Not a good start, judging by the score.

It's like when you turn up at training at 7:30 in the evening and you see a bunch of old grandmas exercising with basketballs, shufflin there feet and trying to pass the ball to a virtually lifeless teammate. That’s how the opals are playing tonight.

Cambage pretty much carries the team. Pretty clear. If she ain’t available for qualifiers, we might not get to Tokyo.

George and Bishop cannot slide there feet.
Seekamp should not take the floor at all.
Talbot and Allen much lazier than I remember on D in comparison to how they played at WC.
Magbegor needs to get agro but her demeanour is always so fragile. Athletic, but not strong.
Garbin and Blicavs both get a little confused, losing there man and overlapping on offense.
Nicholson not even being used...
Mitchell a couple of good passes but offers no real spark. Not as much space to work in vs wnba.
Ebzery has been our best player, attacked the basket at least 5 times. Played good d.

Why did we not take Griffin? We look lost tonight :(

think she's not fully fit.
It was Mitchell or Whitcomb.

Some tired bodies showing, there use to just lobbing it into Cambage...
Who didn’t see this happening though.

Brondello not a great selector it seems if she is choosing these teams.
I remember last year she wanted Mansfield as the backup pg, both Mitchell and her injured late on. Ebzery moves over from sg to pg, Madgen comes in as backup pg and Lavey (who shouldn’t have been there) got few minutes but was still a level above Madgen.

Hooefully we run over them late on, but this team will struggle vs euro, America's and Africa teams in the first phase.

Opals without Cambage are so mediocre

And now they face japan.. who move the ball three times as fast. No size though.

Deserved to lose for sure, credit to China, wanted it more.

soundly beaten on the glass and then threw it away 18 times as well. that's a real bad night.

We suck... how many could you guarantee a Tokyo roster spot. I could not say for certain any are a lock.

Why no Nicholson?

A Japan loss and I would finally give the job to Seebohm. Other teams evolve so quickly and we look complacent.
A 3rd seed in Asia means we will face upper Echelon teams from Europe, Spain, France, Belgium, Serbia, Italy and the like.

Sandy can't coach a team without a huge post player. Her selections are terrible, giving preference tomhistory ove current form. Her,unwillingness,to,play a great defender and shooter in Nicholson’at all is a bit baffling giving a lot more minutes to undersized post players jacking up,3s.
For a defensive minded coach, we suck, we also can’t move the ball. We’ve Become a custom to spreading the floor with shooters and letting Cambage do her thing inside. When we actually have to play through teams, we have no idea.

I wouldn't keep her as mercury coach, hasn’t changed her team much at all in the last few years.
Aging squad with no real vision for the future. 85% of her players are between 31-35.
Turner, Cunningham and smith the only young ones at.

Tokyo

2 PG ? / ? (Options-Mitchell, Seekamp, Mansfield, Lavey, Mangakahia)
1 CG ? (Options-Ebzery, Wallace, Madgen, Tupaea)
2 SG Ohea / ? (Options-Whitcomb, Nicholson, Garrick, Cole, Wilson)
2 SF Allen / Talbot (Others-Blicavs, Kunek, K.Froling)
2 PF ? / ? (Options-Griffin, Smith, A.Froling, Garbin)
1 PF/C ? (Options-George, Magbegor, Bishop)
2 C Cambage / ? (Options-Tolo, Scherf)

Think only Cambage, Allen, Talbot and Ohea are locked in.
The naturalised spot is now wide open. I'm leaning towards griffin starting at the 4.

Sucks that we couldn't see Wallace, Aokuso or Mangakahia in the last year.. Really think they would surprise some people if they were healthy. Back to back injuries, fresh ones and unfortunate diagnosis for someone so young but seems to be pushing through.

Garrick is a must atm, certainly over Seekamp. A much better defender and a streaky shooter. Griffins toughness is much needed.
A bigger centre with a bigger body like Tolo over someone like bishop who is bordeing only on 6’2-6’3. Garbin has done little to earn her spot, looks,lost a lot of the time. Need more time developing.

no development coach with wnbl teams. If they work on there skills in ais or college, nothing changes when they leave.
Very very few go to actual trainers to improve skills.

