Bundy shooting major hoops

Bundy Bulls’ Kaleb Bax looks for a gap in the Hervey Bay defence in the under-12 Central District Basketball Carnival.

Max Fleet BUNBASK

BUNDABERG Basketball junior president Neil Petersen is excited about the future of the sport in the city, with the association's playing numbers continuing to boom and their representative sides continuing on an upward spiral.

Petersen said he was delighted with their teams' performances across the board in the Central Districts Championships, which concluded with the third round in Bundaberg over the past fortnight.

The Bundaberg Bears won the under-16 girls' division, while the Bundaberg Bulls claimed the under-14 boys' title, on percentages after they and Rockhampton won eight of their 10 matches over the three rounds.

The first round was played at Rockhampton on November 12-13, with the second in Gladstone on December 3-4.

Bundaberg teams finished second to Gladstone in the under-18 boys' division and to Rockhampton in the under-12 boys. The Bulls finished third behind Rockhampton and Gladstone in the under-16 boys, while the only other Bears side in the tournament was runner-up to Rockhampton in under-14 girls.

Petersen said the winning under-16 girls and under-14 boys would compete in Division 1 at the state championships in Brisbane at Easter, while the other four Bundaberg teams would battle it out in Division 2.

"The 16 girls are coached by (former Bears QBL coach) Mick Davies and there are some good players, such as Ashleigh Frampton and the multi-talented Jane Lester, who are currently in a state trial program and travel to Brisbane for squad trials, and Sharlyn Ferrar," Petersen said.

"The 14 boys are coached by (former Bulls QBL mentor) Glenn Jenkins and they won the under-12 Division 2 at the state championships last year. They have a lot coming through in the bottom age up a division this season.

"Isaiah Richardson was their top scorer, while their most aggressive was Manuel Ostrofski and Bailey Jenkins also played very well.

"The overall results compare more than favourably with previous years. We are moving forward and are able to field more teams in more divisions. We previously did not have an under-12 side but it was great to see the 12 boys do so well.

"Hopefully we'll have an under-12 girls next year and hopefully enough girls for an under-18 team."

Petersen put the good results down to a couple of factors, headed by improved coaching.

"We've got some quality coaches in town now and Dean and Danny Page have both offered their time willingly to assist other coaches to improve their skills and the competitive nature of players," he said.

"We have also made full use of the new, expanded facility and the new, covered outside courts provided by flood relief funding have increased training opportunities.

"Two of our volunteers also make it happen - court marshal Wendy Sinclair and secretary Kerri Savidge made sure the tournaments ran smoothly."