Meet the Townsville basketballers set to shine in NBL1 North 2024
We’ve broken down the Townsville Heat and Flames squads on the eve of the NBL1 North season. Find out more about every player set to represent Townsville in 2024.
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The NBL1 North season begins on Friday night with Townsville’s men and women launching their campaigns with a tantalising double-header in Mackay.
Both sides missed finals last season but are confident they can surge back into playoff contention with a fast start to 2024.
While each team lost some of their top players from last year, they’ve bolstered their squads with top calibre stars including Adelaide 36er Kryin Galloway for the Heat and up-and-coming Fire guards Saffron Shiels.
Shiels turned 18 earlier this year but has already made her international debut when she joined the Opals in 2023.
Townsville Flames coach James Rapinett said his side were preparing for a tough encounter when they travel south.
“Mackay is always plucky, they’ll get up and in and they’ll try to disrupt us,” Rapinett said.
“We’ll have to be ready to get punched in the face essentially. Mackay is always a tough game, it’s always a great rivalry.”
TOWNSVILLE FLAMES
2023 result: 8th, 10-9
2024 captain: Kate Gaze with Alex Fowler as vice-captain
Players:
KATE ANDERSEN
Andersen is the Flames’ American import who has previously played for the University of Portland Pilots.
She joins Townsville after playing in Portugal in 2023, and she offers the side plenty of playing options with her impressive versatility.
LAUREN ANDREWS
Local Townsville product Andrews joins the side after a season of college ball in America where she played for the University of Northern Colorado Bears.
The 180cm forward mostly featured off the bench but shot at a reliable 44.8 per cent from the field while averaging 0.6 steals per game during limited minutes.
“Kate can play one through three, she’s a bit of a Swiss Army knife so she’s super exciting to watch,” Rapinett said.
INDIAH BOWYER
One of two Townsville Fire development players in the Flames, Bowyer made her WNBL debut this season and showed great development over her course with the professional outfit.
The 20-year-old guard went on to play seven games for the Fire during the season.
SHAYLEE BROWNING
Browning is a local guard who has been in the Flames program for a number of years now. She enters the 2024 season with 45 NBL1 appearances to her name.
ASHLEE FARRELL
One of the younger players in the team, Farrell plays as a guard and is a really strong defender. Her coaches believe she has a bright future in basketball.
ALEX FOWLER
Fowler was one of the UC Capitals’ brightest stars in their lacklustre WNBL campaign after returning from a gilted college career in Portland.
She was named Portland University’s Student-Athlete of the year in 2023 and was nominated for the 2023 NCAA Woman of the Year award.
Last season wasn’t her first in the WNBL – Fowler made her debut with the Townsville Fire in the 2018/19 season and played six games.
“She’s a local Townsville girl who had a fantastic WNBL season so I’m super excited to coach her again, I think she’s going to be fantastic and probably the best four-man in the league,” Rapinett said.
KATE GAZE
A WNBL championship-winning guard who brings a wealth of experience to the Flames, Gaze will captain Townsville this season.
Born into a famous basketballing family, Gaze forged her own legacy in the game and will be key to the Flames’ hopes in 2024.
“Her leadership in invaluable. She’s going to bring us so much on and off the floor,” Rapinett said.
“Obviously she’s a veteran of the game. She’s played for a lot of years and she’s really good for our younger players to look up to and see the hard work it takes to get to where you need to get to in the basketball arena. So it’s super exciting to coach Gazey, she’s an awesome person.”
AINSLIE MINOGUE
Similar to Browning, Minogue is a local player who has been in and around the Flames program for a number of years now.
Coach Rapinett said her versatility was an asset.
“She could honestly play anywhere from two through five, a super versatile player and should be a really good corner piece for our future,” he said.
SHAINA PACEY
Another local girl with six or seven years of experience at the club. She has been described as a pocket rocket point guard who gets the ball up the floor with ease.
Pacey should be in for a great season.
JASMINE RIGONI
Rigoni joins the Flames from the Sturt Sabres in South Australia.
