We're saying goodbye to two of our Senior Women...

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We are very sad to wave goodbye to two of our Senior Women stalwarts as work takes Sarah O'Brien and Lauren Walker to pastures new. We wish them both well in their new ventures and hope to see them back soon! We had one last chat with them to find out more about what was happening.

Lauren Walker

How many years have you played at Kats?

I've played for Kats twice! Once was for 7 years (I then left to play pro in Holland) and now for 3 years. So 10 years in total. Saying that, from a young age I used to go to all home games at Meadowbank (women used to play before the Kings!) to watch Kats play as I've always regarded them as the best club in Scotland, and one of the best in the UK.

Tell us about the reason for your move

I'm moving to Malmo, Sweden, in order to return to what I love to do- teaching history at an international school. I came home 3 years ago for various reasons which has been good but circumstances have now changed and I feel the urge to return to the international school scene.

What has been the highlight of your time at the Club?

Omg!! There has been so many highlights it's almost impossible to choose! Naturally doing the treble this years was an amazing achievement. It was also the first time I've ever won a league championship at Kats so that was particularly special to me. The double last year was also great. Playing with Rose, Emma and Tracey as well as other great players of their time- Jo Sutherland, Nicky Smith, Vlasta Jamnicky. It has just been an amazing experience as well as a total honour and privilege to be part of a club so great as CoE KK. There has only ever been one club for me...

Do you have any advice for the younger players at the Club?

Listen to what your coaches are telling you! Pay attention to the older players- watch how they practice, conduct themselves both on and off the court and as much as possible always strive to keep improving. You're only as good as your last game...

I'll be home at various points so as long as there's games being played at Porty I'll come along to cheer! Good luck for the coming season (I'll be watching from Sweden!) and catch up next time I'm back :)

Sarah O'Brien

How many years have you played at Kats?

I played at the club for the past 5 years after moving from city at junior level. I'm so devastated to be leaving as I had such a great experience at the club and devastated that my final year there was plagued by injuries.

Tell us about the reason for your move

I'm moving up to Aberdeen to take up a PE teaching position in Kemnay Academy for a year which has meant Tayside Musketeers will be the closest club.

What has been the highlight of your time at the Club?

The highlight I think has to be being named Club Women Player of the Year in my first year at the club and the numerous cup finals and playoff finals I have experienced while being a member.

Do you have any advice for the younger players at the Club?

Believe in yourself I guess! Even if others don't, push yourself to become the best you can and you will see the benefits. "What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight but the size of the fight in the dog". A very influential quote given to me by Donna Finnie that changed my outlook.

Senior Play Offs 4th - 6th April

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This weekend sees the final games of the National League season with both our Senior Men and our Senior Women's teams in action. The Senior Final Fours are being held at the Edinburgh University Centre for Sports and Exercise at the Pleasance. This is a fantastic venue with lots of spectator seating close to the court so there is a great atmosphere, so if you haven't been to a game there it is definitely worth a visit.

First up on Friday are the Senior Men who will face St Mirren in the semi-final. Doug Reilly's men will go into the tie as the underdogs having lost in the league and cup to St Mirren but with a full squad with the exception of Mike Murray available for selection, the team will be hoping to battle their way to the final on Sunday against either Falkirk Fury or Glasgow University.

On Saturday the Senior Women will begin their bid to secure the treble with their semi-final against Polonia Phoenix. Kats will be the strong favourites to reach the final given the results in their previous matches in the league but there will be no complacency in Ben Gunn's team. The other semi final is Lady Rocks and St Mirren.

To purchase tickets online click here, to get 25% discount use the Discount Code BS14POF. Please note there are various options from weekend passes to half day tickets for Saturday and Sunday.

The full schedule for the weekend is :

Friday

• 19:00 Semi Final 1 (Men) Clark Eriksson Fury v Glasgow University
• 21:00 Semi Final 2 (Men) City of Edinburgh Kings v St Mirren West College Scotland

Saturday

• 10:30 Semi Final 1 (Women) City of Edinburgh Kool Kats v Polonia Phoenix
• 12:30 Semi Final 2 (Women) Lady Rocks v St Mirren West College Scotland
• 14:30 Wheelchair Basketball Scottish Cup Final Lothian Phoenix v West of Scotland Warriors
• 16:45 Chairman’s Cup (Women) Glasgow Fever v Granite City Grizzlies
• 19:00 Chairman’s Cup (Men) Edinburgh University v West Lothian Wolves

Sunday

• 10:30 CashBack for Communities U14 Girls Cup Final Lady Rocks v SWL
• 12:15 Senior Women’s Play-Off Finals Winner of Game 2 v Winner of Game 1
• 14:30 CashBack for Communities U14 Boys Cup Final Clark Eriksson Fury v St Mirren West College Scotland
• 16:15 Senior Men’s Play-Off Finals Winner of Game 2 v Winner of Game 1

Lets get behind our Senior teams for one last time this season!

