some food with a few of the women’s team at a really great dessert spot. I’m really appreciative of both the men’s and women’s teams whilst I’ve been here because they’ve been great at making sure I have stuff to do, people to eat with etc and really made the small amounts of downtime I get worthwhile. Day 7

Day 4 My fourth day here was very much like my second, we’d played the night before so the players came in for a light shoot-around, they spent 30 minutes with the athletic trainer to get their bodies right and then we watched film for our game against Curry. As a staff we talked a lot about what we wanted to show the players, in the end Coach Bettencourt settled on just showing them tape of their own performance in our last game, whilst we won it we could have played so much better, rather than over loading the team with a scout on the opposition. Hopefully tomorrow against Curry that choice will be the right one. I stand by my previous comments about the players in studying film though, they are all eager to learn. I haven’t seen one instance where their eyes have wandered from either making eye contact with coach or being on the screen. As a coach, when speaking, you can’t ask for anything else other than a player’s attention and making eye contact is what affirms that.

Day 7 brought the first 8am practice since I’ve been here but it really wasn’t difficult to wake up at all to be there for 7.30. I’ve touched on it before but Coach B plays a similar style to us at Loughborough and suprisingly the practices are set up very similar, we started off with some short, sharp drills to get the guys locked in before we move on to some shooting drills and then a few breakdown drills, first on offense for 10 minutes and then on defense for around 30 minutes. As a coach that preaches defence first it’s great to see other coaches doing similar as I can relate, but I also picked up a lot. We then went into 5 v 5 play, Coach B is very similar again to Coach Jarram back at Loughborough, he wants to teach through playing and he’s allowed me to really work with the guys individually and pull them aside to get my point across. Tonight is the college football final so I’m planning on getting out and catching the game to try and live a little of the American lifestyle, not that I’m not already!

liam jefferson Day 8

Day 10

Back to an afternoon practice and I was grateful for a little bit of a lay in, the routine day-to-day has been pretty similar, I’d get into the office and we’d review game tape on our next opponent, this time Nicholls, the only undefeated team in our conference. After we reviewed film as a staff, we were on court with the team, the schedule here has been so hectic for the players we’ve almost gone one day on, one day off, today was a lighter practice. We got some shots up and walked through some of Nicholls offensive sets. I’ve built some pretty good relationships with some of the younger players on the team and they’re soaking up a lot of knowledge that I’m passing on, I think that given an opportunity I could definitely coach as an assitant and work at this level. It’s tough to find opportunities out here though, especially in Divison 3, of the 9 teams in the conference, 7 have full-time coaching positions and all of the assistant coaches are part-time, either working 20–25 hour weeks or working for 6 months of the year. I even got a chance to try Chipolte (I guess you could describe it as a mexican take away) in the evening, the food here is so much better than back home, I’m definitely going to miss that!

Game day vs. Nicholls, the only undefeated team in our conference. The day again starts with breakfast for the team followed by a team shoot-around and walk through of sets. The energy seemed pretty low at the shootaround but I wasn’t sure if that was more that the guys were nervous or too focused. From there it was straight to dinner for a good meal and then hop straight onto the bus with the women’s team to travel for around 2 hours to Nicholls. We played first which I think suited us because of the importance of the game, no one wants to be sat around thinking about the game too much. Unfortunately we started the game slowly and never recovered. Nicholls press from the get go and if you aren’t prepared it’s going to throw you off your game. We fought and clawed our way back into it after trailing by as many as 16 to trailing by 1 with 2:00 minutes left but just didn’t make plays in the crunch. That’s basketball. I think what Coach was most annoyed about is that this wasn’t the first time they’d lost a close one and you have to stop that from becoming a habit. The bus journey back was a long one, the women picked up a W to pull out of their slump so whilst I was pleased for them this one actually stung a little. For the first time since I’ve been here I felt completely comfortable coaching from the bench, supporting guys through the press and how to break it, how to guard specific players, I was emotionally involved now, I’ve definitely built a bond with this school and I hope I can come back.