“A lefty shooter who I’m really excited to coach. I think she had a great NBL1 central season last year and she will give us that little bit of extra firepower from the perimeter,” Rapinett said.
SAFFRON SHIELS
Shiels is one of Australia’s most exciting prospects and didn’t look a step out of place in the WNBL arena with the fire in her debut season.
The 18-year-old guard is long and athletic, and handles the ball with ease.
ELLA TOFAEONO
Townsville Fire development player Tofaeono joins the Flames for her first NBL1 North season with the side and her development has come in leaps and bounds.
Rapinett said she would be one of the league’s most physically dominating players.
“Ella had a good season with the Fire, developed a lot, she’s legitimately a five-man who will be a force to be reckoned with up here in the north.
“She’s going to give us a great presence inside with Fowler and Lauren as well.”
TOWNSVILLE HEAT
2023 result: 14th, 5-14
2024 captain: Ethan Betts and Michael Cedar
Players:
ETHAN BETTS
The Heat captain is one of the team’s most pivotal players and was crowned back-to-back Townsville MVP after the 2023 season.
Betts is one of the league’s most deadly ball carriers and can always find his way to the rim.
“He’s the heart and soul of the group and has been for a couple of years,” coach John O’Farrell said.
“We’re trying to work with him to develop his outside game but he’s a very solid driver getting himself to the rim.”
MICHAEL CEDAR
A veteran of more than 20 years, Cedar will also take on a captaincy role in 2024.
The versatile former Townsville Crocs player also has a close connection with his Heat coach.
“I don’t remember how many years he played in the NBL but he was with the Crocs for a long time,” O’Farrell said.
“He played back in the about 2003 era, so he’s been around a long time and he brings some real veteran savvy. I was lucky that I was working with Mick in high school, I was the coach of his school at that stage so we’ve known each other a long time.
“He’s a pretty big influence on the culture we’re trying to build within the team going forward.
“He’s still pretty lethal from the perimeter and he’s smart in terms of looking after the ball and finding the right people.”
KYRIN GALLOWAY
Galloway joins the Heat after a terrific NBL season with the Adelaide 36ers and prior to that he was playing in New Zealand.
The 203cm 24-year-old was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, and is just three NBL games shy of his 100th appearance.
He is the Heat’s biggest addition for the 2024 season.
“Reasonably big, athletic guy that shoots the three quite well. For the last two years he’s led this league in shot blocks so he’s a bit of a rim protector for us,” O’Farrell said.
“Genuine length and athleticism, we were all surprised at what he can do up and down the floor and he can easily get up above the rim.”
SAM HAUGHTON
Former Heat guard Haughton has been tracking back and forth between Townsville and Mackay for a while now, but seems to have now settled in the ‘capital’ of North Queensland.
“He was a junior here and then went down to Mackay when his parents moved. Then he came back here to study medicine at JCU so he’s been around for a little bit,” O’Farrell said.
“Last year he played in Mackay while he did his internship there but this year he’s working in Townsville so he gave me a ring and said he wanted a chance to get in the game and I said absolutely.
“He gives us that backup point guard and he’s very tough. At practice we’ve put him and Bettsy on the court together and that’s not a bad duo.”
CHRIS KANN
Kann, 28, has played 53 games in the NBL1 and spent time with the Townsville Crocs before they folded.
He’s a tough and experienced guard who can provide plenty from the bench when called upon.
“He’s been here in Townsville for a while. He’s a Rocky kid and I think he was a DP (development player) for the Crocs many years ago,” O’Farrell said.
“He’s one of our older players who has been with the group for a while and he gives us some perimeter shooting and nice defence, and they’re the sort of things we’re going to need throughout the season.”
HARRY MORRIS
After a season with the Illawarra Hawks as a development player, Morris made the move north for a new off-season challenge.
“We’ve been looking for a three-man who can shoot it,” O’Farrell said.
“He’s very keen to play up in this league because it’s significantly stronger than the NSW NBL1, so (Friday) is an opportunity for him to play against Todd (Blanchfield) because they trained together throughout the (NBL) season last year.
