Surprise meal ticket
Casual lunch turns into a momentous move for Garbin
LITTLE did Darcee Garbin know that a simple lunch catch- up would lead to a seismic shift in her WNBL career.
As revealed in yesterday’s Townsville Bulletin, Garbin has signed a two- year extension to her existing deal with the Fire, keeping her in Townsville for at least the next four years.
Garbin is a key plank in the Fire’s long- term strategy and is seen as the long- term successor to superstar forward Suzy Batkovic.
“I went out for lunch with ( Fire coach) Claudia ( Brassard) and I didn’t really know what it was about, and I just thought she wanted to have lunch,” Garbin said.
“But then she says ‘ oh we want to sign you for another two years on top of what we’ve already got you for’.
“I was kind of shocked, but I was definitely keen.
“I guess with Suzy nearing the end of her career, hopefully I can eventually step into that role of starting big and become one of the starting bigs in the league.”
Garbin, 23, is spending her offseason playing with the Townsville Flames in the Queensland Basketball League, and is also studying at James Cook University.
“That’s one of the main reasons I wanted to say, but I also love not only playing basketball in Townsville but the whole place in general,” Garbin said.
“There’s amazing people here and the Fire have been amazing to me since I moved up here two years ago.
“So yeah, I’m officially a Queenslander.”
The Kalgoorlie junior will play for the Emerging Opals at next month’s World University Games, and will likely serve as an impact player in the Fire’s 2017- 18 season.
Garbin is eager to keep gleaning as much knowledge from Batkovic as she can.
“I’m getting as much information from her as I can, and also from the likes of Cayla George because she’s played in Europe, playing the WNBA right now and in the Opals’ program,” she said.
“So, getting as much information from them and competing against them every day can only make me better.”
The Fire will soon announce further signings and begin pre- season training in September.