IN T' NET
An occasional Basketball Diary ... (from Yorkshire, in case tha'd not noticed)
HOME; Archive 2006-7; June 07; November 07; December 07;
31/01/08
THAT WAS 2007, THAT WAS ....
2007 may not have been a vintage year, but it still had its moments, and there are signs that in retrospect it may turn out to have been far more pivotal than it may have seemed at the time.
It was the year when Guildford Heat, in only their second season of existence, lifted their first silverware, with victory in the BBL Cup Final, at Birmingham's NIA, in January.
It was also the year when the Heat showed John Nike just what he'd missed by allowing Thames Valley Tigers to go out of existence, as the club which came into being as a result of that tragedy doubled their trophy haul by winning the regular-season BBL title.
It was the year when Plymouth Raiders defied all the odds to strike another blow for the new kids on the block, as they took the BBL Trophy in only their third season in the top flight. To do so they had to not only overcome the holders, Newcastle Eagles, on their home court, but but also they had to face the longest possible trip, to the opposite corner of England from their Devon base!
It was the year when Manchester Magic added the first Senior silverware to their already impressive list of Youth titles, as they beat Worthing Thunder in the National Cup Final;
It was the year when Sheffield Hatters and Rhondda Rebels met in the Women's Cup final - but that applied to seven out of eight consecutive years! What was different this time was that it was the Yorkshire side who triumphed, beating the South Wales team for only the second time in a Cup Final, and preventing them from extending their winning run to five seasons.
It was the year when Leicester Warriors picked up their first ever title, as they beat favourites Bristol Flyers in the Final of the Patron's Cup.
It was the year when Leeds Carnegie became the seventh different team to win the Men's National Shield, in its seventh season. What was remarkable, in a competition open to teams in Divisions 3 and 4, was that both the winners and the beaten finalist (West Herts Warriors II) were from the lower division, which had only been introduced that season.
It was the year when two new teams broke the stranglehold of the "old guard" on the Women's Trophy, as Sevenoaks Suns defeated Enfield Phoenix in the Final.
At Youth level it was the year when Manchester Magic Under-16s, who had reached the unique milestone of 101 consecutive league matches without defeat by the previous September, found their long domination of Youth trophies interrupted. Sheffield Sharks had brought that incredible league run to an end, and they went on to end Manchester's run of six Sureshot Under-16 Cup victories in a row, knocking them out in the semi-final before winning the Final themselves.
The Sharks also went on to claim the Under-16 Championship, at the year's RAF Final Fours at Cosford, while Reading Rockets mirrored that achievement in the Under-18 Cup and Championship. For the first time since the club's formation, in 2000, Manchester found themselves without an Under-18 or Under-16 Men's title, but their Under-15s and Under-14s hinted that there was more to come, as the former retained their Championship, and the latter won theirs for the first time.
It was the year when Manchester's young women out-performed the men, with the Under-18s enjoying their third Cup success in a row, and the Under-16s their second. The younger team went on to lift the Under-16 Championship for the fourth consecutive year, but in the Under-18 competition it was haringey Angels who continued to dominate, with their third in succession.
Off court it was the year which began with the newly-formed BBA (Basketball Association), whose founders' offers of help had been turned down by the BBL Clubs, trumpeting their great plans
It was the year when the Mallin Review (originally due the previous October) was finally published, and, having initially caused even more fuss that the BBA, was buried even more quickly!