Darwin Salties’ men’s and women’s coaches land gigs with Illawarra Hawks

Both Darwin Salties head coaches are taking their talents down south to hone their craft in the NBL. Read more here.

Matt Flinn coach of Illawarra during the Round 13 NBL match between the South East Melbourne Phoenix and the Illawarra Hawks at Melbourne Arena in Melbourne, Saturday, December 28, 2019.

Matt Flinn is taking his talents back to where it all began in his home town of Wollongong.

The current head coach of the Salties men’s NBL1 North side is headed back to NSW as part of the Illawarra Hawks’ new look coaching staff.

Appointed as one of the four assistant managers under new head coach Justin Tatum (JT), the former Hawks man is returning to a very familiar stomping ground.

With three seasons as a player, more than 350 games as assistant coach and one season in the top job, Flinn is looking forward to a return to the league after a four-year absence.

“I am really excited and grateful to JT for giving me the opportunity to return to the place that I played and coached for, and where I have spent a large part of my life supporting and being around,” he said.

“Assistant coach (is a role) that I’ve fulfilled over a long period of time, (and despite) having been out of the league for a little while I feel like I am well placed to jump back in and assist the group to try and achieve the ultimate goal of winning a championship.”

Eager to work alongside Tatum – father of NBA champion and two-time Olympic gold medallist Jayson – Flinn said he’d already seen why the American had found success in such a short time frame.

Coach Matt Flinn is excited to return to the Illawarra Hawks. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin.

“I am really excited to work with JT and learn from him,” he said.

“He is very well respected among the playing group and he gives people around him autonomy to contribute within their skill set, he is a great leader.

“The culture he has created here is exciting and there are certain similarities with this culture and the one we had in Darwin this year, players and staff genuinely want to see the people around them succeed.”

Despite the new gig, Salties supporters can be rest assured Flinn isn’t turning his back on Darwin, quite the contrary.

Flinn is using the opportunity to benefit the Salties, intending to return to the Top End with a renewed outlook and answers that’ll get the side over the championship hurdle.

“The role I have jumped into doesn’t affect the Salties,” Flinn explained.

“In fact, it compliments it.

“The Hawks are equally keen for me to continue my journey in Darwin and really try to keep growing the sport up here.

“It’s a win-win situation as I get to continue to learn and put into practice different things when I return in 2025.

“I can’t wait to get back there and try to go one step further by reaching the grand final and ultimately winning.”

Flinn isn’t the only Darwin coach headed south as current women’s head coach and Basketball NT’s High Performance manager Rod Tremlett is joining the franchise for the upcoming season, also looking to learn from and bring back his experiences to the Territory.