TWO Bathurst players will be on a plane to New Zealand just before Easter after being selected in Australian Junior Country Basketball Cup representative sides.
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Goldminers juniors Will Cranston-Lown and Olivia Doble, who played in the boys’ and girls’ under 16s competitions at the Country Cup in Albury recently, were named in their respective touring teams in the wake of the tournament.
Bathurst coach Paul Masters will also head across the Tasman after his involvement in Albury.
Cranston-Lown helped his NSW Waratahs team overcome two other NSW sides as well as multiple teams from Victoria, South Australia and New Zealand in their push towards gold.
He scored 13 points himself in the grand final win over the Victorian Bushrangers.
“I felt like I played pretty well towards the end,” he said.
“At the beginning I didn’t think I was much of a chance of getting selected to tour, but I got better as the tournament went on and played OK in the final.”
While Cranston-Lown was aware of the possibility of going further at the end of the championships, Doble admitted that it wasn’t something that had crossed her mind.
She helped her team to the semi-finals but they ran into a couple of strong opponents in that match and in the bronze medal game, and had to settle for fourth.
“I didn’t know I’d been nominated before the tournament to be up for selection,” she said.
“We didn’t win but I think I played pretty well at times during the week. You don’t know whether other people are going to notice that or not.
“I think while we’re over in New Zealand it will be all about just proving that we are up to that level of competition and getting our names out there a bit more.”
While in New Zealand, the sides will play three days’ worth of pool matches before finals on Easter Monday, something both Cranston-Lown and Doble should be well conditioned for after the busy Albury championships.
The level of competition could go up a little, though, given that in New Zealand, teams play at under 15s and 17s level rather than 14s and 16s.
Effectively, they will be playing against a lot of opponents who are a year older than them.
“It will be a good test for all the Australian kids,” Masters said.
“They are bigger and stronger than what they’re used to and have a bit more experience at that level, so it will be interesting to see how it all goes.”
When their normal routine resumes, both players will line up with their respective Goldminers under 16s sides as well as the Western Reds in 2015, but for now their focus is on the upcoming trip – and helping pay their way there.
“I might have to do a bit of extra work around the house,” Doble concluded.