1994 to 2014 - Tracey still on the winning team

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After the fantastic success of the Kats in this year's Scottish Cup, some of the more senior members of the club recalled that it was exactly 20 years ago that the Kats first became Scottish Cup champions.

If you would like to read more about this year's Kool Kat's win there's a full match report on the BasketballScotland website or why not check out the game statistics.

You can also read below the thoughts of two of our club members who were involved that day 20 years ago! See how many people you can spot in the photos of the day, all those years ago. Also just added is a little note from the coach in 1994 - Toni Szifris.

Unfortunately, the U16 Men were not so lucky in their Cup Final, going down bravely to a tough St Mirren team. You can read the statistics for this match here.

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High-Res Version

By Brian Findlay

In 1994 Tracey Phillips was part of a very young (Beefeater) Kool Kats team who took on the might of Livingston SW sponsored by MIM in the Scottish Cup Final. For Kats, it was their first Final and the game was at Ainslie Park Leisure Centre, in front of a large crowd on both sides of the Hall.

Toni Szifris was Kats coach then and his daughter Kara, Joanna Sutherland (Sandy's daughter), Charlotte Nelson, Vivien Ross (who now has a son at Porty) and Tracey were the mainstays of the team. They were all under 20 years old and had only been in Div 1 (yes, there were 2 Senior Women leagues then) for a couple of short seasons, and their excitement was huge.

The BasketballScotland game report at the time detailled the 3-pointer scored by Joanna with 4 secs to go in overtime for Kats to take the Cup by 1point.

Dr Tracey Phillips had been a big part of Kats since early in their history and last Sunday (2nd Feb 2014), 20 years later, she played another big part in their latest Scottish Cup success when they beat St Maurice's Rocks at the Lagoon LC in Paisley. Her encouragement in offence and calming words in defence have brought out the best in players like Hannah, Rose and the rest of the SW squad.

She will say the Cup win was a team effort, and so it was, but Tracey is a role model for all our young players at the Club, who could do much worse than emulate her enthusiasm and work ethic. No wonder she is still on the winning team !!

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By Tracey Phillips

My recollection from the '94 final is a bit patchy. I do remember feeling very excited and nervous. I think we had made it to the final before this but had lost, so this gave it an extra edge. Also, the venue of Ainslie Park was one that we hadn't played in before as finals were typically held at Meadowbank.

And of course, the final piece of the puzzle was our opponents - Livingston - they had been the dominant club for many years with GB and Scottish internationalists at all positions. Just 4 years previous, we were drawn against them in the opening rounds of the cup, and they handed us a near 100 point thrashing with their start-to-finish full court press. We never forgot that encounter and it served as a great motivator for the final in '94.

In terms of the game, the main things I recall off the floor was a noisy crowd crammed in to limited space. On the floor, the two things that stick out in my mind were toward the end of the game. Livingston had the last possession of the game in regular time and one of their forwards drove, I fouled her, and time expired. I wanted the ground to swallow me up. The game was tied and here I'd given them the chance to win it with free throws.

As it happened, Lady Luck was smiling down on us and they missed both taking the game to overtime. Well into the overtime period we were down by 2 and staring defeat in the face. It felt as if everything was in slow motion, the shot clock is winding down, we're down 2, no time-outs left, passes in and out and it comes to Joanna. Just on the 3-point line, she peers down steps back and releases the 3 pointer. Pause. Swoosh. Sheer delight.

Then 20 years later, find myself fortunate enough to be playing in another cup final. Obviously have more experience to draw on compared to years past, but still get the butterflies and excitement inherent to these big occasions.

Battles with Rocks remind me of the tussles we had with Livingston, different players yes, but the same desires and efforts to win and outperform your opposition demonstrated by both sides. And this is what keeps me wanting to come back for more.

Lady Luck is still shining down on me, and I'm just grateful I've had the privilege to be a member of some excellent teams and had the support of great team mates. Long may it continue.