Day 9 3 days of practice in a row, my first time getting a string of practices in. I’ve definitely picked up a lot of drills to take back home as well as some nuances of the game that I can add to the way we play, I’ve been lucky to come to a school that plays a similar fashion, I guess the downside of that is that I haven’t learnt a different style of basketball however I think the positives far out way the negatives. We we’re in and out pretty quick and watched some more film as a team on Nicholls. Nicholls actually press 2–2–1 back to a man, the same as we use back in Loughborough, so I was really able to dive into the coaching and support the staff but also help the players read specific situations and how to deal with them. Another evening also brought another meal out, really can’t complain about the food here!

Day 11 Friday was another very quick turn around for us as a group with a game coming up tomorrow (Saturday) vs. Western New England. By now, the routine had become second nature to me, a quick breakfast would be followed by a morning of scouting and watching film on the other team. I think I’ve learnt a lot just from having the time to watch game-tape whilst here. The pressures back home of a full-time job as well as coaching 20–30 hours a week often mean that I overlook film, one of the things I’m going

Endicott experience

often mean that I overlook film, one of the things I’m going to try to do more is start to watch more, whether that be my own games or Division 2/3 college games as I’ve found it is the easiest way to learn. We then had a very spirited practice, quite light but focused on the task at hand. In the evening I managed to get in Boston to watch the Celtics vs. Bulls, as a Bulls fan I was so excited to finally watch them play, it was an up and down game but the Bulls pulled through in the 4th showing why they’re a favourite for the title this year, I just don’t think some of the C’s fans appreciated how vocal I was getting as we pulled away with it though!!! Day 12 Day 12 was an very early leave for the women’s game as they tipped at 1pm. I had wondered whether road trips here would be different to back home, turns out they aren’t. They can be very long and boring, and a lot of the athletes here quite like to just sleep and listen to music. I’m not saying that’s right or wrong as everyone has different ways to get themselves mentally ready to compete, I guess I’m just quite old school in that I rather hear them getting caught up in conversation and starting to understand each other better on and off the court. We arrived pretty early so dropped the women’s team off and headed to a near by mall to let the guys stretch their legs and get a quick bite to eat, once we did that it was back to support the women and in to our game prep. I’ve not really spoken much about the routine on a game day but hoops is hoops, it’s very similar wherever you go in the world, I think the only difference here is the amount of time spent on a scout. Not just relaying it to the players

but them actually understanding it and executing it also. The game itself was a scrappy one, both teams had spurts and runs but once again the mental toughness of the guys here showed. I’ve never met a group as tough nosed in the face of adversity but I think at times they know that, they allow themselves to get into a couple of holes knowing they have the capability to get out of them. Later in the season that could hurt them but if they get it right… the rest of the conference better watch out. Day 13 An ‘off-day’ of sorts the team just had to come in for a light lift with John the athletic trainer and then had the court free to shoot. For me it was a welcome day to start to pack up my things before I got to chill out and watch some Football. Everybody here seems to be Patriots mad, I feel like once the Superbowl comes around I might have to back the Patriots by default, although for some reason I really want to see the Seahawks win! Day 14 I hadn’t quite expected my final day to hit me emotionally as much as it did, the day started off as normal and I still attended practice but for the first time since I’d been on campus I just sat back and observed, it was good because it allowed me to pick up on some things that I otherwise perhaps wouldn’t have, it also re-enforced to me, just how much I have learnt in my short time with Endicott. The hardest part of the entire trip however was saying goodbye to everyone, from the coaching staff, the players, the administration staff event to the receptionists in

Liam Jefferson

the building I was staying in, I made some pretty good friendships in my short time and knowing that I perhaps wouldn’t see some of these people again was really hard to come to turn with. By the time I got to the airport I was spent, I pretty much slept the entire flight back!

Thank you to Katie Manning, Nicole Catizone, Lauren Iadarola and Kelsey Cuddy for introducing me to possibly the best swiss roll ice cream sundae I will ever have, but also to all of the Women’s Basketball team for just being friendly faces whenever you saw me around campus.

The hardest part of the entire trip however was saying goodbye to everyone, from the coaching staff, the players, the administration staff event to the receptionists in the building I was staying in, I made some pretty good friendships in my short time and knowing that I perhaps wouldn’t see some of these people again was really hard to come to turn with. By the time I got to the airport I was spent, I pretty much slept the entire flight back!

