Newcastle Eagles
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Newcastle Eagles | |
 |
|
| League | British Basketball League |
| Founded | 1976 |
| Team History | EBAB Washington 1976-1977 EBAB Sunderland 1977-1978 Sunblest Sunderland 1978-1995 Newcastle Comets 1995-1996 Newcastle Eagles 1996-present |
| Arena | Metro Radio Arena |
| City | Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyneside |
| Team Colours | Black, Gold, White |
| Ownership | Paul Blake |
| Head Coach |   Fabulous Flournoy |
The Newcastle Eagles or, officially, the Springfield Honda Newcastle Eagles are a British Basketball League team from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. Since 1995 they have played all home games at the 6,500 capacity Metro Radio Arena in the city.
Contents |
[edit] Franchise history
[edit] Early Days
Originally a Wearside team, the club played under the name EBAB Washington and then EBAB Sunderland throughout the 1970s. After admission into the NBL Division 2 in 1976, the team made gradual progress and had eventually achieved promotion to the first division by the 1980s. By now the team were playing at the Crowtree Leisure Centre in the centre of Sunderland and had gained a sponsorship deal with a major national company. After another namechange, to Sunnblest Sunderland, the team won their first major silverware, the championship, in 1981. In a major surprise at the time, Sunblest Sunderland beat league champions Team Fiat Birmingham in the semi-final and then the league runners-up Crystal Palace in the final. Further success followed in the following season as once more they reached the Championship final, only for Crystal Palace to enact revenge. In 1983 Sunblest finished runners up in the British Basketball League; their highest-ever league position at the time.
[edit] Building on the Early 1980s
After this period, however, performances faltered. Mediocore performances and mid-table finishes indicated that the side were struggling. The new decade brought with it optimism as the club reached their first-ever National Cup final in 1990 eventually losing to Kingston; although they would win it the following year. Also in 1990, the club finished third in the League and regained a place in the Championship Finals. Once more, however, this success remained shortlived and the side began to struggle as their finances became ever more erratic. After a number of dissopointing seasons owner Dave Elderkin controversially re-located the team from Sunderland to Newcastle and the team became the "Newcastle Comets".
[edit] New Name, New Arena
Sir John Hall, then chairman of Newcastle United FC bought the team shortly after their arrival in Newcastle; adding them to his Newcastle Sporting Group of the city's football, hockey and rugby teams. Hall's Sporting Club group was a relative failure and Ken Nottage and Paul Blake became the club's new owners. The final name change, from the Comets to the Eagles, took place in 1996. Since then the Eagles have steadily grown whilst remaining at their arena; many major basketball clubs began to move from their arenas from the 1980s onwards. Performances remained consistent as the Eagles kept achieved regular top five league positions from 1998 onwards.
[edit] The "Clean Sweep"
The 2005-06 season proved to be the most successful in their history when, under the guidance of player/coach Fabulous Flournoy, the club achieved a "clean sweep" of trophies, including the BBL Cup, BBL Trophy and Championship "double".
In addition, Flournoy picked up the BBL Coach of the Year and former Villanova Wildcat, Andrew Sullivan, was voted BBL Player of the Year. Flournoy, Sullivan and Andrew Bridge were also members of the bronze medal winning England team in the 2006 Commonwealth Games during March 2006.
[edit] Home arenas
- Washington Leisure Centre (1976-1977)
- Crowtree Leisure Centre (1977-1991)
- Washington Leisure Centre (1991-1995)
- Metro Radio Arena (1995-present)
[edit] Current roster
The numbers are established according to the official websites of the team (www.newcastle-eagles.com) and Britain's top professional league, the BBL (www.bbl.org.uk).
As of November 17, 2006
| 4 | |
Jeremy Hyatt | Guard/Forward |
| 5 | |
TJ Walker | Guard |
| 6 | |
Andrew Bridge | Guard |
| 7 | |
Tom Sherlock | Centre |
| 8 | |
Shawan Robinson | Guard |
| 9 | |
Tony Dorsey | Forward |
| 11 |  |
Brian McCotter | Guard |
| 12 | |
Olu Babalola | Forward |
| 13 | |
Darius Defoe | Forward/Centre |
| 20 | |
Fabulous Flournoy | Guard/Forward |
[edit] Squad changes during 2006/07 season
In:
- Tom Sherlock - Signed From Wayne State College
- Shawan Robinson - Signed From Clemson
- Brian McCotter - Signed From Troon Tornadoes
- Tony Dorsey - Signed From Fileni Bpa Jesi
Out:
- Perry Lawson - Transferred To London United
- Charles Smith - Transferred To Caja Rioja
- Andrew Sullivan - Transferred To DKV Joventut
[edit] External link
| British Basketball League 2006-07 | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Chester Jets | Guildford Heat | Leicester Riders | London United | Milton Keynes Lions | Newcastle Eagles | Plymouth Raiders | Scottish Rocks | Sheffield Sharks | Worcester Wolves |