A new wnbl should change that, an actual professional setup.

Spot on about development. Last night's loss started long before Brondello got involved.
When these players walk out of CoE it is often the last proper development they ever get and it is costing them in their pro careers and most of all costing the opals medals. It is also a by product of players having to chase every dollar they can find leaving no physical recovery time and no development time.

Anyone have an inside line as to why the wnbl was not snapped up by kestleman last year and aligned with the men's teams?

Did a particular women think it was better off sticking with the current league?

Jackson is absolute cancer to the women's program. Unbelievable player but her and garp will not bring the wnbl back.
None have been able to lift the league to a well run program that’s is financial stable., this is the 4th person in charge in like 5 years.

I really just see them handing it over to kestleman within 1-2 seasons.

Comfortable win for us.

Gets worse for nz, beaten by korea, finishing outside top 4.

NZ were terrible in that game. They have a pretty talented roster on paper but were made to look very second rate by Korea.

Losing quite a few players in the next cycle, who will replace them?

Cocks is 33 pg
Taylor 37 sf
Farnworth 32 sg
Harmon 32 pf

And bishop is in the team because?

All these wnbl coaches and they select a team that maybe can go 7-8 deep.

Next months u16s, same issue. Bring players who cannot defend these quick guards...
I've been saying it since we became apart of Asia.

Embarrassing quarter for the opals

Cayla George is the worst player I've ever seen play. Her pick and roll defence and defence in general is disgusting

yes she has always been an awful defender. does not care at all.

George is flat footed, same as bishop.

You could be playing allennat the 4 instead of havin both George n Ezi.

"George is flat footed, same as bishop."

same as Blicavs too

"Cayla George is the worst player I've ever seen play. Her pick and roll defence and defence in general is disgusting"

Well you can address the elephant in the room if you like. Not even close to being fit enough to play at this level. Same goes with a couple of other players - Seekamp being another that's been in a good paddock

The point guard position is a huge worry.

Embarrassing quarter from professional athletes.

Signs of life this quarter led by Mitchell but can we survive the bench minutes to come

No fujioka for Japan either.

at what point will we start guarding miyazawa?

Lazy by most involved, Allen probably the only 1 who hasn't given up every second play.

Game over. Too many of these opals act passive like if Cambage was still in the team and they can stand around and watch. Allen and Mitchell are all class but there is not enough talent around them.

Griffin over Mitchell easy, need some toughness under cambage.
Allen at the 3, ohea at 2, Ebzery at 1.

Griffin would have been good with Cambage out but in a full strength team I would take Mitchell every day

Who's at pf?

Luuuc, whatsvyoure wuakyfying squad loook like?

Qualfying'

It's pretty much next month, early nov

November 14-17.

We face Japan, chinsee taipei and India.

I'm going with...

Ebzery / Lavey
Ohea / Garrick / Cole
Allen / Talbot / Nicholson
Griffin / Magbegor
Cambage / Tolo

Mitchell, seekamp, Garbin, Blicavs, Bishop, George. Drop out.
Smith, Wallace, Mangakahia , Aokuso. Out injury/illness

Most of the Japanese squadbin mid twenties, should dominate for at leastn5 more years.

Garrick has been top notch this season so far, 3x3 has really helped her.
Watch her preseason games.

So maybe

Mitchell
Ohea
Talbot
Allen
Cambag

Kunek was playing well in 3x3 provides more than some of those players.

All the 3x3 ladies have been playing quite well (and they managed an Asia Cup gold medal), but none were invited to the 5x5 Asia Cup selection camp. Perhaps both teams are being kept separate and thus those in the 3x3 team are not in contention for 5x5 selection. There must be 3x3 Olympic qualifiers at some point too.

When they don't overlap, they should be see.

Odd that Nicholson got so few minutes, hard that get into your rhythm when your playing only a couple of minutes at a time.

No one crsshin the glass, looked like they were relying on the ghost of Cambage to pull down the boards.
To be out rebounded by 5'8-5’11 guards just by sheer desire is disturbing.

I know the WNBL is having a break week for olympic qualifiers so those Opals can participate, but what about players who will be overseas? Will Cambage and Allen etc. be able to leave their overseas clubs to actually play in the qualifiers?