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Back row l-r: Vivien Ross, Tracy Phillips, Jenny Duff, Biff, Toni, Vlasta Jamnicky.
Front row l-r: Louise McGregor, Charlotte Nelson, Lisa Thompson, Kara Szifris, Sarah Harris.

By Toni Szifris

The starting 5 was Kara Szfris at point Joanna Sutherland and Tracey Phillips at forward and Vlasta Jamnicky and Jenny Duff inside. Lisa Thomson and Viv Ross came off the bench followed by a short spell from Charlotte Nelson, who was just a kid, and Louise McGregor. The average age of the team was 19 which to my knowledge is the youngest ever.

This team changed the face of women's basketball in Scotland with their full court game with variations on presses and total fast break. All the other teams had to learn to play against pressure. I see over the good years that have followed that this is still what wins games for the Kats.

Jo's final 3 pointer was not all chance. The forwards were taught to shift round for the 3 pointer to the spot where the guard penetrated the 3 point line. That was what happened, penetration and kick from Kara and the glory shot from Jo.

Just for interest the Kool Kats name came from our first home venue during the teachers' strikes in the early eighties when we could not coach at school. We went to the Jack Kane Centre and called the team the Jack Kane Kool Kats which we thought had a bit of a ring to it.

I must congratulate Brian for being a six time cup winner and Ben for his five with the Kat's and others previously with the All Blacks.

Rose Anderson joins the Kats

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Scotland's and City of Edinburgh's first female Olympic basketball player, Rose Anderson, made her comeback for the Kool Kats against Polonia Phoenix last Sunday.

Rose, who is currently back home in Tranent, helped the Kats to an emphatic 72-30 over their local rivals at The Crags.

We caught up with Rose and asked her about her recent return and her plans for the future:

We are delighted to have you back at City of Edinburgh but what has brought you here?

I am home waiting on my American Visa, which is being processed at the moment. My Parents live in Tranent, so I'm living with them in the meantime. Which means lots of good food!

How does it feel to be training with your old team mates and coaches?

The freezing gym definitely makes me feel like I'm back at home haha! Genuinely though, it feels like I never left. The majority of the players are same with the exception of new youngsters. I love seeing all the young kids coming through, and I'm keeping my eyes peeled for some future stars!

What are your long term plans?

My plans for the future definitely involve coaching, most likely in the US. I enjoy teaching and passing on knowledge that I have learned over the years. I'm hoping I can have a smooth transition from playing to coaching. But for right now, I'm back to being a Kool Kat!

 

 

 

Many thanks to Paul Storie for these great photos!

Kats Sweep Fury in season openers.

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All 3 women's teams had good victories against Falkirk Fury at the Mariner centre on Saturday.

A somewhat depleted Senior Women's team augmented by 4 talented Juniors began the day with a 64 - 51 victory over their Fury counterparts. It was a good all round team performance, with great support in defence.

Tracy was immense at both ends of the floor getting 25 points and loads of rebounds and Louise (18) and Kara (12) put in some useful points. Emma controlled things as always with Kirsten and Nicole taking good boards against taller opponents. The 4 juniors gave good service in spelling the Seniors throughout the game.

The Cadette Women were up next and had a solid victory 49 - 37 at the end of a see-saw game which saw Fury close the gap to a handful of points early in the last quarter.

All the girls got good court time from coach Kara Gillies, with Niamh Walker leading all scorers with 20 points. Good support too from the rest of the squad with points also coming from Roseanna, Casey, Emma and others.

It was a competitive game, but Kats had the edge all through and stretched away to a good win.

The Junior Women's squad had the easiest victory of the day with a 71 - 43 win to round things off.

The girls were too fast, direct and determined for the Fury girls, with Shannon (21 pts) having a field day near the basket. Rowan (20 pts) was very difficult to stop and with Elspeth and Cara getting the ball up the court quickly, fast breaks were common. Eilidh (6) and Ciara shot well and Kathleen threw in some baskets too.

In fact 11 out of 12 players scored points, reflecting how good a team performance this was. There will be tougher games ahead, but this was a good start to the season for the Juniors, and coaches Emma Findlay and Tracy Phillips.

Successful end to the season

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In a fantastic final weekend for the Club, both Senior teams were successful in the 2013 Play-off finals at the Lagoon Arena in Paisley.

