Oliver Lees
The Macedon Ranges is gearing up to feature its very first team in the north west division of the Country Basketball League.
The Rockies – named after the shire’s most notable landmark, Hanging Rock – have completed trials and will have a men’s team to take the court in back-to-back matches on December 4 and 5.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions delaying the start of the season, the 2021-22 CBL fixture will feature several double-header weekends, where teams will play on both a Saturday and a Sunday in order to make up for lost time.
Long term Macedon Ranges Basketball Association player Tom Scott was part of the committee that pioneered the club’s entry into the CBL.
Scott, who previously played at Kyneton and will captain the Rookies in their maiden season, said it was exciting to be a part of basketball history in the area.
“I’ve probably been 20 years in the MRBA now, I played all my juniors through their program and a lot of representative and state programs through the Macedon Ranges too,” he said.
“It’s a first for the region, in terms of having a senior representative program.
“For a while, we didn’t really know if the season would go ahead, so it’s nice to see now we’ve got a start. It’s really exciting for the region.”
Scott said there had been plenty of interest in the trailblazing side, with more than 40 players showing up to the team’s tryouts earlier this year.
“There was a group of Macedon Ranges juniors that had played between Kyneton and elsewhere … Once we had that group, we just got to a point where we said, let’s get it done.
The Rockies’ first home game will be against cross town rivals Kyneton on December 5 at the Woodend Buffalo Sports Stadium.
“We’re lucky in the Macedon Ranges that we have Kyneton as an opponent, we can move forward as a region as a whole,” he said.
“It’s very exciting we have two teams from the Macedon Ranges given that five years ago, we didn’t have one.”
