Joyce's passion never stronger with Ballarat return

It's a coaching homecoming in a lot of ways for Brendan Joyce to be back at the Ballarat Miners and he was glad to take over the women's team this NBL1 South as he begins entrenching himself back coaching in Australian basketball.

Melbourne will always be home for Joyce, Wollongong is always going to be a home away from given the great coaching success he had there with the Hawks and the time his family spent there, but Ballarat always holds a special place for him and his family.

It's where his coaching journey began in 1993 as he moved into the next phase of his life following his playing career that included 289 NBL games with the various forms of the Nunawading Spectres/St Kilda Saints/Eastside Spectres/Westside Saints, and the Brisbane Bullets.

Joyce started coaching the Ballarat Miners of the then SEABL and had great success with two championships and two Coach of the Year awards which led into the NBL where he took over the Illawarra where he was in charge for a decade including winning their maiden 2001 championship.

He also made a return to the Miners to coach the men's team once again from 2019 following his time in the NBL at the Hawks and Gold Coast Blaze, and then time with both national teams with the Boomers and as head coach with the Opals.

But after a successful stint coaching in Taiwan which included being the 2022 Coach of the Year and winning the championship with the Kaohsiung Aquas, necessity brought Joyce back home, and after taking a year out from coaching, he was itching to get back involved with Australian basketball.

He wasn’t sure what that might look like, but when the Miners needed a coach for the 2026 women's season, he was quick to put his hand up.

Getting back to Australian coaching

One thing Joyce knows is that he remains as passionate about the game of basketball, about coaching and about developing players and helping them reach their goals as he has ever been.

He knows he has plenty of time left to give to coaching wherever that might be moving forward, but for now there was no better place or opportunity to get back to work than in Ballarat and in the NBL1 South.

"I 100 per cent still love it and that's why I do it," Joyce said.

"You're obviously not getting paid a lot to coach at this sort of level, but I feel like Ballarat's my community and they were stuck, and I'm helping them out.

"But at the same time, there's no point doing it if you don't love it and I'm doing it because I really want to be doing it.

"In another years' time once the situation changes with some family and friends' illnesses, I've got options to look at offers from China, Japan and Taiwan, and we're talking some pretty good money here so I want to stay coaching.

"But from a family point of view, I need to be here in Australia right now and I love coaching. I did sit out a season, but didn’t want to do that again this year and this opportunity presented itself to help my community so I jumped in to do it.

"That keeps my mind ticking over as well in respect to developing as a coach, and I think coaching women develops another aspect for you too so you have the ability to coach both which I think is a real positive to be able to do that."

Taking on the Ballarat job

Joyce had some of the most enjoyable years of his coaching life when he was in Taiwan with the Kaohsiung Aquas and he would have been more than open to other opportunities throughout Asia had some challenging circumstances with family illness requiring a return home at the end of 2024.

Joyce always knew he wanted to get back to coaching and there was almost an NBL return as an assistant, but that never quite happened so after a break in 2025, he was quick to step in at the Miners and now wants to make the most of this NBL1 South season.

"I had the season off after I came back home and I needed to do that for family illness reasons, but I love coaching and Ballarat was in a difficult position and needed a coach so it was just a matter of the stars aligning," Joyce said.

"I'm really here to help them out and obviously I got the job late so that meant it was difficult for recruiting, but I have managed to recruit some decent players.

"Part of the process of recruiting is not just about trying to win, it's about being able to recruit because some of the players come to get better.

"Some of the WNBL players that are on the bench have come here wanting to get better so it's exciting from my point of view."

Building a team around Abbey

When Joyce was appointed coach of the Miners for 2026 he always knew that the key piece for him to lock away was always going to be Abbey Wehrung.

She has forged herself an outstanding including winning a WNBL championship with the Bendigo Braves, but Joyce has fond memories of helping to work her out going back to when she was still forging her way and friends with his own children.

Once Joyce knew that she was on board with him as coach, the other pieces began to come together including Elissa Brett and Casey Samuels from the WNBL, and imports Malia Fisher and Camille Hobby.

And whoever the players are whether they are from overseas and chasing their next big contract, WNBL players trying to get better or NBL1 players trying to take the next leap, he wants to help everyone on this Ballarat squad reach their goals while also racking up as many win as they can.

"I've known Abbey since she was young and this is my third time coming to coach in Ballarat and my kids spent a lot of time going to school here so I am a part of the community," Joyce said.

"I've been around Abbey since she was younger and I actually used to really work her out early mornings to help her get into the WNBL when I was high performance manager with Basketball Victoria so I've known her for a long time.

"She was waiting to see who was coaching before she signed and a few of the local girls did the same, but once I signed then they did as well and then I went out to try and get some girls that could come here who were wanting to get better.

"I want to help players get better and to help them achieve their goals whatever they are so we've got a couple of girls like Elissa Brett from Geelong and Casey Samuels coming off an injury at Bendigo, and they want to get better.

"The two imports as well have come because they want to get better jobs in Europe so I want to help them achieve that, but I also want us to be a good team.

"I already know we're competitive and we started well beating Bendigo, and we've still got Casey to come in so I feel good about how we're only going to keep getting better."

Coaching a women's team again

While the majority of Joyce's coaching career has been in charge of men including the previous two stints with Ballarat, and obviously in the NBL with the Hawks and Blaze, and even as an assistant to Brian Goorjian with the Boomers and in Taiwan.

However, he also coached the Opals for four years including taking them to the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, and there's always been something about coaching women that he has especially enjoyed.

While the men might go out and rely on what they can do athletically above the rim, Joyce has always enjoyed that coaching a women's team brings out the best in him as a coach, and having the option to coach both is something he's always proud of being able to do.

"There is an adjustment and I think the key is to keep your emotions in check a bit more coaching women if I'm being honest," Joyce said.

"These days no matter who you're coaching you need good emotional intelligence, and you have to be emotionally under control, and the emotions are different are men and women I don’t care what anybody says.

"I've coached them both and I've got three daughters so I think you have to have more control over your emotions, but one of the things I love the most about coaching women is that they are very analytical.

"I love that part of it and they probably ask more questions than the male counterparts when you coach, and they do tend to take directions a little more on board and try to go carry out what you ask.

"I think having that attribute to coach both men and women is something I've grown comfortable with because I think you're either a bad coach or a good coach, and it doesn't matter who you coach.

"If you're not a good coach or know what you're doing, they'll figure it out whether you're a male or female player pretty quick," Joyce added.

"But that high level of emotional intelligence is important when you coach women, and that doesn’t mean you can't challenge them, but if they know you can coach there's that respect there and they're great listeners, and learners.

"I just find they love that execution of the X's and O's and it's actually refreshing coming back to coach them after coaching men where a lot of times they might rely on their physical attributes, and think a bit more on their feet.

"You still like to let them play and think for themselves, but I just find they take directions really well and like being coached."