Neers men look far and wide for import
❝The best support the community can give us is jobs for these players to help attract them to town. — Anthony Corcoran
BASKETBALL: Despite initially not looking abroad, the Toowoomba Mountaineers have confirmed they are casting their net overseas for an import player in 2017.
Financial restraints mean that though the possibility of a foreign national running out for the ‘Neers in the QBL next season is now likely, their preference is still to bring Aussie-born players up to the Garden City.
“I am getting about 25 emails a day from players looking for a game, so there isn’t a shortage of them,” men’s coach Anthony Corcoran said.
“With our limited budget we are looking for bang for our buck so we’d like to recruit Australian players first who want to relocate because that way there is a better chance they will be around for two to three years.”
Economic viability is at the heart of the club’s recruitment process this time around, and the club is hoping the region can get behind its push to attract the best foreign talent.
“The best support the community can give us is jobs for these players to help attract them to town,” Corcoran said.
“If money was no object we would be like the Sydney Kings and attract players from the NBA.”
Though the focus has been on attempting to bring the big names to the Mountaineers since the beginning of the pre-season, the core of the squad from the last few years is set to return for 2017.
“Five or six of those guys are coming back: Cameron Weber, Jason Ebneter, Manylok Malek, Paul Aleer and Syd Hume.
“They are the definites,” Corcoran said.