Basketball battle starts heating up
An effort to try to stop a major centralised structural shift in Victorian basketball has gained momentum through an online petition.
Wimmera basketball figurehead Owen Hughan said a petition calling for Basketball Victoria to rethink a planned restructure program had attracted significant support.
“A ‘Save Victorian Country Basketball Petition’ on change.org has attracted more than 19,000 hits, but more profoundly, there’s been more than 1050 respondents who have registered their support,” he said.
Mr Hughan raised concerns in late February over plans he feared would place opportunities for basketball to flourish in country Victoria, including the Wimmera-mallee and Western District, at risk.
He claimed rationalistic plans that involved replacing a Country Victoria basketball system with regional city development hubs was inappropriate and potentially tokenistic and would struggle to meet statewide expectations in the sport.
“An autonomous country basketball administrative system overseeing associations run mainly by a volunteer workforce must remain in place to look after regional circumstances that are vastly different to those in metropolitan areas,” he said.
Mr Hughan fears the restructure would make a Country Victoria basketball committee either obsolete or powerless to direct basketball programs in the regions.
He said a summary of information from petitioners voicing concerns included: Loss of identity, financial viability and autonomy; country players being placed at an overall disadvantage; growth in a lack of understanding about regional issues in the game; growing distrust in the process by replacing something that already worked; an equal dispersal of finances and grant opportunities; and a threat of new obstacles in pathways for players with elite potential.
Mr Hughan said he planned to strongly raise the issue at a Basketball Victoria annual meeting in May.
“Unfortunately, I fear the decision is already a fait accompli and if it happens it will put country basketball back 10 years,” he said.
“It’s very easy to break something but it’s very hard to build it again.
“What we’re seeing here in basketball is possibly reflective of what’s happening generally as we try to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It seems people in positions of power in metropolitan or large provincial cities are intent on introducing a rationalist centralisation ideal – which we know in places like the Wimmera doesn’t work to our benefit.
“It is also reflective of a lack of consideration or understanding of the mums and dads and all the effort that is required for rural and regional athletes to succeed at high levels.
“The net result of course, is that promising players miss out and a talent pool is diminished overall. And it will all happen without the general public having an idea of what’s going on, and left asking questions about why we’re not doing as well in basketball as we might have in the past.
“The idea on the table is a failed and superseded model from the 1960s, which is ridiculous.
“Country Victoria was regarded as having one of the most successful programs in the country. I could understand closing down something that didn’t work. But this is proven, punching well above its weight and tapping into the passionate aspects of volunteerism.”