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Thunder and Lightning, BA very frightening
TweetIT’S probably just a coincidence Basketball Australia chair Scott Derwin was right in the thick of it when Gold Coast Blaze was ejected from the NBL under the national federation’s watch.
And it’s probably no different now with Logan Thunder wrapped up and rolled down the aisle toward WNBL extinction that Derwin is in the chair when this goes down.
The “ExDerwinator” doesn’t bring much to the table when it comes to maintaining clubs at elite level.
It’s a bit like a scene out of Jerry Maguire any time a club is in jeopardy but tries to battle on regardless. Just when they think they might get there, it’s all “Show Me The Money”.
Now I know it was BA, in particular Kristina Keneally – remember her? – and Chuck Harmison who rushed to Logan’s aid when the club found itself on the threshold of disaster just weeks ahead of the 2013-14 WNBL season.
The Thunder were saved and the opportunity there for the club to try and rebuild faith and support.
Thunder coach Jason Chainey gave up that role to focus on coordinating efforts to keep the club afloat, and with it, a presence for elite level basketball in south-east Queensland.
(You know, the region that no longer has a Brisbane Bullets or a Gold Coast Blaze and which long ago lost the Brisbane Blazers.)
Chainey was confident of success but emailed others in the working party of his late dismay at BA.
“We as a working committee were very confident of our submission and thought that with over half of our sponsorship secured and a very clear strategy of community engagement that we were actually in a better position then some other teams in the league,” he wrote.
“However BA made our licence subject to some further criteria in a short space of time and after an email from Scott Derwin on the weekend we made the decision that we were unable to successfully get this over the line in the allotted time that was required.”
So there you go. At a time when we should be doing everything possible to keep our clubs going and trusting the people working their butts off to make it so, again we stain the image of our sport in the mainstream world by effectively kicking a club to the kerb.
Sure, argue away that there has been some carnage in south-east Queensland considering the clubs which have “failed” and so maybe BA was correct in cutting its losses.
Really?
We know Brisbane Bullets’ demise had as much to do with the demise of the empire of owner Eddy Groves.
The Blaze could have continued – and most likely would have - had a basketball person such as a Larry Sengstock still been at the helm of BA.
Larry may have made his enemies along the journey but a major concern for him was always maintaining basketball’s reputation in the wider community.
Remember a year ago, BA was playing silly buggers as Townsville Crocodiles’ former ownership acted responsibly in wanting to return their NBL licence.
Then the Exderwinator and Co. went the other way, quoting bylaws and treating owner George Colbran – one of the NBL’s greatest and longest-serving promoters and supporters – like some outcast.
Again, had the NBL not demerged, the Crocodiles most likely would not be around today to battle on and work at reviving interest in their Townsville community.
“BA isn’t a bank,” I recall CEO Keneally saying at the time.
No, of course, though the NBL clubs saved $100,000 each in not having to pay BA their “participation fee” – or $800,000 in the “not-a-bank-BA”.
When you look at the money wasted by our national federation, you just shake your head as another club bites the dust.
Exderwinate! Exderwinate! Sounds like a Dr Who episode featuring the Daleks.
Clubs set up the NBL.
Clubs set up the WNBL.
For that matter, clubs set up the SEABL.
BA is awful at running such competitions. It’s only about the bottom line and not about competition.
Clubs are running the NBL again and didn’t that go a lot better this season?
The WNBL wasn’t even worthy enough of an awards dinner!
And people wonder why Adelaide Lightning owner Vince Marino has no faith in BA and was ready to pull his club?
Yet the SEABL is shuffling back to the table, seeking BA guidance and management for its future.
Yeah. Crazy.
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