The Kats romped to a 82-47 win against the home team, St Mirren. Top scorer was Hannah Peacock with a massive 40 point total, assisted by Shauna O'Connor and Tracey Phillips with 11 apiece, although all the bench managed to get on the court during the game.

The Kings v Fury game was altogether a more tense affair. The final winning points being scored by Edgars Rekis from the free throw line in the dying seconds of the game. Edgars also finished as top scorer on the day with 25 points, followed by Lee Reilly on 19.

Congratulations to both teams and all the coaches for doing the "double"!

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Thanks again to Paul McBrierty for these fantastic photos:

Senior Women Play-off Finals 2013

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Senior Men Play-off Finals 2013

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The Junior Mens Division 2 League was also concluded at the weekend, with the Kings 'B' team finishing on a high with wins against Edinburgh Lions (70-42) and Grampian Flyers (76-59). The boys were crowned league champions with an amazing 17 game unbeaten run.

Well done guys!

U18 Division 2 Champions 2013

Weekend Preview 27th/28th April

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Both our Senior Men and Senior Women are looking to finish their seasons on a high by completing the double - Scottish Cup and League Play-offs.

With the Cups already under their belts, the play-off finals take place on Saturday 27th April at the Lagoon Leisure Centre Arena, Paisley.

First up are the Women who take on St Mirren Reid Kerr College, with tip-off at 5:00pm. Having finshed one place above the Paisley team and with four wins already this season they must fancy their chances for the double.

The Men's game follows immediately after at 7:15pm, when the Kings take on their fiercest rivals Clark Eriksson Fury. With Fury taking the League and Kings the Cup this will go some way the determining who takes bragging rights as the top team this season.

This game will also be the final Kings performance for All Star nominated Edgars Rekis (pictured above) who will be returning home to Latvia after the end of the season. Lets hope the team can send him home on a winning note.

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The Junior Men's Kings B team also feature this weekend in their final games of the season against Edinburgh Lions (11:00) and Grampian Flyers (13:00). Both games are almost at home - just up the road at Holy Rood High School on Sunday 28th April.

Table topping Kings, with the second division league already in the bag, should be able to relax a bit more than usual and enjoy their games!

Very best of luck to all teams in the final week of the National League season.

Exciting finale to the Men's League season

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This weekend sees the finale of the Men's National League season and two of our teams are in contention in the last weekend. The first league to be decided will be the Senior Men's - the outcome of the game on Friday 1st March, when the Kings take on Falkirk Fury, will determine the league winners.

This game will definitely be a huge draw for fans of both Clubs and neutrals so please make sure you get down to Portobello early as we do not want to have to turn any of our own members away. Doors open at 6:30pm for an 8:00pm tip-off.

Please note there will be an admission fee for this game - unless you bring along a City of Edinburgh Yearbook. Tickets will be provided for players and coaches of the Senior Men's team and guests.

The Junior Men and Cadet Men will also play their last games of the season on Saturday 2nd March at Portobello, tip-offs at 5pm and 3pm respectively.

While the Cadets will be playing for bragging rights over their old rivals Falkirk and for play-off places, the Junior Men still have a chance to win their league if they win against Falkirk and Boroughmuir also beat Tayside. A big crowd to cheer both teams on and to celebrate their achievements and progress this season would be appreciated by the players.

The leagues on the women's side of the Club still have a few games left, and while Juniors and Seniors are still in contention both, like the Junior Men, need to rely on other teams slipping up, which means each remaining game is a must-win!

The Junior Women and Senior Women both play Polonia on Saturday 2nd, also at Portobello, with 11am and 1pm tip-offs - again a big home crowd would help the players!

2 out of 3 wins at the Mariner for Kats

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Despite a defeat for the Cadette Women against a good Fury side, the 2 other Kats teams came away with convincing victories from the Mariner on Saturday 23rd February.

The Junior Women got off to a great start against Fury and never looked back. Some more exciting fast breaking basketball saw the girls record an 84- 52 win, winning all 4 quarters in the process. With 10 players scoring and 5 of them in double figures, it was another all round team performance which has been the mark of the last few games, all good court time for the whole squad. Double figures from Kirsty, Kirsten, Hannah, Nicole and Shannon, with good support from Ciara, Rowan, Geraldine, Kathleen, Elspeth and Lauren.

The Senior Women were down on numbers for this game with Sarah, Leanne, Kara and Shauna all unable to take the court. However, the others played up to their ability, ably supported by some more Juniors than normal. Big points from Lauren, Louise and Hannah with double figures also from Emma and Tracey and points from Jenny and Kirsten gave the girls an 88 - 47 win.

