The Southland Sharks have made their first move of the Sal’s New Zealand National Basketball League season, confirming Head Coach Guy Molloy will return for the next two years at the helm of the southern basketball franchise.
Molloy is the current New Zealand Women’s National coach and will spend the coming months guiding the Sydney Flames squad during the upcoming Australian Women’s National League season before returning to Invercargill for a second season in the Shark Tank.
“I am excited to remain part of the Sharks organisation for the next two seasons,” Molloy said.
“Despite missing the playoffs, a strong foundation was put in place to create the high standards necessary for NBL success. In coming months, the Sharks will recruit high-level talent to its ranks as well as foster the development and pathways of local talent. I look forward to this journey with the Club,” he said.
Molloy said the support from the Sharks’ supporters and wider Southland community made it an easy decision.
“I can’t thank the Sharks community enough for making me so welcome and it makes such a difference personally and for our playing group to know we have that level of support through the ups and downs of the season. Our collective job is to keep paying that support back by playing Sharks’ basketball every week,” Molloy said.
For Sharks Basketball, Molloy’s extension was a vital first move as the organisation moves into an exciting off-season.
“We’ve got some pretty big plans on and off the court for next season and to have Guy locked in to drive our programme for next year and beyond is a very important piece of our puzzle,” Operations Manager Jill Bolger said.
“When we first interviewed Guy for the coaching role nearly twelve months ago, we knew he was a perfect fit for us as an organisation and that proved to be the case all through last season. We haven’t really stopped since the season ended, so to get a running start at 2024 is really exciting,” Bolger said.
The 2024 Sal’s NBL season will tip off in late March and will likely include ten home games at ILT Stadium Southland before the Final Six in July.
