After a finals appearance last year, Hume City Broncos are hoping another off‐season together will help them go at least one step further.
With a team which has been pretty much unchanged for the last couple of years, Broncos coach Lanard Copeland is confident ahead of the forthcoming Big V state championship season.
“I think it will take a little time to get our structures right, but I was very pleased with how we played (on the weekend),” he said.
“We’ve been together for two and a half to three years and guys know each other and know their tendencies.
“They have a special page on Facebook and are friends now. Being friends helps you play better on the court.”
Having kept all their stars in the off‐season, the Broncos looked to add the finishing touches to the squad.
The club announced last year that they had signed two key players, former state championship youth player of the year Nick Jones, and former Australian Boomer Neil Mottram.
Jones made his debut for the Broncos at the Corral Classic pre‐season event two weekends ago, scoring seven points against Melbourne Tigers and two points against an American team.
Speaking before the second game, Copeland said he was impressed with Jones’s work coming off the bench early against the Tigers.
“I’ve got sort of the same team but I’ve brought in Nick, who used to be at Eltham and then went to college In Utah for four years,” he said.
Disappointingly, Mottram has had to withdraw from playing with the Broncos.
“His wife took a job overseas [with the Indonesian Olympic team, which Mottram will also work with] and he had to go,” Copeland said.
“It’s sort of hard for me to find a centre of his stature. I’m never going to find someone as good as him.”
Copeland is already on the hunt for a replacement.
“Obviously it’s important to have back up for JB [Jamal Brown] so he can have a rest,” he said.
“The main aim is to try to find someone out there. Everyone is looking for big guys though; it’s going to be tough.
“I’m talking to a few guys now and will see what happens. If we have to go without a back‐up, we’ll have to find extra ways.”
