Suzy still lighting up the Fire: Cocks
MICAELA Cocks might have taken over the captaincy, but she believes Suzy Batkovic’s leadership is still a massive part of the Townsville Fire’s culture as they prepare to farewell the WNBL legend.
Batkovic will return to action for her final game against the Sydney Flames at Townsville Stadium on Saturday night after missing the past six weeks with a pinched nerve in her neck.
Cocks has stepped up in her absence to captain the Fire and the 202-game veteran said Batkovic had been a great mentor even while she’s been watching from the bench.
“She’s still always going to have a presence and she shows leadership off the court just as much as she does on the court,” Cocks said. “We’ve got different styles and I’m not going to try to do the same things Suzy does, but she’s the best example I could have in how to lead and how to be a captain.
“She hasn’t been travelling on the road, but I love it for the home games because we can feel her presence and she’s the most competitive player I’ve ever played with.
“Playing with Suzy, she just makes everyone’s game so much better and I think that’s been the challenge not having her on the court for our team.”
Cocks admitted she’ll have mixed emotions when Batkovic takes the floor one last time against Sydney after they spent six seasons together at the Fire, winning three championships, while also becoming close friends away from basketball.
Batkovic’s workload is likely to be limited as she’s still recovering from her neck injury, but Cocks said the Fire players were just excited for the chance to celebrate her incredible career.
“She has so much heart and she wants to win more than anyone … but it’s not just about this one game and her performance,” Cocks said.
“We chat all the time about all different things happening in our lives.
“She’s not just a teammate, but one of my closest friends and she helps me out a lot.
“It’s sad that she had to be injured in her retirement year, but she’ll be remembered for a lot more than just this season.”
Sydney will also be farewelling a legend, as captain and Batkovic’s former AIS teammate Belinda Snell plays her last game and Cocks expected emotions would be running high for both teams.
“Suzy wants to win more than anyone and we want to win, but so will Sydney,” Cocks said.
“We still have to stay switched on and get the job done because that’s what Suzy would want is to not get too distracted by everything else.”
Saturday’s clash at 7pm. tips off