Shark Gareth Dawson credits Aussie experience

NICOLE GOURLEY/Southland Times

Rising to the occasion: Sharks power forward Gareth Dawson is looking to continue his steady development during the past year with Southland in this year's NBL.

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This time last year Gareth Dawson was a wide-eyed rookie sitting on the bench for the Manawatu Jets hoping for court time in his debut New Zealand NBL season.

Twelve months on, though, and the 2.05m 113kg Southland Sharks behemoth has to almost pinch himself after experiencing the best year of his basketball career.

It all started midway through the Jets season when Dawson was given extended opportunities after a spate of injuries in the Manawatu frontline. He went on to average 19 minutes a game and was the shining light in a dismal Jets season – picking up the team's most improved and rookie of the year awards.

Those performances caught the eye of Wollongong Hawks Australian NBL coach Gordie McLeod, who was coaching the Wellington Saints in the New Zealand league, and led to Dawson securing a spot in the Hawks' squad as a development player.

Dawson's time in the Australian league seems to have been extremely valuable for his play, with the 21-year-old showing promising signs in the Sharks' season opener against Hawke's Bay on Saturday night. Dawson poured in 10 points and seven rebounds in his 28 minutes on court and did enough to suggest that he will be a handy acquisition for Southland this season.

The big power forward said spending time in the Australian league and working with Gordie McLeod during the New Zealand off-season was extremely beneficial for his game.

"It was a pretty big step up. The players are of a really high calibre. It's one of the toughest leagues around," he said.

Dawson hopes to return to Wollongong next season as a development player, his goal being to cement a permanent place on their roster in the future. His Hawks side – which also features Sharks captain Luke Martin – takes on Perth in the third and deciding game of the Australian NBL grand final series tomorrow night, and he was hopeful the Hawks could take out the title.

The Timaru local has seen some raucous crowds at Wollongong Hawks home matches at "The Sandpit", but said the boisterous support at the Sharks' season opener on Saturday night was right up there. "I couldn't really believe the support we had from the crowd.

"They were very vocal. It's a big help when you get a crowd who is so enthusiastic."

On Sunday, Dawson and the Sharks' big men face a task of massive proportions against NBL title favourites Harbour Heat away from home, with the Auckland-based side oozing talent right across the court.

Dawson said one of the Sharks' main strengths was their size, and he was optimistic he and fellow Southland big men Martin Iti and James Paringatai would be able to cause Harbour plenty of problems close to the basket.

"They're a pretty tough team this year, but we're looking forward to the challenge ...

"That's one of the areas we're focusing our team play towards. We're looking to take advantage of our height and intimidate some of the other teams."

Meanwhile, Sharks coach Richard Dickel is confident skipper and former Australian international Luke Martin will be available for Sunday's match against Harbour. Martin will be involved in the deciding game of the Australian NBL grand final series with his Wollongong team tomorrow night against Perth.

GARETH DAWSON AT A GLANCE

Born: February 22, 1989, in Timaru
Height: 2.05m (6ft 9in)
Weight: 113kg
Position: Power forward/centre
2004-2005: Roncalli College First V
2006-2007: Waitaki Boys' High School First V
2008: North Otago Penguins (CBL)
2009: Manawatu Jets (NBL)
2009-2010: Wollongong Hawks (Australian NBL)
2010: Southland Sharks (NBL)

- © Fairfax NZ News