By Trevor Jackson
THE 2023 NBL1 South season will herald a new beginning for the Mount Gambier Pioneers men.
The side has not seen the amount of change since coach Richard Hill’s second season at the helm when he made enough changes to set the side on an impressive run of success.
Remaining from last year are Nick Marshall and Kane deWit, apart from young development players.
That means almost a completely new roster, with the task almost complete.
“We haven’t got much left from last year and it is still a work in progress,” Hill said.
“There has been a lot of work go in to get it sorted and we are still looking for that final piece piece of the puzzle.
“:That last piece has been hard.”
Hill said he is looking at another import player to complete the roster, with players from around the country heading to the Blue Lake City this year.
“We have them coming from all over the place to fill the roster,” he said.
“We have a lad from Canberra, one from Perth, one from Melbourne and an import, so we have been pretty busy.”
It has been a challenge to fill the holes left from players who began what was an outstanding period for the club.
“The last time we had so many changes was probably my second year as coach,” Hill said.
“We had five outstanding years, where we made the national final five years in a row.
“We added and subtracted along the way, but we were lucky in that period where we consolidated our group year in and year out with about five or six guys who didn’t change much.
“We had a lot of success doing that, but this is a massive turnover of players for us.”
Having to replace players such as Michael Harris, who has gone on to enjoy success at NBL level, or Tom Daly who was such a strong presence on the floor for the Pioneers for such a long time, is certainly a tough task.
It is also a big change for Hill, who had previously signed players he knew.
“We are not bringing in guys who are proven high-level players,” he said.
“In the past I brought in guys I knew personally from Adelaide, but I think these guys can all be pretty good.
“Jacob Lampkin I think will be very good, I know exactly what he can do.
“I think the combinations of players coming in can fill the gaps.”
Another major factor for Hill over the years has been to find players who fit in with the Pioneers culture.
That includes not just on the floor, but in the community as well.
Hill is confident this group would again slot right in.
“They are all good people,” he said.
“They are all good basketballers and the oldest guy\ will be 27.
“That is exciting for me, but it comes with an element of ‘how good are we going to be?’”
That question remains to be answered, but will be on display soon enough.
Training sessions have begun in earnest and Hill expects everyone in town a month out from the start date of the season.
Pre-season will include the annual Millicent tournament, with an impressive roster signed up for the women.
The team will move into the new courts at the Wulanda Centre and fans can certainly expect some entertainment as the two rosters begin to gel.
“The supporters will see a new gym and a lot of new players,” Hill said.
“The girls are looking very good … Suttsy has done a tremendous job with his roster.
“They should be right there and that on its own will be great for the club.
“Of course I want us to be up there as well, so hopefully we can win some games and our supporters can get excited about the new players.”
