3rd Quarter Report 2007
SOLOMON ISLAND BASKETBALL FEDERATION
P O Box 181, Honiara Solomon Islands TELEPHONE: (677) 24116 FAX: (677) 25686. Email: 3xq@solomon.com.sb Lawrence Quan (Patron), hatigevf@anz.com Freda Matangi (President) kilokogolden@hotmail.com (NBDO)
3RD QUARTER REPORT
JULY, AUGUST, SEPTEMBER 2007
1. Introduction
Despite of all the challenges basketball Solomon will continue to roll in terms of its development program in conducting various technical courses, promoting and developing basketball program in the country, and foremost conducting of basketball competitions to increase the number of people playing basketball in all ages.
The recent Pacific Games basketball competition had also create an opportunity for our men and women teams to expose to a different level of competition, and it has also set another milestone for Solomon Island Basketball Federation on its international exposure.
The Solomon Island Basketball would like to sincerely thanks the National Olympic Committee of Solomon Islands and FIBA Oceania office and for the many volunteers who had help one way for another successful basketball development quarter and look forward for similar assistance in the near future for the better man of basketball not only the country but within the region.
2. HBL Competition
One of the main focused of the Transworld Basketball Committee this year was to revamp the administrative and technical support for basketball in Honiara, and also in the country. The competition was kicked off in early April with the launching at the multi purpose hall and was attended by the FIBA Zone development officer Mr. Jon Hoyle.
The competition was made of eight (8) male teams and eight (8) female teams. The TCBC had completed its competition in early August 2007 with four (4) male teams and four (4) female teams went thru the top four knock stages, and the best two teams from mens and womens category Minto Blazers (M) and Sunrise (W) were came out winners of the 2007 Transworld Basketball competition.
The Presentation of prizes will held in two weeks time which will also coincide with a proposed appreciation function will be hosted by the Solomon Island Basketball Federation for the Mens and Womens team for their great performances at the recent Pacific Games in Samoa.
3. Schools Competition
One of the many obstacles for the development of basketball in the country is facilities, and that was one of the main reasons that delayed our school basketball program. The school basketball competition was meant to kicked off its competition after election of its committee in April but was not possible coz of availability of courts, the only court that we used to have access to (Multi purpose) was heavily used by other sports during their preparation for the recent Pacific Games in Samoa.
Any way, the school committee which comprises of teachers is still tack together and the interest of the schools kids is still alive. Now that the multi purpose hall is now free, the committee had agreed to kick off the school competition in two weeks time.
4. SPG Report
SQUAD SELECTION
The initial planning for the selection of the National Basketball Squad was completed in June 2006. This was done before the Solomon Games held in Makita province, to enable the Federation to make the most of every opportunity to assess potential representatives of Solomon Islands at the South Pacific Games.
The format for selection was taken very seriously by all members of the federation and coaching staff. This process included the observation of player performance in the Solomon Games Basketball Tournament, the Honiara Basketball League (HBL) and the SIBF U/20 competition. These competitions spanned from June 2006 to November 2006 giving a total of 5 months. Throughout this time player evaluation sheets were completed on each player in the HBL to provide a fair assessment and selection process for all possible basketball players. Consideration was also given to achievements of international basketball players in the USA, Fiji and New Zealand to be included in the squad.
The initial squad of 25 players was announced in November 2006, and the first training date of 8th January 2007 was announced to allow the athlete's time to prepare for the training program, and also to start preparations for the South Pacific Games a total of 8 months before the opening.
In March 2007 both the Men's and Women's National Basketball Squads were reduced to a total 16 athletes, which included international players Wage Trukese (USA), Anthony Prince (NZ), Gavin Bare (Fiji), Trevor Katie's (Fiji) and Lisa Wine (Fiji).
From that time the squads continued to train until the final selection which was announced 3 weeks prior to the team's departure for the South Pacific Games. This thorough selection process has proved to be successful in selecting athletes to represent the country that have the right attitude, skills, fitness, commitment and work ethic.
PREPARATION
Preparation for the Men's and Women's Basketball Squads commenced on 8th January 2007. The squads started training twice a week which grew to as much as 5 times a week as the training progressed. Trainings were usually held at the Multi-purpose hall, but outdoor courts were also used as trainings increased and the Multi-purpose hall was not available.