In particular; Kneece, Tell, Light and Max for ensuring I wasn’t just sat in my room and watching Sports Centre all the time. Whether that was trips to the mall, Boston or just a challenge to play FIFA. Also to Dequan and Deven for taking me for my first ‘American’ hair cut!

Thank You’s So I’m back in the U.K now and I’m sitting here trying to comprehend the experience I have had over the last few weeks, it’s hard to put into words how much it has changed me as a person and given me the motivation and focus to chase what I thought was otherwise unobtainable. I set out for an experience in basketball that I hoped would help me to establish if this was something I wanted to persue full-time, what I got, however cliche you might think it sounds, was a life-changing experience. I can’t quite put into words how grateful I am to everyone that played a part in this experience but I’d like to try. Thank you to Deb Swanton, Dean of Sports Sciences and Fitness Studies at Endicott for initially making contact with the basketball staff for me and selling them on the idea that my presence would be a positive thing. Also for providing accommodation and catering for me during my stay. Thank you to Katie Donovan, for also championing my cause to the Director of Athletics at Endicott and supporting me through the whole process. Thank you to Brian Whylie, Director of Athletics, for signing off on my visit and understanding the positive effect it would have. Thank you to every single member of Endicott staff I came into contact with, for just being genuine and welcoming throughout my whole trip. In particular one of my closest friends, Jameel Moore, for going above and beyond to make sure I enjoyed my trip.

And finally, a huge thank you to Coach Bettencourt for allowing an unknown young English coach the opportunity to become part of your staff and to be embraced as part of the team. As well as Coach Habermehl and Coach Richards for all the support and guidance throughout my trip. I hope to see you all soon!

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Krossover technology is utilized by teams, individual athletes, parents, recruiters, scouts and more. Customers upload game film to Krossover.com and within 12-48 hours, receive a full game breakdown. Every play of the game becomes it’s own video clip, tagged with play & player information. In addition, every game comes with statistics ranging from basic box scores to advanced analytics. As a customer, you’ll receive a passwordprotected account on Krossover.com, with the flexibility to add or remove an unlimited amount of users.

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Krossover’s basketball product is used by over 2,000 basketball teams worldwide, including NBA, NCAA and international organizations as well as the Leicester Riders! Krossover volleyball, football and lacrosse technology offers the same relevant capabilities in the respective sports. We are a rapidly expanding service saving users time and money. To receive more information about how you or your team can access Krossover, or to schedule a FREE online demonstration, please contact us at: +1-888-339-5395 OR EMAIL SALES@KROSSOVER.COM LOOK FOR OUR AD ON THE RIDER’S HOMEPAGE: WWW.LEICESTERRIDERS.CO.UK

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HC GBR.

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A S S I S TA N T C o a c h

THE RIDERS WOMEN 34

SEASON 2014/15

WBBL Roster

4 GBR. Guard 1.70m

8 GBR. Guard 1.76M

13 GBR. CENTRE 1.91M

GEORGIA

03/04/1990

gbr. Guard 1.60m

Georgia

08/09/1995

GBR. guard 1.68M

eleanor

27/11/1997

gbr. Forward 1.88M

JONES

elliott-king

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24 GBR. Forward 1.89M

ROBYN

12/01/1995

gbr. forward 1.86M

heidi

06/06/1996

GBR. Guard (C) 1.70M

rebecca

06/03/1997

est. Forward 1.86M

anna

kastine

22/04/1995

USA GUARD 1.75M

06/06/1992

LEWIS

tranter

tay l o r

forsy th

JESS

N ATA L I E

27/04/1997

GBR. Guard 1.69M

09/06/1986

rheanne

maaja

14/01/1992

EST. Centre 1.90

16/06/1992

maia

ellie

16/06/1992

GBR. Guard 1.75M

27/01/1996

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THE STUDENT RIDERS 38

SEASON 2014/15

Student Riders Roster

Dean GBR. forward

w il l

wanliss

gbr. Guard (C)

21/01/1989

GBR. guard

11/10/1995

GBR. Guard

06/09/1994

14/07/1994

broughton 03/09/1994

13/11/1992

pakadashe

lane

GBR. Guard

13/02/1994

max GBR. Forward

richardson 21/04/1995

27/08/1994

webster

sam GBR. Guard

nicholls

barry GBR. Forward

28/07/1991

moyo

sam GBR. Centre

GBR. Guard

03/08/1992

okoro

kevin

angelakos

jordan

haggith

je r e l l e

mcswiggan

alexandros GBR. Guard

gbr. guard (C)

19/07/1993

josh

GBR. Guard

reiss

m ay n a r d

chingombe 02/01/1995

cuba GBR. Forward

gooden 04/04/1996

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AC GBR.

