As with many other sports, the second lockdown has put the local basketball leagues on hiatus for the time being.

Isle of Man Basketball Association remains committed to the safety of its members and to the wider island community.

The association would like to express appreciation to all the key workers who are keeping our island safe and supplied during these difficult times.

While everyone is doing their part to stop the spread of the virus by staying at home, it seems a good opportunity to review the various leagues and this week Martin Dunne takes a look at the Junior League.

The last few years have seen significant changes in the arrangements and opportunities for junior basketball players in the island.

Traditionally, development was left to the Manx Youth Games regional session and the island’s schools, with a difficult transition straight into the Senior League for those looking to take their game further.

Recently though, Isle of Man Basketball Association has invested time and energy into building a more structured Junior League as an effective bridge for young players into the senior game.

Core credit for spearheading and organising this initiative goes to Trudi Crellin (association chair), Annie Watkins and the young coaching trio of Jakob Glover, Michael Pardoe and Tom Dalton-Brown.

Since first being established in 2017, the Junior League has run every Thursday from 6-8pm at the National Sports Centre with the goal of developing skills, playing plenty of matches and having fun.

To that end, players are split into groups based on age and ability, and spend a portion of each session practicing team skills before implementing what they have learned in high-energy matches.

Players from several senior teams have volunteered their time to help coach the enthusiastic youths, developing their skills and, on more than one occasion, using the league as a great recruiting tool to their senior squads.

On junior coaching, Dalton-Brown commented: ’Coaching gives me an opportunity to give back to the basketball community and to all those that coached me growing up. It’s extremely rewarding, the kids and other coaches are fantastic.’

The Manx Youth Games is still the entry point for the youngest players, with four regional centres catering to those aged seven and above.

The Youth Games is where many current basketball stars found their start and through this foundation a plethora of players have developed the skills needed in order to play at a high level while at university off-island.

Players such as Kai Kirkham who played for Northumbria, David Clark at Loughborough and Ross Wilson who achieved success in Chester, as well as many others, all got their start at the MYG.

Several have since returned to the island, helping to improve the league with their skills and, in the case of Wilson, reinvesting in new players by coaching junior teams.

The island’s basketball community also has a long association with NBC Camps, which run a series of basketball camps around the world.

Founded in America’s Pacific Northwest in 1971, the 1990s saw the Isle of Man become the first place a NBC Camp was staged outside of North America, with King William’s College playing host to the camp each August for almost 20 years.

Although the camps no longer run in the island, there is remains a strong bond with the NBC. It sends coaches over to share their experience and a group of local junior players go on an annual trip to NBC UK camp in Malvern, building their skills by competing against players from around the world.

While last year’s camps were cancelled, there is optimism that this year’s will go ahead in August and plans are in place for a group to travel from the island - border restrictions permitting.

The current lockdown may have delayed the restart to the junior season, but it won’t dampen the enthusiasm of younger players for the return of basketball and should do nothing to stop the momentum behind development. Junior basketball training and games will resume alongside the senior leagues when restrictions are lifted, and new players are always welcome.

More details on junior basketball or the 2021 NBC camps trip can be found by contacting the Isle of Man Basketball Association on Facebook.

MARTIN DUNNE