The Sydney Comets’ journey in NBL1 got off to the perfect start on Saturday night - as both the women’s and men’s teams chalked up dominant wins over the Penrith Panthers in front of a boisterous home crowd.
The success of the Comets' opening night fixture goes far beyond the on-court results though. It was that crowd, filled to the brim with fans both new and old of the competition, that impressed women’s head coach Shelly Gorman just as much as anything her players managed to produce.
Gorman herself has experienced some of the largest and loudest crowds women’s basketball has been able to produce over the years, having earned silver and bronze medals at the 1996 and 2000 Olympics with the Opals and pulled together an impressive WNBL resume during her playing days.
“It was amazing. I think the management has just done such a fantastic job. It was such a community feel. The crowd was so loud and so supportive,” she said.
“The girls played well for them… that's part of what I say to the girls – so let's get out and showcase your awesome talent. So it was a pretty awesome start for us to kick it off.”
The star of the game was Vanessa Panousis, finishing with 35 points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals. The Comets junior made the move from Sutherland to play for her original club and Gorman expects a major season from the electric guard.
“I expect 35 points every game for us, she knows that. She's the captain, that's her role, I've written into her contract,” Gorman joked.
“Vanessa finished off the WNBL season so well, too. She's just bringing that in her leadership and the way she's shooting the ball. It's just it's a pleasure to have her around.”
Gorman explained that her Sydney Flames development player Jada Crawshaw is also one player to watch for the Comets this season.
“She's an incredible, an incredible athlete. And, you know, I'm hoping that she really gets to develop her game this season,” Gorman said.
“She's going to get a lot of court time, so I've been really happy with the way that she's just, she's practicing hard she's putting in the time.”
“Mate, she is like, she's such an incredible athlete. It's now combining that with her basketball skills and learning to control her body to finish the shot. I don't think she even realises how athletic she is just yet.”
“You know, Piper Anderson, Alex Kayrouz and we've got Shyla [Heal] coming. We've got a really strong starting lineup and some really good youth players coming off the bench as well.”
After taking the reigns of the Sydney Flames mid-WNBL season, Gorman is spending her offseason building on her player development and coaching skills with the Comets.
She explained that the Opal's culture and mindset they cultivated during the late ‘90s and 2000s has been ingrained into her life and now how she coaches.
“That's part of who I am as a person, so I think I have to bring that into how I'm going to coach because that’s the way that I played,” she said.
“I think that it’s really about a strong work ethic and competitiveness. But also to bring some fun and joy into the game as well for the girls who want to enjoy it as well.”
The Comets may have only just started their NBL1 history but they have made a major move in signing Opals star and All-WNBL member Shyla Heal. Currently making a championship run with the Townsville Fire, Heal will then join her former Flames coach and teammates for the rest of the NBL1 East season.
Gorman has coached Heal with the Flames for the past two seasons and is extremely excited to bring another superstar into the competition.
“She's one of the best point guards in the country. So I'm very excited to get excited for her to get here and start playing with us,” Gorman said.
“Vanessa and Shyla have played together, I mean, they're going to be pretty lethal. They'll be pretty hard to stop in this league. I can't wait to see Shyla continue to shine.”
Gorman is optimistic that her first-year team will be able to bring a championship to the Comets, saying that having the mindset of winning it all is the only way to play.”
“I think we'd be crazy not to consider ourselves championship material and I think that's important, you have to do that,” she said.
“But there are some very good teams in the league. And that will be too, we're going to hopefully we'll be up there.”
Watch the Sydney Comets take on the Hills Hornets at home on Saturday, starting from 5:30pm Live & Free on NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App here.