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CHARNWOOD COLLEGE RIDERS SEASON 2014/15

6 GBR. guard

andre

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CHarnwooD Roster

4 GBR. Guard

8 GBR. Guard

12 GBR. guard

9 GBR. centre

Emanuel

Burton

josh

mcswiggan

tom

yome

sol

clarke

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9 GBR. guard

13 gbr. forward

14 gbr. GUARD

Niall

W il l i a m s

b il l y

fox

saul

dendie

jamall

b r o w n b il l

6 gbr. guard

10 GBR. Guard

6 gbr. guard

15 GBR. Forward

N i ck

Fava

n ya m o r e

Harry

T ay l o r

henri

langton

7 GBR. Guard

11 gbr. forward

10 GBR. forward

11 gbr GUARD

Dan

callan

d av i d

i s s e k ya

hafeez

abdul

tim

fava 43

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E-mail: info@moltensports.co.uk 44

Web: www.moltensports.co.uk

Official Ball

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SHAWN KNIGHT

BEHIND THE GAME As a recently-employed intern for the Leicester Riders Basketball Club, I’m new to the game and new to the team. So I had no idea what to expect for my first match day, Leicester Riders versus Leeds Force, and thought I’d take this chance to tell you what goes on behind the scenes.

lot to be done. We hung the clothes on racks and benches, inflated all the basketballs and covered the tables with displays of match programmes, posters, fixtures and calendars. It took hours of preparation to make it ready for the spectators who poured through the doors the moment they opened.

But I don’t mean with the players. I mean with the club members who work throughout the day to create the perfect night.

At the start of the day, I thought I’d get to watch the match like any other spectator. That fantasy was soon shot down. Instead I could only catch snippets of the game from the corner as, even with no experience selling to customers, I was put to work on distributing those programmes and posters throughout the night. After a fumbling start, I soon got into the routine of money and merchandise exchanging hands. By the end of it I’m sure I sounded like a regular salesman.

The job starts over five hours before the match. Piles of merchandise sat in the office, ready to be taken to the Sir David Wallace Arena. We hauled the foam fingers, sport kits, basketballs, books, leaflets, posters, food and drink into the van and drove down to the venue. Luckily enough, there was already a game that day and enough volunteers to have the basketball court set up earlier and faster. Usually we would have to bring out the bleachers, tape down the game floor, fit together the carpet like a jigsaw puzzle and surround the court in advertising boards.

And in between that, I was given jobs to carry in birthday cakes, pass out free posters, sign up entrants for the Half-Court Shot competition and lug around the prize television to and from the court.

Instead we only had put all that away after the game.

But the plays, the chanting and the cheers of the night still created an incredible experience that made me glad to be there for the Riders’ victory.

This isn’t a job any of us are paid to do but it needs to be done, and everyone chips in on match days to pull it all together.

So I hope you can better appreciate the hard work that goes into these matches. Everyone in Leicester Riders plays their part in making a great game.

We unloaded the merchandise and set up our workspace for the game ahead; even without the court there was a

Keep up all the support and have fun tonight.

