It seems odd to label a relatively new team in the WBBL as looking to be resurgent this year, especially coming off the back of their second consecutive playoff appearance in only their third full season, but perhaps that’s a reflection of how excellent Tom Sadler’s Rebels have been in their brief time in the WBBL that last year was seen as an underachievement.
A roster ravaged by injury and Covid complications at key times of the campaign meant that we never really saw the full potential of the Essex Rebels in the 2021/22 campaign, but their star Scottish forward Claire Paxton is adamant the team can get back to their best in the new campaign.
“Last season we underachieved and didn’t show the best we can do as we had a lot of players in and out of the line-up through injury and things like that, so we didn’t have the consistency that we were looking for.
“We’re aiming high this year, we’re wanting to learn from last season and we’ve got some new faces coming into the group that we’re really excited about, so we’re going to look a little different, but focussed on achieving our goals this year.
“Our style of basketball lends itself to competing with the top teams because we move the ball well and quickly and shoot well from the perimeter, so we have a lot of weapons and I hope we can show how good we can be this year.”
“It is realistic for us to aim for a home tie in the play-offs.”
After consecutive play-off appearances for the club, finishing sixth in 2020/21 and seventh in 2021/22, the Rebels are considered by many to be a favourite for another top eight berth this season, but as the club continues to grow and develop at WBBL level their expectations rise as well.
Whilst Paxton doesn’t feel there are any rivalries developing between the Rebels and any of the more established names in the league yet, she and her teammates are very clear on who they want to beat and what they want to achieve this year.
“I am quite level-headed. I don’t get too high or too low and try to be sensible about expectations. It is a long season and we want to be better at the end of it than we are at the start, of course, but I think it is realistic for us to aim for a home tie in the first round of the Play-offs, at least.
“With the roster we’ve put together, including the chemistry and the players we’ve retained from last year and adding some really exciting new talent into the group for this new season, we definitely have the capability to do that if we play to our potential.
“We’re such a new team in the league that I wouldn’t say we have any real rivals yet, but we’re definitely competing with that group of teams in the middle of the table to finish in the top three or four positions, wanting to beat the likes of Leicester, Nottingham, Sheffield, and Caledonia. We finished seventh last year, so our aim is to do better than that and win more games this year.”
“I’ve taken a lot from that experience of playing at the highest level.”
Paxton flew the flag for Scotland at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games earlier in the summer as an all-WBBL line-up of Paxton, Hannah Robb, Kennedy Leonard and Sian Phillips took to the court in 3×3 action.
The 28-year-old discussed how special the Commonwealth experience was for her and her teammates, and how much it has helped her prepare for the upcoming WBBL campaign.
“The Commonwealth Games definitely benefitted me, going from the end of the season and having a little break before going straight into preparing for that, then coming from Birmingham and getting ready for the WBBL straight away, I feel like I’m a lot more focussed and as ready as I can be for this.
“I’ve also taken a lot from that experience of playing at the highest level with and against some amazing players, and the whole event taught me so much about myself on and off the court.
“Playing with Kennedy (Leonard), I learnt so much and I am really excited to bring what I took from that experience into the Rebels and see how that can help us going into the new year.”
The Rebels tip off the new season away against Krumesh Patel’s Leicester Riders on September 24th at 7pm. Watch every WBBL game live and free this season on the WBBL YouTube channel!