The emergence of new talent proved vital for the army men as they mounted a successful title defence at the Inter-Services Basketball Championships.
Sig Sulayman Suwareh (R Signals) was named MVP on his tournament debut and with another recent addition, Tpr Darreo Glasgow (RTR, pictured above), also shining the soldiers dominated the court.
An 82-70 triumph over the Royal Air Force was followed by a 72-62 defeat of the Royal Navy as the side claimed back-to-back trophies under player-coach SSgt Roshane Murray (RE).
“When Sulayman came off the bench he was an inspiration, blocking shots and dunking,” army player and UK Armed Forces Basketball secretary Capt Anyegwi Tambi Spicely (RAMS) told SoldierSport.
“He was great. It was an okay performance against the RAF. Darreo and SSgt Ferris Murray (RLC) were good in defence and offence, but it was one of those games where everyone contributed – even our coach scored a few points.
“The clash with the navy was changed by one person. Cpl Ryan Clasper (RLC) hit three huge three-pointers in a row and that put them to sleep – they could not catch us after that.
“One of our biggest worries was what would happen when we lost our older players. But with Darreo coming through last year and Sulayman emerging this season, we are heading in the right direction.”
It proved to be a disappointing competition for a depleted army women’s team, who lost back-to-back fixtures as the RAF claimed a fourth consecutive title. And the rebranded development tournament – which has been shifted from under-23 players to under-24s to encourage greater participation – was won by the senior service.