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WBBL FIXTURES

FIXTURES

VENUE

DATE

COMPETITION

Riders 56 v 47 Brixton Topcats

Home

Oct 11th 2014, 16:30

WBBL Championship

Riders 86 v 40 Leeds Force

Away

Oct 17th 2014, 17:30

WBBL Championship

Riders 63 v 51 Barking Abbey

Home

Oct 18th 2014, 16:30

WBBL Championship

Riders 59 v 69 Oaklands

Home

Oct 26th 2014, 13:00

BE National Cup

Riders 59 v 67 Wildcats

Away

Nov 1st 2014, 16:30

WBBL Championship

Riders 65 v 66 Archers

Away

Nov 8th 2014, 16:00

WBBL Championship

Riders 73 v 85 Hatters

Away

Nov 15th 2014, 16:30

WBBL Championship

Riders 69 v 62 Mystics

Home

Nov 16th 2014, 15.30

WBBL Championship

Riders 81 v 63 Archers

Away

Nov 29th 2014, 16:30

WBBL Trophy

Riders 80 v 59 Suns

Away

Dec 3rd 2014, TBC

WBBL Championship

Riders 51 vs 86 Northumbria

Home

Dec 7th 2014, 16:30

WBBL Championship

Riders 77 vs 87 Hatters

Home

Jan 2nd 2015, TBC

WBBL Trophy SF

Riders 81 v 53 Mystics

Away

Jan 2nd 2015, TBC

Betty Codona Classic

Riders 60 vs 84 Hatters

Away

Jan 3rd 2015, TBC

Betty Codona Classic

Riders 103 vs 32 Leeds Beckett

Home

Jan 17th 2015, 16:30

WBBL Championship

Riders vs Manchester Mystics

Away

Jan 31th 2015, 16:30

WBBL Championship

Riders vs Sheffield Hatters

Home

Feb 7th 2015, 16:30

WBBL Championship

Riders vs Sevenoaks Suns

Away

Feb 14th 2015, 16:00

WBBL Championship

Riders vs Team Northumbria

Away

Feb 20th 2015, 16:00

WBBL Championship

Riders vs Nottingham Wildcats 50

Home

Feb 28th 2015, 16:30

WBBL Championship

WBBL FIXTURES

Riders vs Barking Abbey

Away

Mar 8th 2014, 16:30

WBBL Championship

Riders vs Cardiff Archers

Home

Mar 21st 2014, 16:30

WBBL Championship

Riders vs Brixton Topcats

Away

Mar 29th 2014, 14:00

WBBL Championship

BBL FIXTURES

FIXTURES

VENUE

DATE

COMPETITION

Riders 65 v 73 Rio Natura

Home

Sept 19th 2014, 19:30

Preseason

Riders 105 v 95 Okapi Aalstar

Home

Sept 21st 2014, 16:00

Preseason

Riders 104 v 82 Giants

Home

Sept 27th 2014, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders 59 v 65 Phoenix

Away

Sept 28th 2014, 17:30

BBL Championship

Riders 98 v 80 Surrey United

Home

Oct 11th 2014, 19:30

BBL Cup

Riders 99 v 91 Raiders

Away

Oct 12th 2014, 16:00

BBL Championship

Riders 88 v 87 Phoenix

Home

Oct 18th 2014, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders 80 v 71 Rocks

Away

Sept 19th 2014, 17:00

BBL Championship

Riders 83 v 54 Flyers

Home

Oct 26th 2014, 18:00

BBL Championship

Riders 71 v 62 Leeds Force

Home

Nov 9th 2014, 18:00

BBL Championship

Riders 81 v 78 Glasgow Rocks

Away

Nov 16th 2014, 16:00

BBL Championship

Riders 84 v 85 Glasgow Rocks

Home

Nov 23rd 2014, 16:00

BBL Cup

Riders 102 v 87 Surrey United

Home

Nov 29th 2014, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders 75 v 89 London Lions

Away

Nov 30th 2014, 17:00

BBL Championship

Riders 93 v 82 Glasgow Rocks

Home

Dec 6th 2014, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders 85 v 56 Surrey United

Away

Dec 19th 2014, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders 82 v 86 Wolves

Home

Dec 23rd 2014, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders 74 v 54 Leeds Force

Home

Jan 3rd 2015, 19:45

BBL Championship

Riders 91 v 76 London Lions

Away

Jan 4th 2015, 16:00

BBL Championship

Riders 82 v 59 Bristol Flyers 52

Away

Jan 10th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

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Riders 89 v 86 Sharks (OT)

Away

Jan 16th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders 81 v 51 Leeds Force

Home

Jan 17th 2015, 19:30

BBL Trophy

Riders 85 v 46 Wildcats

Home

Jan 24th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders 80 v 69 Giants

Away

Jan 25th 2015, 18:00

BBL Championship

Riders v Worcester Wolves

Home

Jan 31st 2015, 19:30

BBL Trophy

Riders v Newcastle Eagles

Away

Feb 6th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders v Sheffield Sharks