As apart of our SPG preparation a tour to Brisbane, Australia was organized. This was to assist with the development of the team and the final selection of the team. The tour included regular training sessions, 6 Men's matches and 7 Women's matches with Senior State League team in and around Coffs Harbor, the home of FIBA Oceania.
The Squad's were boosted with the help of two FIBA Oceania Zone Development officers who visited for a period of 10 days each during 2007. Jon Hoyle and Eddie Calic were of great benefit to the training of the National Teams, including players, coaches and referees.
Fitness testing in the months prior to the games was very beneficial. NOCSI administration must be commended for initiating such a strategy which no doubt benefited all sports that attended the games. The results of basketball athletes improved as the testing continued which was a satisfying reward for those athletes that had trained hard.
TEAM LIST
|
MEN |
WOMEN |
|
Davidson Toliliu |
Joycelyn Basia |
|
Augustine Basia |
Miriam Basia |
|
Juinor Gwali |
Mary Daffie |
|
Moses Kivo |
Jessie Konofilia |
|
Scaden Tesua |
Wendy Nasala |
|
Waige Turueke |
Delmah Peseika |
|
Alexander McFadden |
Evalyn Pongi |
|
Leon Hatigeva |
Natala Pongi |
|
Goldie Kari |
Wendy Soaki |
|
Timothy Goulol |
Lysa Wini |
|
Allen Wanefai |
Eric Matangi (Coach) |
|
Moses Au |
Freda Matangi (Asst. Coach) |
|
Ryan Burns (Coach) |
Everlyn Pongi (Manager) |
|
Randy Hatigeva (Manager) |
|
MENS RESULTS
POOL MATCHES
|
7:30 PM |
91 |
|
def. |
|
48 |
|
5:15 PM |
56 |
|
def. by |
|
90 |
|
12:45 PM |
51 |
|
def. by |
|
54 |
|
5:15 PM |
53 |
|
def. by |
|
83 |
MEDAL ROUND
|
12:45 PM |
61 |
|
def. |
|
56 |
|
7:30 PM |
54 |
|
def. by |
|
91 |
|
7:30 PM |
70 |
|
def. |
|
40 |
WOMENS RESULTS
|
3:00 PM |
93 |
|
def. |
|
38 |
|
7:30 PM |
79 |
|
def. |
|
52 |
|
3:00 PM |
51 |
|
def. by |
|
88 |
|
3:00 PM |
45 |
|
def. by |
|
101 |
|
3:00 PM |
73 |
|
def. |
|
59 |
|
12:45 PM |
56 |
|
def. by |
|
63 |
FINAL STANDINGS
Men's Competition: Women's Competition:
1st - Fiji 1st - Fiji
2nd - Guam 2nd - American Samoa
3rd - Samoa 3rd - Papua New Guinea
4th - New Caledonia 4th - Tahiti
5th - Solomon Islands 5th - Samoa
6th - American Samoa 6th - New Caledonia
7th - Tahiti 7th - Solomon Island
8th - Cook Islands
9th - Palau
PERFORMANCE
The Men's Basketball Team achieved its highest placing ever in any international competition. With a 5th place finish the Solomon Islands Men's Basketball Team have announced their arrival as a contender in Oceania Basketball. Although the team did not achieve its objective of winning a medal, they defeated Tahiti for the first time, defeated Cook Islands, defeated American Samoa for the first time and finished well above Palau in the final standings. Given that this was the strongest SPG Basketball Tournament in history, the majority of countries was surprised with the results of Solomon Islands and took the time to congratulate them on their improvement, ability and results.
With countries such as Samoa having up to 4 professional basketball players in their team from Europe, USA and New Zealand and a number of USA College players, the pressure was on us. The players on these teams were considered questionable to their eligibility as it was doubtful that they would have met the 5 year residency criteria set out by the SPG charter. Unfortunately no challenges were lodged within the required period so these players were free to play.
Given that the Men's team was at one stage in a position to defeat New Caledonia, and the questionable team of Samoa, were are up there with the best countries in the pacific and it shows that the Solomon Islands Basketball Federation is on the right track with a medal a realistic achievement at the next South Pacific Games.
The Women's team placed in 7th position. All of the players did their very best, however injuries to six of the ten athletes throughout the tournament made the job difficult. Despite this and the adjustment the team made to the high standard equipment at the venue they improved every match. The team improved so much that they only narrowly lost to Papua New Guinea who were the eventual 3rd place winners.