Junior Women - only winners against Rocks

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The Junior Women team scored a good 69 - 50 win against Rocks at Portobello on Sunday.

Sandwiched between a loss for the Cadette Women and an overtime defeat for the Senior Women (2nd overtime loss on the bounce for the SW against Rocks), the Junior Women reinforced their 2nd spot in the league with this result.

After a good start, the girls were never troubled against an aggressive, hard working Rocks outfit. After allowing Rocks 6 3-pointers in the first half, the girls shut that down to none in the 2nd.

The whole bench played, with 1st year Juniors now making valuable contributions to the team performance. It has taken some time to make the jump to Junior, but at last the girls are feeling more comfortable.

Some good fast breaking basketball saw the girls win every quarter. Hannah led all scorers with 21 points but sat on the bench for the final quarter of the game. Kirsten put in 15 and Rowan hit 12. Points from Kirsty, Ciara, Geraldine, Shannon, Nicole and Kathleen and good performances from Elspeth and Lauren, showed that it was a great team effort.

With 3 league games left the team are keen to finish the season on a high with 2 games against Fury and 1 against Polonia still to play.

Well done girls.

National League Preview Saturday 19th January

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With the National League entering the home straits, several of our teams are still in contention at the top of their leagues.

With the Senior Men's league looking increasingly likely to come down to the last game of the season between current leaders Falkirk Fury and Kings who are breathing down their necks in second place, every game counts. The Men are at home at Portobello High School at 3pm against Glasgow Storm and whilst the team will not be complacent it would be a major shock if the bottom placed team were to reverse the last result and get a win.

The Senior Women's League is even tighter with the two Edinburgh teams, Kats and Polonia tied on points. Both sides have tough games this weekend with the Kats travelling to Paisley to take on St Mirren and Polonia playing Falkirk Fury, both teams will be watching anxiously for the other's results!

In the Cadet Men's league, Kings host Glasgow Rens at 11am with the home side looking to improve on their 6 point victory the last time the teams met.

The Junior Men will also play Rens at 1pm. The Kings will be without Gregor Gray for the second week running as Gregor is still in Australia playing for GB in the Youth Olympics. It was a tight game last time they met with Kings finishing up winning by 5, fingers crossed for the win.

If you can, come down to Portobello and cheer all the men's teams on. If the prospect of 3 games of basketball isn't enough, there will also be the first 200 Club draw of the year!

The Cadette Women have a tough match ahead as they travel to Paisley on Saturday to play second placed St Mirren, coach Kara Gillies will be hoping to build on the Kats fine win over Tayside last week and improve on the 21 point loss the last time they faced the Paisley side.

The Junior Women will also be in Paisley in a top of the table clash with St Mirren, the last time the teams met the Paisley side just edged it by 5 points so it should be an exciting game.

Clean sweep of Tayside for all 3 women's teams

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On Saturday 12th January the Club hosted Tayside Musketeers in the 3 women's National leagues.

The Junior Women got things going with a solid win against the number 3 team in the league. Another good defensive display and especially good rebounding at both ends from Hannah (28 points) saw the girls come through with a 61 - 47 victory. Geraldine built on her good work in previous games against Tayside to throw in 12 points and keep the lid on the quick Arbroath guard. Better free throw shooting could have seen a more comfortable win.

The Cadette Women continued the good work with a last quarter 46-40 victory over their Tayside counterparts who had only lost 2 games so far this season before Saturday. The game was close throughout with Tayside having the edge until the last quarter. Amy Fraser came up with a big 18 points and Cara Targett-Ness added 10, but a great contribution from all the girls earned them a hard fought win.

The Senior Women's game was really a dress rehearsal for the Cup Final on 3rd Feb, and the girls responded well. With our 2 Irish students still not back from their Christmas break, it fell to the "locals" to do the business. Lauren Walker stepped up with 23 points with Leanne Page netting 16. The girls kept up good pace against the Taysiders with Emma, Trace, Kara and Sarah ably supported by several Juniors who stepped in to fill the bench. Still time for plenty hard work between now and the Cup Final, and complacency is an "unknown word" for coach Gunn.

Scottish Cup Semi-final Weekend

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‎There are 4 cup semi-finals being contested by our teams this weekend.
Which one will you be at?

