Olympians in side to play Kiwis

Press, 1 March 1989, Page 36

Olympians in side to play Kiwis

NZPA-AAP Sydney Three Olympians have been included in New South Wales men’s basketball team to meet New Zealand in the trans-Tasman Cup series next week.

The New Zealand squad arrives today for a six-match tour, which is part of the fiftieth anniversary year of the New South Wales Basketball Association.

National league team Sydney Kings will provide half the state squad, with the remaining players from Newcastle Falcons and Illawarra Hawks.

Kings’ co-captains, Damian Keogh and Brad Dalton, as well as Mark Dalton are Olympic representatives,

while Tim Morrisey and Glen Dunsmore have each had international experience. The remaining members are Chuck Harmison, Greg Hubbard and Rod Johnson from Illawarra, and Neil Turner and Grant Kruger from Newcastle. New South Wales and New Zealand met last year for the first time in the trans-Tasman Cup with the state team posting narrow wins in both matches.

“American import Jerry Everett from Newcastle was the big difference last year when we travelled to New Zealand,” said the N.S.W.B.A. executive director, Joe McLeod.

“This year one of the conditions stated Americans

could not be selected in the New South Wales squad, only those players eligible for Australia, which will make the series a lot closer.” Most of the New Zealand players took part in last year’s Olympic qualifying rounds against Australia, and completed a solid training session over the last week.

The team will be led by the experienced forward, Glenn Denham, who has represented New Zealand 50 times, and was judged the country’s outstanding forward in 1987 and 1988. Another member of the team will be 24-year-old guard Byron Vaetoe who was born in New Zealand, but moved to the United states

when he was three. He returned to New Zealand four years ago, and has been an impressive member of the national side, averaging 20 points a game against the Soviet Union during their 1987 tour. New Zealand will commence the tour against Newcastle Falcons tomorrow and follow with matches at Nowra, Albury, Shepparton and Wollongong before the state clash at Alexandria Stadium on March 10. “It will be difficult to better our efforts during the Bicentennial Year,” Mr McLeod said. “But, I am confident 1989 is going to be the big year for New South Wales basketball.”