A Long Way To Go...
Coach Sean Stevens talks about the differences in basketball between the UK and Europe


Over the Easter weekend twelve players from the U16 squad travelled to Leuven in Belgium to participate in a tournament. Other teams competing were: Brno- Czech Republic, Krakow- Poland, Lundenscheid- Germany and Wevelgem and Leuven both Belgium. This was quite a big challenge for both the team and myself, as most of us had never experienced European basketball and believe me when I say it is vastly different! So over the course of this article I shall endeavour to explain some of the differences, not only in the way the game is played but also the culture.

The first impression they say is always important and my first impression when arriving in Leuven was how well organised things were. We had our own chaperone, one of the Leuven players mum’s, who made sure everything went smoothly and that we were always in the right place at the right time. Nothing was too much trouble for her, an absolute diamond! This attitude was also evident in all involved with the club a veritable army of volunteers. However this is not so surprising as the club trains six to seven hundred kids and runs fifty teams. All this from a city with a population of only 96,000. This brings us on to the next difference, the fact that even though basketball was considered a minority sport the whole city was behind the tournament. It was also evident that the local businesses realised the benefits of supporting so many kids in organised sport by the level of sponsorship and facilities. This meant that Leuven was a very clean city with little youth crime.

After the days games on Saturday we were guests at Leuven’s division one side game that evening. The arena is something we only dream of. Purpose built with 5,000 seats, ten bass drums, sound and light system to rival the Pavilions. Other facilities at the arena; CV suite, swimming pool, three bars, one with a dance floor. After the game all the players stayed for a party and took time to chat to all the lads. All the professional players were actively involved in the youth development and took an obvious interest in coaching and attending games. This gave the young players of Leuven noticeable inspiration.

Now onto the way the European teams play the game. The thing that stands out most is that it is good fundamental basketball played at a much faster pace. Nothing fancy, no finger rolls, no behind back passing just good crisp passing, proper lay-ups and good accurate shooting. The players are more athletic benefiting from at least five training sessions a week. There were no complicated plays, they keep the game simple and it works well. Defence was tight with man-to-man mandatory at this level. Although the refs didn’t seem to call much in the key, again they were tough on the fundamentals. The briefest movement of the pivot was punished and also illegal dribbles.

Sport as a whole is taken far more seriously on the continent with the whole community recognising the benefits of making organised sports available to all young people at minimum cost something this country could learn from. The budget for this was probably less than it would be to go to a two-day tournament in this country. Overall it was a fantastic experience and one which should be repeated. Even though we only won one game some of our players showed they have what it takes to compete at this level and those that don’t now know the standards they need to work to.

A lot of hard work went into making sure this went ahead, nearly having to pull out with four days to go, but was it worth it? Most definitely, what do a few more grey hairs matter! A big thank you must go out to Sharon Stevens who put up with my moods and played a massive part in rescuing the trip and Kevin Willis who drove us. He has the patience of a saint. Would I do it again? With more help yes, as I firmly believe young people deserve these opportunities, they learn so much and not just about basketball. Matt Hatchell from the TV Cannons spoke in the paper last week about the gulf between Plymouth teams and the South East/Northern teams. Well this widens yet further as you cross the channel. However with a lot of work and dedication, we can start to bridge this gap.

Yours in sport
Sean Stevens

The Team:
Daniel Stevens, Nathan Ellis, Chris Allin, Saul Perrin, Will Bray, Ryan Swaddling, Steven Moore, Nathan Lake, Johnny Wadland, Chris Buckley, Thomas Willis and Ben Williams.