First up on Saturday at Portobello are the Senior Women at 11am against St Mirren, followed at 1pm by the Senior Men against Falkirk and then finally the Cadet Men against Boroughmuir at 3pm.

Then on Sunday the Junior Women are in Arbroath to take on Tayside at 1.20pm.
Good luck to all!

There is also a preview of the weekend's action on scotsman.com

Scottish Cup Semis for four

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As a result of last weekend's matches, the club has four teams progressing to the semi-finals of the Scottish Cup, which are scheduled for the weekend of 15th/16th December 2012.

The Senior Men put in a great performance against Troon on the road to gain an 89-50 win. This earns them a semi-final spot at Portobello against Falkirk Fury - a game surely not to be missed!

The Cadet Men also prevailed 81-57 against Dunfermline and can now look forward to a tough match-up against Boroughmuir in their semi final, also to be held at Portobello.

However neither the Cadette Women nor the U18 Men will be taking any further part in the competition after losing 36-61 and 51-58 to Glasgow Rocks and Falkirk Fury respectively.

The Senior Women and Junior Women already had their semi-final places secured. The Seniors will be taking on St Mirren at Portobello, whilst the Juniors travel to Tayside.

Ties have now been confirmed as follows:

Saturday 15th December at Portobello:
Senior Women v St Mirren (11:00 tip-off)
Senior Men v Falkirk Fury (13:00 tip-off)
Cadet Men v Boroughmuir Blaze (15:00 tip-off)

Sunday 16th December at Arbroath:
Tayside Musketeers v Junior Women (13.20 tip-off)

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This weekend sees the Mens' teams all travel to Dunfermline on Saturday, with the Cadets tipping off at 13:15 in a repeat of last weekend's cup game. The Junior Men play at 15:10 and are looking to reverse the suprise defeat they suffered from Reign at the start of the season. The Seniors start at 17:00, against a team they beat comfortably at home in the early part of the league.

On Sunday the Womens' teams all travel North to Arbroath to continue their League campaigns against Tayside Musketeers. The Cadettes, Juniors and Seniors have tip-offs at 13:00, 15:00 and 17:00 in their first league encounters this season.

Best of luck to all the teams this weekend.

Big weekend of basketball coming up

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This weekend Portobello High School is the place to be if you want to watch some high quality basketball played by your local teams.

A full programme of basketball starts on Friday night with the Senior Men looking to maintain their unbeaten run in the National League when they welcome Stirling Knights to Portobello at 8pm.

Then on Saturday morning the Club's U16 men start things off at 11am with a game against Tayside Musketeers followed by the U18 men against the same opposition at 1pm. The games against Tayside are always close, exciting games and the Under 18 game in particular will be hard fought as Tayside will be going all out to keep their 100% record while a win for the Edinburgh side will see them leapfrog Tayside and take the top league position.

From 3pm onwards it the turn of the ladies' teams who will all face their city rivals Polonia Phoenix. The Under 18 women start things off at 3pm, both teams are on the same amount of points in the league and the last match saw only a 3 point victory for the City of Edinburgh Kats so this will be tight!

The U16 women at 5pm will be hoping to build on their victory of last week with another good performance and improve on their last match which resulted in a comprehensive win for Polonia.

Then finishing things off at 7pm, the Senior Women will be fighting hard to avenge their 1 point loss to Polonia and inflict a first defeat of the season on Polonia.

Keep up to date will all the news, scores and match reports here on the website or on Facebook or Twitter.

Full programme after October break

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It's back to a full programme of games this weekend for most of our age groups after the October mid-term break.

The Mens National League teams are all heading West to Glasgow on Saturday to continue their league campaigns. The Senior Men are playing Glasgow Storm at North College G21 4TD - tip-off at 1:30pm. The Cadet Men and Junior Men face Glasgow Rens at Shawlands Academy G41 3TR - tipping-off at 11:40 and 13:30 respectively.

The Ladies National League teams are all at The Crags Sports Centre on Sunday, matching up to local rivals Polonia Phoenix. The Cadettes tip-off at 11:20, with the Juniors at 13:20, followed by the Seniors at 15:20. Get there early if you want a seat!

In the National League Division 2, the Kings 'B' U18 Men are due to travel to The Peak in Stirling, on Sunday. Here they face Grampian (10:00 tip-off) and Lanarkshire (15:15 tip-off) who are both as yet unbeaten in the league.

