THE Frankston Blues basketball club has signed on SEABL point guard Andrew Harms for a further three years as head coach of the Blues senior men’s program.
Harms, who has had a junior and senior career at the Blues as well as a SEABL career leading the Dandenong Rangers to multiple conference championships, will continue his role he took on mid-season this year.
Harms will head into the 2018 season with greater awareness having spent some of last season working with the playing group.
“The interim role was a valuable one for me in many respects,” he said. “It provided a chance to assess the program holistically, from training standards and game preparation, to on-court performance and player depth charts, along with off-court and how committed the club are to building an elite program.”
Frankston Blues chairman Chris Beattie said having Harms signed on again for next season is a positive step moving forward for the club.
“There was a genuine buzz around the club when Andrew stepped in as interim coach for the club last season and his impact was immediate,” he said. “I have no doubt that he will define our club moving forward.”
Upon joining the Blues program mid-season, the Blues increased their team and individual productivity with Harms at the helm. Blues co-captains Jake MacAulay and Bennie Lewis saw first-hand Harms’ way and spoke of how Coach Harms “redirected the groups focus” while creating a sense of “accountability”.
Former NBL representative Bennie Lewis whose scoring, rebounds and assists increased under Harms last season said Harms’ “attention to detail” was clearly evident and that preseason could not come quick enough, with Lewis adding “I can’t wait for season 2018.”
MacAulay, who shouldered much of the point guard duties in 2017, feels “its exciting news for the club and most importantly the playing group. Andrew brings SEABL experience along with his knowledge playing under some great coaches during his playing career.”
Having been the starting point guard on Frankston’s most recent conference championship winning team (2009), Harms’ immediate focus is to recreate a culture of high performance.
“I have had a long history with the Blues program, being my junior club,” Harms said.
“I was fortunate enough to be part of a successful period with the SEABL men’s program as a player, so I’m eager to get the club back to being consistently competitive again leading this time as head coach.”
With the club intending on entering development teams in Big V, Harms sees the off-season as an opportunity for the senior men’s program to establish the standards which season 2018 will be built on.
Harms will be looking to Frankston’s next generation of senior Blues, with “a considerable amount of youth being provided the opportunity and resources to improve their skills and physical attributes” leading into pre-season.
With recruitment also being at the top of his mind, Harms believes “finding the right experienced talent and import combination is critical to helping us back towards playing finals again”.