James Murphy
MOUNT Gambier Pioneers’ fans will have their first glimpse at the 2023 rosters at the Millicent 4 Team Challenge this weekend.
The women’s team is again under the tutelage of head coach Matt Sutton, while there are a few fresh faces in the playing roster.
Incoming players have arrived in the Blue Lake City over the last week, which include returning imports and fan favourites Haliegh Reinoehl and Cassandra Brown.
They will be in action over the Pioneers’ two games on Saturday and Sunday, with a string of new recruits also eager to make an impression ahead of the NBL1 South season launch next month.
Training sessions as a full group have been limited at this stage, so this weekend will provide a vital chance for some extra court time.
“We have only had Imogen (Rock), Isabella (Brancatisano) and Haliegh arrive this week,” Sutton said.
“They have only had a couple of trainings and then Cassandra arrived on Wednesday.”
As such Sutton does not expect anything special from his team, with the focus on gelling as a group.
“We certainly won’t be too sharp, but it is a really good chance to get on court and Millicent do a really good job of hosting the event,“ he said.
“It is a good chance for us to develop going into the season.”
Sutton is pleased with the team and with plenty of focus on the youngsters over the off-season, the foundations of the club appear strong.
“Some of the young girls are really progressing and committing to their basketball, which is good,” he said.
“We have been training since the season finished last year with our young core.”
As far as what to expect on court, much will be revealed over the coming days.
“The new girls will bring a lot of defensive intensity and pressure,” Sutton said.
“Although as a group we are expecting a lot of mistakes and a lot of learning opportunities.”
There will be three key absences on the weekend, as returning player Sherrie Calleia, Miela Goodchild and Zitina Aokuso remain tied up by WNBL commitments.
However, Sutton hoped for a couple of good hitouts, with matches against Norwood and Woodville on Saturday and Sunday respectively.
“It will be a good test for us,” he said.
“We hope we can have some positive results, but it has a lot more to do with us gelling as a team and learning our style of play.”