Finally, Sunday also sees the start of the U14 and U16 Regional Development Leagues taking place at Forrester High, Stevenson College and Tynecastle High. Full fixture lists for the day are available for U14 Girls, U14 Boys, U16 Girls and U16 Boys. Make sure you attend the correct venue!

Good luck to all our teams and here's hoping for a successful weekend!

Senior and Junior women's teams head to Manchester for pre-season games

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The Club's Senior and Junior women's teams travel to Manchester on Friday 21st September on what is now a regular trip for them in preparation for the new season. This is despite having played (and won) one league game already.

The girls will play in the Amechi Basketball Centre against Mystics and Bury at both Junior and Senior level and enjoy some good "bonding" time over the weekend.

With 14 Juniors and 12 Seniors travelling, Christie Fields Travelodge and Manchester's "curry mile" will not know what has hit them.

It's great to be able to integrate new players at both levels before the League season really gets into full swing and I'm sure the teams will return all the more prepared for their National League and Cup games.

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Meanwhile, closer to home, the Senior, Junior and Cadet Men are all facing St Mirren in the National League this weekend.

The Seniors are heading west on Friday night to Paisley for a 8:15pm tip off at the Lagoon, whilst the Cadets and Juniors travel to Linwood on Saturday with 10:45 and 12:45 tip offs.

Good luck to all the teams this weekend!

Strong start to the season

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The club had a good start to the new season with four successes out of six for our National League teams.

Both the Senior Men and Junior Men survived tough games against Boroughmuir, winning 75-68 and 68-59 respectively. The Cadet Men had a difficult afternoon going down 38-88 to a much stronger Boroughmuir side.

At Portobello the Senior Women also had a successful start to the season, winning 73-62 against Falkirk Fury. The Junior Women women followed suit, as Coach Findlay reports:

Junior Women start season with a WIN

The Junior Women began the new season with a good win against Fury at Portobello on Saturday.

With many of the team returning for their 2nd Junior Women season, there is an expectation that we will be more competitive this year.

12 of our complement of 17 Junior Women all got a good run in the game and ran out 69 - 21 winners.

It was good to be able to sub 5 for 5 throughout the game so everyone could contribute to the win.

Big points from Hannah - 23 and Shannon - 18 boosted the total, but a real team effort saw the girls win all 4 quarters with a bit to spare.

There will be closer games for the girls as the season goes on, but good to start with a win.

The Cadette women were not so fortunate, going down 44-61 to Fury after a great effort. You can read more about the weekend's games on our Facebook Page and in Sandy Sutherland's round-up in the Edinburgh Evening News.

Welcome to the new season

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The new season kicks of with a full National League programme on Saturday 8th September, 2012.

The ladies teams renew their rivalry with Clark Eriksson Falkirk Fury at Portobello High School. The Cadettes tip-off at 11:00am, followed by the Juniors at 1:00pm and the Seniors at 3:00pm.

Meanwhile, just the other side of Arthurs Seat, the mens teams are involved in a local derby with Boroughmuir Blaze at The Crags Community Sports Centre. First up are the Cadets at 12:20, then the Seniors at 14:20 and lastly the Juniors at 16:20.

Look forward to seeing you at either Portobello or The Crags.

Kings do the double

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In a great end to an already successful season, the Edinburgh Kings Senior Men completed a well-deserved League and Play Off double on Saturday at the Peak with an 89-69 win over rivals Falkirk Fury.

The game started with a tight first quarter with the teams trading baskets for a 16-16 scoreline. The second quarter was more of the same until the the Kings pulled slightly ahead for a 40-33 half-time lead. However, the Kings came out strongly in the third quarter on a 9-0 run to take charge of the game and went on to take the quarter 27-11. A fight-back from Fury to take the fourth quarter, still gave the Kings a 20 point victory.

Top scorer for the Kings and game MVP was Edgars on 24 points, with Lee on 16, Paddy on 15 and Simon on 14. You can see the post-match interviews with Edgars and Coach Reilly on youtube.

Unfortunately the Kool Kats Senior Women had a disappointing end to the season as they went down 48-63 to Glasgow Rocks in their play off final earlier in the day.

In a mirror image of the men's game, the first two quarters were shaded 14-12 and 14-13 by the Rocks, only for the Glasgow team to power to a 20-9 third quarter to seal the game. A close final quarter allowed the Rocks a 15 point win.

Congratulations though to top scorer for the Kats, Sarah O'Brien on 22 points and see her post-match interview here as well as Coach Gunn's here.