Basketball New Zealand

Christchurch Sirens

Basketball New Zealand will not field a franchise in the 2010/11 Australian WNBL, but has not given up on the concept that foundered when the Christchurch Sirens withdrew from the league last year.

“This remains an important part of our women’s pathway, but despite the hard work from many in the extended basketball community, we have been unable to finalise a model that would be sustainable,” says BBNZ president John Gallaher.

The Sirens completed their inaugural 2007/08 season with a 9-15 record, including 9-2 at Cowles Stadium and wins over every team in the league except eventual champions Adelaide.

The franchise offered a consistently high level of competition and training to a core of the 2008 Tall Ferns Olympic squad, and a programme for young players to aspire to as they left junior ranks. It undoubtedly helped the Ferns to their first ever victory over world champions Australia at the Good Luck Beijing Olympic test event.

But the organisation was unable to continue when it could not find sufficient commercial support necessary to keep the team in Christchurch and another home could not be found in time to participate in a second season.

The most recent proposal would have been based at North Harbour, home of reigning national women’s champions the Harbour Breeze and the Burger King NZ Breakers franchise contesting the Australian men’s league.

But the Sirens experience has made Basketball New Zealand doubly cautious about committing to the project without strong financial backing.

“We have had great support from Basketball Australia, which is still keen to see an NZ-based team in its competition,” says Gallaher.

“But if we are going to do this, we want to proceed with a strong product, so we will continue to explore our options with the intention of entering the 2011/12 league.”

The new WNBL started two weeks ago with eight Kiwis scattered among the 10 rosters – Angela Marino and Lisa Wallbutton at the Adelaide Lightning, Natalie Purcell and Suzie Bates with the Logan Thunder, Toni Edmondson at the Dandenong Rangers, Lisa Pardon with the Bulleen Boomers, Aneka Davis (nee Kerr) with the Townsville Fire and Jess McCormack at the champion Canberra Capitals.

For the first time, Basketball Australia has opened the door for more Kiwi women to play in the league as non-imports and the two national federations will work on other competitive opportunities to help foster the NZ women’s programme until a full franchise becomes a reality.