U/14 Miners Head to Nationals

The under14 Ballarat Miners Boys have accepted an invitation to attend Basketball Australia U/14 National Club Championships.

The Nationals will be played in Sydney from 24^th – 30^th September with the top 24 teams across Australia divided into six pools of four teams. Each pool will play a round-robin competition before the top two teams in each pool move into the Championship Division and the teams placed third and fourth in each pool will play off in the Shield Division.

The Ballarat Miners boys will join Nunawading, Whittlesea, Kilsyth and Bendigo as the representative teams from Victoria in the boy’s division. Whilst Victoria will be represented by Nunawading, Casey, Warrnambool, and Melbourne in the girl’s competition.

The Miners have enjoyed some success this representative season after two years of interruptions. The team finished 2^nd at the under 14 Basketball Victoria Junior Country Championships. They have then qualified for the VC Champ conference in the VJBL which is the highest division and they finished 7^th at the National Junior Classic in June.

Under 14 Miners Boys Head Coach Matt Sheehan said “This is such a great opportunity for boys to play at the National level at such a young age.  I’ve been very lucky to have a group of extremely talented boys who are willing to learn and just love the game of Basketball. 

Sheehan added “The team is looking forward to heading to Sydney and put their best foot forward and represent Ballarat the best they can.  This is something they truly deserve, and the experience is something they will remember for ever.”

Basketball Ballarat Elite Teams Manager Glenn White said “This is the first time we have had a boys team qualify for the under 14 Nationals since 2007 which proves what a great achievement this already is for the players and coaches”.

The team is made up of Lucas Byrne, Oliver Cape, Ky Geljon, Sam Keating, Archer Martin, Campbell McPhan, James Sheehan, Levi Smart, Sonni TeMoananui, Tyson Walsh and Head Coach Matt Sheehan, Assistant Coach Lincoln Martin, and Team Manger Peta Byrne

Attending an Australian Nationals is an expensive exercise especially when it is based interstate and in Sydney. It is expected that it will cost each player approximately $3,000.00 to attend the Nationals. Basketball Ballarat’s sponsor SIXT Ballarat has kindly donated a 25-seater bus for the team to use to drive to Sydney and return to assist in reducing the cost to families.

The under 14 Miners boys are seeking donations from local businesses to help fund this amazing opportunity to play at the National level and represent the Ballarat community. 

Alternatively, a GoFundMe page has been set up and you can donate by searching Ballarat Miners U14 Boys or alternatively via this link https://gofund.me/d0083356.