Home

Feb 7th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders v Newcastle Eagles

Home

Feb 14th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders v Surrey United

Away

Feb 15th 2015, 15:00

BBL Championship

Riders v Leeds Force

Away

Feb 20th 2015, 16:00

BBL Championship

Riders v Durham Wildcats

Home

Feb 21st 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders v London Lions

Home

Mar 1st 2015, 18:00

BBL Championship

Riders v Bristol Flyers

Home

Mar 13th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders v Worcester Wolves

Home

Mar 21st 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders v Manchester Giants

Away

Mar 22nd 2015, 18:00

BBL Championship

Riders v Plymouth Raiders

Home

Mar 28th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders v Cheshire Phoenix

Home

Apr 4th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders v Durham Wildcats

Away

Apr 5th 2015, 16:00

BBL Championship

Riders v Plymouth Raiders

Home

Apr 8th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders v Worcester Wolves

Away

Apr 17th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship

Riders vs Newcastle Eagles

Home

Apr 18th 2015, 19:30

BBL Championship 53

WBBL Preview

NEXT HOME GAME

SHEFFIELD HATTERS The Riders Women open up February by hosting the first of a Leicester v Sheffield double header next Saturday at Sir David Wallace. The City of Sheffield Hatters are easily the most successful club in the Women’s game having won 16 of the last 20 National Championships and two of the three trophies available so far this season. One of those non championship years came last year after the Riders surprised many by edging out the Hatters in a close 68-63 final last April. Matt Haber’s side having lost the first four games between the two sides last season won the last two last season including the Championship game and this year’s series has started in similar fashion as the sides play their last game against each other before the playoffs. Sheffield have won all three matchups between the sides this season with all three coming by double digits including a ten point Trophy Semi Final win in Loughborough just before Christmas.

Led by GB Women’s assistant coach Vanessa Ellis and the British playing trio of Lauren Thomas-Johnson, Helen Naylor and Stef Gandy Sheffield will look too improve on their 10-1 league record heading into the game. The only league loss came on the second weekend of the season as a pair of late free throws saw Nottingham Wildcats prevail with a 77-76 home victory. Riders Centre Maaja Bratka has proved unstoppable against the Hatters this season averaging over 26 points and 10 rebounds a game whilst shooting 66% however the Riders will need to focus on reducing Sheffield’s 85 points and 28 free throw attempts per game if they are to inflict a loss on the WBBL Trophy Winners. The WBBL match up begins at 4.30pm on Saturday 7th February and is free to watch for all spectators with a Riders BBL ticket otherwise is £3 for Adults and £1 for children and student.

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NEXT HOME GAME

SHEFFIELD SHARKS After a dramatic overtime victory a fortnight ago the Leicester Riders will once again face Sheffield as the Sharks make the Short trip to Sir David Wallace looking to continue a recent resurgence that includes narrow losses against two of the top three sides and a win over fourth placed Cheshire. The Sharks will start an important back to back which sees London visit next Sunday whilst the Riders will be fresh off the back of their one and only visit to Sports Central. After three one possession losses at Newcastle last year, the Riders will head there knowing a win would draw the team’s level on three league defeats providing the Eagles don’t lose either of this week’s games including a trip tomorrow to Sheffield. For the Sharks new signing Mike Cook returns to the club five years after winning the league MVP where he

averaged 26.3 points per game. Cook joins the dynamic Nick Lewis and BJ Holmes in the Sharks side giving Coach Atiba Lyons’ side a potentially explosive line-up which also features veterans Mike Tuck, John Barber and Olu Babalola. Two weeks ago after exploding out of the gates with a 10-0 run the Riders established a 22 point lead after just over fifteen minutes however an 11-0 run led by young brit Zack Gachette and skipper Mike Tuck gave the Sharks hope heading into halftime down 14. As the lead stabilised in the second half a huge 15-2 ran capped by a Nick Lewis 3 gave the Sharks a 6 point lead. However the Riders inside dominance led by 33 points and 11 rebounds from Rashad Hassan aided by a 21 points, 13 rebound 6 assist night from Tyler Bernardini saw them over the line with the help of an extra five minutes.

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