“Harry brings to us a bit of length, a bit more size than we had last year from the three-spot so we hope that he can stretch the floor for us.”
MAX NORTON
Norton has averaged about 10 minutes per game through his 40 NBL1 appearances and the 24-year-old guard will most likely predominantly play a support role again this season.
“Max is a local kid who’s a bit of a spark plug for us when he comes off the bench,” O’Farrell said.
“Again, he gives us some three-point shooting and he’s a little bit deceptive when he gets to the rim, he’s got a deceptive finish on him.
“He is energy from the bench for us when we need to provide some relief.”
RICHARD PEACHEY
The Heat’s 2022 Youth Player of the Year, 20-year-old Peachey took his opportunity with both hands last season when import Marcellus Garrick went down with injury.
“A three-man who played a lot of minutes last year when Marcellus went down,” O’Farrell said.
“We’re trying to work with him to develop his game a little bit, he’s an athlete and a half – he led the Townsville under-23 group in the northern challenge.
“He’s surprisingly bouncy, to use a nice basketball word, and he’s got a good perimeter shot in him and a strong body so we were quite happy with him at the end of last season and he can defend some of the bigger threes who have come in from the NBL back down to the NBL1.”
MATTHEW REES
Rees is a veteran of the sport who has been with the Heat for a long time.
His size and strength on the court will be relied on throughout the season.
“He’s a big man and he anchors us in the front court, he’s nice about a throw in too because he’s got nice soft hands and good touches around the basket,” O’Farrell said.
“He’s been with us a long time and he’s passionate about the club. It’s very hard to replace someone of his size so he’s a significant piece for us.”
MARSHALL WILSON
Another local kid in the squad, Wilson turned 20 this year and has shown plenty of promise in his limited appearances in the NBL1.
“He’s a youngster who is very keen to learn. He’s sort of our backup four-man so when Kyrin may need to come out that’s where we’ll throw him in and let him go and do his job,” O’Farrell said.
“He has a good strong body and we’re still trying to refine his role to keep it easy for him. He broke his nose early in the pre-season so he had to have surgery to get that straightened up a little bit, but he’s good and ready to go at the moment.”
HEAT ON HUNT FOR 3-POINT SHOOTER
Patrick Woods – 11/04/24
The Townsville Heat will soon learn whether an off-season recruitment drive to find the three-point shooter the club sorely lacked last season can produce a winning formula on the basketball court.
The Heat will launch their NBL1 North campaign on the road on Friday night against Todd Blanchfield’s Mackay Meteors.
Unearthing a floor-spacing shooter to create room for star swingman Ethan Betts was the focus of Townsville’s off-season and coach John O’Farrell said he believed the club would be able to showcase the fruits of its labour in Kyrin Galloway and Sammy Haughton on Friday night.
“We had a chat with the leadership group this year about the things we need to improve from last year,” O’Farrell said.
“We couldn’t stretch the floor, so our recruitment was about finding people who could come in and help us stretch the floor, shoot the three, so that teams don’t sag on us and take away from ‘Bettsy’ and the other drivers and crowd it up.
“We’re quite happy that Kyrin does that very well, he’s got a good range on his shot so that’s helped us and we were lucky to pick up Sammy Haughton from Mackay – he’s working at the hospital here and he gives us a backup point guard.
“We’ve still got a couple of kids who are at college who will come in towards the end of April and May but the rest are in a pretty good place.”
Former Townsville Crocs forward Blanchfield made his 400th NBL appearance last month and will pose a dangerous threat for the Heat
O’Farrell is relishing the challenge of facing down his 32-year-old former protege on his home court.
“I’ve coached him before way back in 2013 and he’s just an experienced player who can shoot the ball really well, so for us it’s about making sure he doesn’t get off too early,” O’Farrell said.
Townsville’s home opener will be on Friday April 19.
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Originally published as Meet the Townsville basketballers set to shine in NBL1 North 2024
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