Many of the other countries noted of how much Solomon Islands women have improved and congratulated them. Comments were also made by the Tournament Director Judy Smith that it was the best Solomon Islands Women's Basketball Team that they had ever seen.
RECOMMENDATIONS
- The basketball teams need access to suitable training facility. The Multi-purpose Hall is not of the standard of which international competition is played. Further equipment is required to be put in place, such as 24 second shot clock, glass back boards and a firm and well polished and maintained floor.
- Access to the basketball court is required on a daily basis, with the use of the full court. It is important that athletes are given the opportunity to improve their skills such as shooting on a daily basis.
- Outdoor basketball courts should be erected to allow athletes to train individually. Although these courts are not suitable for intense training of national teams, they can be beneficial for individual training sessions, junior competitions for future national representatives and to give opportunities for all to participate and thus invest in the future of the sport.
4. Further improvement of local competitions will assist the development of the skills of all involvedbasketball players. With the support from NOCSI the objective is to develop a local competition of the standard of the South Pacific Games in terms of administration, intensity, sportsmanship, fundamental skill level and coaching ability. Rather than focusing on just the few players that are selected in the national team, it is important to develop a competitive culture and a strong competition that encourages athletes to develop their own skills to perform at their best and thus assist Solomon Islands to perform at its best.
- Continued fitness testing in the future. However this testing should be better structured, communicated and organized to take as little time as possible for athletes to complete. The focus of this testing should also be to encouraged as an opportunity for athletes to improve their fitness level, rather than a focus of athletes or sports not achieving specific targets.
- A running of a Team Managers workshop in Honiara some months before the games so that Team Managers from all sports can be trained with the relevant skills. This would include the development of weekly and daily schedules, pre-competition preparation, post-competition activities, information regarding the importance of hydration and nutrition (eg. how much water athletes should drink, what type of foods to eat, how long before competition an athlete should eat etc.), transportation logistics, keeping team equipment secure, development of basic team rules and team discipline.
- Basketball players must gain more international experience through international tournaments and tours. It is only through playing stronger opponents from other countries that will enable the athletes to improve.
Thank you for the support that has enabled us to achieve these fantastic results.
5. ZDO Tour
Eddie `Calic was in the country in August 2007 as part of the FIBA Oceania development program to Solomon Islands. It was his first visit to Solomon Island since taking up the job some few years back. It was a great opportunity to have him especially grasping his knowledge of basketball while here which was really assisting us in some of the areas that needs to improves in the development of basketball in the country. Eddie had worked tirelessly with our Mens & Womens teams on their preparation to the recent Pacific Games in Samoa, conducting of school kids basic fundamental skills which shown great interest of kids of more than eighty (80) attending the one week basketball program, having several meetings with SIBF on the future of basketball and also strengthening and having a vibrant federation, and also inspecting all the existing and available basketball facilities in and around Honiara. He was also assisting our three (3) senior referees who had officiated at the recent SPG on the 3 man referees concept. I must say that it was a successful tour program and would like to thanks Eddie for the basketball knowledge that he passed on with us (SIBF) and also FIBA Oceania for making the trip possible and looking forward for similar assistance in the futures.
6. AHC Funding
The Solomon Island Basketball Federation had met and finalized the womens basketball program which was funded by the Australian High Commission. The program was set to kick off on 14th to 19th October 2007, it will kick off with a workshop on nutrition &health and also on issues which relate to womens, and later on the week will concentrate on the technical aspect basketball interms of conducting of basic coaching, referees, bench and also organizing of competition for all womens participants. The AHC had agreed to release the funds prior to the commencement of the program from 14th to 19th October 2007. A Committee had been formed to comprise of womens to spear head the program and will assist by the National Basketball Development Officer on some of the technical aspect of the program. The SIBF would like to sincerely thank the FIBA Oceania office for initiating the idea and also for submitting the application thru the AHC on our behalf.
6. Plans
- Schools Competition
- Womens Basketball Program
- HBL Presentation
- November Senior Basketball Comp.
- Constitution review meeting with the three Basketball Associations (HBL, Renbel Ass. & Malaita Bask Ass)
Report prepared by: Golden Kiloko
National Basketball Development Officer
Solomon Island Basketball Federation
C/- National Olympic Committee of Solomon Island
P O Box 532
Honiara
Solomon Islands
Date: 31st of August 2007
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